Severe Thunderstorms Hail, Downbursts, and Tornadoes
Severe Thunderstorms Hail, Downbursts, and Tornadoes : It is 1:30 pm and the principal has just learned that the National Weather Service has issued a Severe Thunderstorm Watch. Thunderstorms are building to the west and are expected to hit the school district in less than an hour. He decides to cancel all outdoor activities and make an announcement to inform the teachers and staff. At 2:05 pm, it begins to get very dark outside and there is a rumble of thunder. The principal steps out to have a look. The sky appears as if its boiling and has taken on a green tinge. The wind picks up and the trees begin to sway. A cool blast hits him and a cloud of dust blows across the parking lot. "This storm doesn't look good." He reenters the building and is told the National Weather Service has just issued a Severe Thunderstorm Warning for their county. Suddenly, he hears a roar of wind and a crash. The storm has let loose a downburst - a sudden, strong rush of wind. He rushes toward the source of the noise. A branch from a nearby tree shattered a window in classroom. A few children were injured from the flying glass. Two will need stitches. He evacuates the classrooms on the windward side and moves the children into the interior music room which has no windows. They will be safe in there. Hail begins to fall and grow larger in size. The physical education instructor is barely heard above the roar of the hail striking the gymnasium roof and skylights. She moves the students into the locker rooms where it is safer. Large hail can impact at 100 mph. Suddenly, the skylights shatter. The principal decides to play it safe and move all students into the interior hallways. The lights flicker and the power goes out. He can't announce it on the PA system so he grabs a bull horn and begins rapidly moving through the school. The students and teachers empty out of the classrooms, a little confused. Some are excited by the commotion and some are scared by the storm. The hallways are noisy with anxious voices, but quiet down when a roar, similar to the sound of a train drowns them out. Teachers yell "Get down! Drop to your knees and cover your head!" Glass is heard breaking somewhere in the building. It was all over in just a couple minutes. Only ten minutes had passed since the thunder began. A tornado struck the school. The classrooms on the south side of the school were destroyed. The cafeteria and gymnasium roofs were gone. Children and teachers were shaken, but injuries were relatively minor. Because the principal in this scenario took the proper actions, lives were saved. No one was killed. On May 2, 1929, four schools were destroyed in Virginia in a tornado outbreak. Two of the schools were in session when the tornadoes struck. Fourteen students and teachers were killed and over 60 injured. On April 1, 1973, a strong tornado struck Woodson High School in Fairfax Virginia. Fortunately it was Sunday. The same school was struck by another tornado just six years later. On November 9, 1926, at 2:30 p.m., a tornado struck a school house in La Plata, Maryland. Sixty children and two teachers were inside. The building was lifted off its foundation and smashed into trees 50 feet away. Fourteen students were killed; the other 48 people were injured. Debris was found up to 25 miles away
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