|
|
|
|
Worcester Tornado
Mon Jun 09, 2003
Listen in RealAudio 
There's a good reason why "The Wizard of Oz" wasn't filmed in New England. The locals there
are used to blizzards, and nor'easters are a mere inconvenience. But a tornado, that's just
not supposed to happen. Hi, I'm Bryan Yeaton for The Weather Notebook.
The Northeast does get its share of twisters, though. Massachusetts' first tornado fatality
came in 1680, ten years before the Salem Witch Trials. The Bay State averages about three
tornadoes a year. But no New England tornado matches the twister that devastated Worcester on
June 9, 1953: fifty years ago today.
The whole Northeast was sweating through an early heat wave. The sky was milky and hazy. And
tornadoes were in the news.
The previous day, a twister in Flint, Michigan, had killed more than 100 people. The Weather
Bureau had issued one of the first-ever tornado watches for Michigan, but it didn't issue one
for Massachusetts, a big twister just seemed so unlikely there. But at about 4:30 that
afternoon, the Worcester funnel touched down near the Quabbin Reservoir, and headed east. By
5 o'clock, it was shredding a four-block-wide path across the north side of the city. Over a
thousand people were injured, and almost a hundred lost their lives. With the Cold War at its
height, tornado damage was compared to the ruin of an atomic blast.
Twenty years to the day after the devastating Worcester storm, Nature provided a sequel. On
June 9, 1973, a weak tornado dropped into town. It tore up a few trees, pulled down some
power lines, and whipped up memories of a more tragic day.
Thanks to Bob Henson for today's show. The Weather Notebook is produced by The Mount
Washington Observatory, and supported by The National Science Foundation, and Subaru.
Today's Links
Web site: Massachusetts Tornadoes
http://www.disastercenter.com/mass/tornado.html
|
|
