Missouri twister
Severe storms have left a trail of destruction in their wake across central and southeastern parts of the United States. Tornadoes were spawned from thunderstorms crossing the Midwest state of Missouri. The severe weather is being blamed for at least two fatalities as the tornado rampaged through a mobile home park, hurling one of the mobile homes over 100 metres and killing it’s occupants.
A second tornado touched down in Pensacola, on the Gulf of Mexico coast in the Florida panhandle. No fatalities were reported from this storm, although it flattened a house, tore off a church roof and damaged a vehicle parked at a shopping mall.
The severe weather was caused by a large area of low pressure. Very warm, moist air from the Gulf of Mexico collided with much cooler air from the Rockies. This contrast in the air provided the fuel for the storms to develop, aided and abetted by a strong ‘jet stream’. The direction of the wind also changed upwards through the atmosphere, and this helped the storms to spin, and the tornadoes to form.
Further severe weather is possible in eastern states during the next 24 hours as the low pressure continues to push east towards the Atlantic Ocean.
