Oklahoma Tornadoes

Florida Cracker

Florida Cracker

Ejection Handle Pulled
Joined
May 4, 2009
Messages
12,360
Display Name
Display name:
Florida Cracker
Prayers for all those in the path and affected by the tornado outbreak in Oklahoma, today.

It appears the best way to help is to contact the Red Cross and Salvation Army, as they are staging relief into those devastated communities.
 
I've heard rumors this was even bigger than the May '99 tornado.
 
Just contacted my family in Moore. They are all OK. No power, of course.
 
The pictures on TV make it look like an atomic bomb hit.
They were showing one of the schools and there were no walls left standing.
I sure hope partisan politics plays no part in helping those people.
 
I have to ask for donations to the Salvation Army. They do an incredible amount of work on a fraction of the donations the Red Cross gets.

This is NOT a slam of Red Cross, God bless both organizations. Just saying that Red Cross has the visibility and gets 90% of the donation money. Please consider donating to Salvation Army or to both Red Cross and Salvation Army (I have).
 
JOhnH said:
I sure hope partisan politics plays no part in helping those people.
Click to expand...

Already been a speech on the floor of the Senate blaming those who are standing in the way of fixing global warming.
 
For those looking for ways to help, Glenn Beck's Mercury One has a relief drive leaving from the Fort Worth area and needs drivers with a CDL to help move the trucks full of supplies.

The United Methodist Church has a ministry called, United Metodist Committee On Relief. They provide disaster relief and spend every cent on relief not admin.

They fund admin out of their day to day budget and use every cent they collect for relief on relief.

Red Cross for blood and Salvation army with food Trucks / mobile kitchens and immediate response.

FEMA is a joke and will waste far more than they actually use to help victims.
 
Last edited:
51 confirmed dead so far. I'm sure there will be more, unfortunately. There were two schools destroyed and many, many homes and businesses. I believe there are still up to about 20-30 school children unaccounted for, and believed to be deceased at this point. With so many structures in ruins, it will take quite a while to find some of the missing folks.

As far as the destruction, some of our local people are reporting that this may be 2-3 times worse than May 3, 1999, even though it wasn't quite as powerful. Oddly, today's tornado took a very similar path as the one in '99. Within a couple of blocks even. And the paths intersected in the heart of Moore.

This is very tragic indeed. Those of you who pray, please pray for my fellow Okies that were affected today.
 
Amen, tough to watch since I grew up there.

Definitely gonna keep all those poor parents and children and everyone else in my prayers tonight!

Hug those little ones tonight if you got em!:yes:
 
geneseib said:
Already been a speech on the floor of the Senate blaming those who are standing in the way of fixing global warming.
Click to expand...
That is to be expected. And there are probably people that are going to blame it on gay marriage or slavery or the stealing of land from the Indians.

I don't care about that for now though, as long as it doesn't get in the way of helping these people rebuild their lives and community, like when the Sandy relief effort was delayed because it included millions in aid for areas thousands of miles away that had nothing to do with Sandy.
 
AuntPeggy said:
Just contacted my family in Moore. They are all OK. No power, of course.
Click to expand...

AP, glad to hear your family is ok. Have you had any updates from them? Do they have any idea when they may get power back? I am wondering if it will be days or months or ever.
 
I'm still in shock watching the whole thing on the news. I was in the hangar working on a plane when the first system rolled by KLNK on Sunday.
 
geneseib said:
Already been a speech on the floor of the Senate blaming those who are standing in the way of fixing global warming.
Click to expand...

Oh, geez.....even after their local weather reporter/anchor commented in an interview that they'd been in a "tornado drought" the last several years with far fewer tornados than usual. :mad2: :nonod: :nono:
 
Radar shows tops to FL700 this morning. :eek:
 
LDJones said:
Oh, geez.....even after their local weather reporter/anchor commented in an interview that they'd been in a "tornado drought" the last several years with far fewer tornados than usual. :mad2: :nonod: :nono:
Click to expand...

OKC may be but not the nation as a whole. What I've noticed is that "tornado alley" seems to have moved south and east recently.

Though when one looks at the 10 deadliest tornadoes in history, you'll see LA, GA, IN, MS, IL, and even MICHIGAN on the list.

One should never use tragedy to further a cause...especially not immediately.
 
Last edited:
46C71DDE-5B8A-4078-903F-402C7C77F38A.PNG
 
JOhnH said:
AP, glad to hear your family is ok. Have you had any updates from them? Do they have any idea when they may get power back? I am wondering if it will be days or months or ever.
Click to expand...
Actually, we are better informed than they are since they have no power. Those who have a hand-crank or battery radio are getting some news, but they have no TV, no Internet, NO CLEAN WATER. The water purification plant was destroyed.

When I lived there, we could expect it to take one to two weeks to get power back after a large storm, even in the city. Longer in rural areas. First, they must make sure that every downed line and the electricity in each house is safe before turning on the power. Big job.
 
If you live in central Florida, and want to help in your own way, the TEA Party is organizing water, clothes, food and personal care items to be trucked to Oklahoma.

You can drop off donations at REGIONS Bank to be collected at their Celebration and Championsgate branches.

If you are near Lakeland, Tailwheels Ect at Lakeland Linder Is another drop off point.
 
State Medical Examiners Office has corrected the number killed is 24.

Right now, it's getting darker and cloudier here with rain moving in on the rescue/recovery folks.

Please pray, not only for the people who lost loved ones and homes, but for those involved in the rescue/recovery effort.
Many of them will see things that no man should ever have to see.
.
.
.
 
My Mooney and ~100 other planes were victims of the 4-2-74 storm that flattened the Nashville airport and later Xenia, OH.

timwinters said:
OKC may be but not the nation as a whole. What I've noticed is that "tornado alley" seems to have moved south and east recently.

Though when one looks at the 10 deadliest tornadoes in history, you'll see LA, GA, IN, MS, IL, and even MICHIGAN on the list.

One should never use tragedy to further a cause...especially not immediately.
Click to expand...
 
I recall Xenia. Don't know if the tornadoes are worse, or there's just more for them to run into. I don't recall them being nearly this destructive in my youth.
 
steingar said:
I recall Xenia. Don't know if the tornadoes are worse, or there's just more for them to run into. I don't recall them being nearly this destructive in my youth.
Click to expand...

I remember some very bad tornado outbreaks in Florida over the years and was in one, in Beaumont, Texas in the later 1960's that was simply horrendous.
 
Florida Cracker said:
If you live in central Florida, and want to help in your own way, the TEA Party is organizing water, clothes, food and personal care items to be trucked to Oklahoma.
Click to expand...
I've never understood this concept. Why collect items 1250 miles away and ship them to Moore? Items that may not be needed in the first place.

I think it'd be far wiser to give money to local Moore charities along with the Salvation Army and Red Cross.

I would certainly think that groups like that would understand the needs far better than some misc group in Florida (or anywhere else) and the delivery should be far more efficient.

I recall Joplin telling people to QUIT trucking stuff to them as it was becoming a hassle to figure out what to do with it all and where to store it. IIRC much went to waste.

Good intentions, sure, but not the wisest way to go about it. Send money to those you trust to spend it wisely and appropriately.
 
timwinters said:
I've never understood this concept. Why collect items 1250 miles away and ship them to Moore? Items that may not be needed in the first place.

I think it'd be far wiser to give money to local Moore charities along with the Salvation Army and Red Cross.

I would certainly think that groups like that would understand the needs far better than some misc group in Florida (or anywhere else) and the delivery should be far more efficient.

I recall Joplin telling people to QUIT trucking stuff to them as it was becoming a hassle to figure out what to do with it all and where to store it. IIRC much went to waste.

Good intentions, sure, but not the wisest way to go about it. Send money to those you trust to spend it wisely and appropriately.
Click to expand...

People in America tend to have large hearts and limited budgets and often feel the need to help, even in small ways.
With the way cash donations are often misused, many like to make their contributions effective, rather than scammed by people without the same desire to serve.
 
steingar said:
I recall Xenia. Don't know if the tornadoes are worse, or there's just more for them to run into. I don't recall them being nearly this destructive in my youth.
Click to expand...

The most deadly was 1925:

The Tri-State Tornado of March 18, 1925 claimed the most lives of any single tornado, killing 689 people in 3½ hours on its 219-mile long track. This tornado also was the third-fastest tornado on record, traveling at nearly 60 miles per hour.
Click to expand...
 
That was a huge killer tomato but there was no warning systems back then. And the lack of warning plays a significant role in the death tolls of the "older" tornadoes.
 
Florida Cracker said:
......With the way cash donations are often misused, many like to make their contributions effective, rather than scammed by people without the same desire to serve.
Click to expand...


I don't give a PENNY to anyone for aid.... History shows 99% of it is wasted and/or stolen by the crooks running the operation... IMHO.
 
timwinters said:
That was a huge killer tomato but there was no warning systems back then. And the lack of warning plays a significant role in the death tolls of the "older" tornadoes.
Click to expand...

yep, an EF-3 hit the SE side of Wichita last year. No one died. It even went through a trailer park and everyone was OK. We had 3 DAYS of warning though.
 
N801BH said:
I don't give a PENNY to anyone for aid.... History shows 99% of it is wasted and/or stolen by the crooks running the operation... IMHO.
Click to expand...

Yep. Which is why people like to give things useful to people in need, as opposed to money to people to use as they choose, instead of it going to people in need.

The United Way does not need to pay executives as much as corporate CEO's, for instance. If those "humanitarians" want to earn corporate CEO pay, they need to go work for a corporation, not a charity.
 
tonycondon said:
yep, an EF-3 hit the SE side of Wichita last year. No one died. It even went through a trailer park and everyone was OK. We had 3 DAYS of warning though.
Click to expand...

Plus, killer tomatoes are a geographical "luck of the draw". Move the Joplin tornado north or south a few miles and it would've been a non-event...or nearly so.
 
Florida Cracker said:
People in America tend to have large hearts and limited budgets and often feel the need to help, even in small ways.
With the way cash donations are often misused, many like to make their contributions effective, rather than scammed by people without the same desire to serve.
Click to expand...

That's why you vet your charities. It's not rocket science to do so.
 
Florida Cracker said:
Yep. Which is why people like to give things useful to people in need, as opposed to money to people to use as they choose, instead of it going to people in need.

The United Way does not need to pay executives as much as corporate CEO's, for instance. If those "humanitarians" want to earn corporate CEO pay, they need to go work for a corporation, not a charity.
Click to expand...

The MAIN reason I think like this is.......

A few years back Elizibeth Dole came to Jackson for a fund raiser for the Red Cross.. She was CEO back then. There are 10 commercial flights a day into Jackson Hole and they all have first class sections she could have rode in.. But did she.... NOPE... She showed up in the Red Cross's G-V...

From that day on I swore I would NEVER give another dime to any charity... :mad:
 
N801BH said:
The MAIN reason I think like this is.......

A few years back Elizibeth Dole came to Jackson for a fund raiser for the Red Cross.. She was CEO back then. There are 10 commercial flights a day into Jackson Hole and they all have first class sections she could have rode in.. But did she.... NOPE... She showed up in the Red Cross's G-V...

From that day on I swore I would NEVER give another dime to any charity... :mad:
Click to expand...

I'll see that and raise you the salaries of the top execs at the united way, among others, not to mention AOPA using membership funds to pay for private jets to ferry them around.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top