What have been some of your personal experiences with extreme weather?

We had two storms last year that dropped 20 or more inches of snow on us. Fortunately, things melted between the two storms. It was fun. Both happened on weekends so no one lost any work. Except for those with children who didn’t have school due to the snow. I live in a city, so there are lots of people around and stores and it’s not like we’ll be marooned. So all in all, it’s not that big a deal any more. We’re supposed to get something similar this winter, too.

Last year we had 56 inches total—a historic record. One of our storms was well over two feet.

Once in the 90s, we lost power at our house for three days. The first day it was sort of fun, but it got really old having no lights, no heat (it was the middle of winter) and only a wood stove to heat food on.

We had a tornado come through our town in 1998. I was working 10 miles away while my husband was at home with our sons. I called my husband when I learned there was a warning for the area near our home. My husband grew up in Illinois, so he was familiar with the warnings and was rarely afraid when we had one. This time was different. I could hear the fear in his voice and he told me he couldn’t talk.

I left the office when the storm was over. I tried calling my husband before I left but there was no phone service. When I reached the entrance to our town, there was a long line of cars waiting to get in. The police were only letting residents with a photo id in. When it was finally my turn to show my id, the officer told me I would not be able to get to my street. Luckily, he was thinking of a different street, and I was able to get to my home. It was an F1 tornado that came through. Tree limbs were everywhere, a huge tree hit my neighbor’s house and came crashing through the ceiling, two very large trees came down at our next door neighbor’s just missing his house. We had several broken windows and a small hole in our roof.

My husband hid in the closet with our sons. He said he had to hold the door shut because it kept opening. We were without power for a few days, so Red Cross came by once a day with sandwiches for everyone. My sons had nightmares for a few months afterwards.

Last Dec. 7th I woke to 2 feet of snow that is about a once every 10 year occurence in my zone.

I am just below the snowline by about 500 feet or so and while a few inches here and there is common this was the storm of the decade no doubt.

Tree limbs crashing down all around, my driveway was blocked by a limb for 2 days, no power or phones for 3 days, made coffee with melted snow and everyone in the area was stuck and or careening out of control all over the icy roads back to my house. lol

My neighbor and I were on a sliding collision course and both our vehicles came to a stop inches from each other while sliding backwards down a steep hill that had iced over within an hour of sunset. haha

It was c-r-a-z-y on this mountain!

Freeezing cold, had about 7 blankets and comfortors on the bed and stuffed the cats underneath with me, not too bad. haha

My dryer blew a computer sensor from a power surge and cost me $250 bucks to repair. Grrrr!

Wichita Falls Tornado, April 10, 1979

This was an F5 tornado that ripped its way through one of the most heavily populated areas of town. I actually drove across it’s path on my way home from work after the sirens had sounded (keep in mind that when you live in tornado ally the sirens sound regularly and are generally considered to be a minor annoyance rather than a real life threatening alert). This sucker was so huge that I did not even recognize it as a tornado!

I got to my house just as softball sized hail began falling (more like being violently hurled from the sky). Luckily the major destructive funnel missed my house by a couple of blocks. Many friends and neighbors were not so lucky.

I can only describe the aftermath as apocalyptic.

Kudos to the Red Cross for, as usual, being the first on the scene to offer a very real and tangible helping hand.

Yeah, thanks for these. Tornadoes are thankfully extremely rare in England Town. When they do occur they kind of blow themselves out with a wimper. Appreciate how scary they must be to endure.

I went jetskiing during Hurricane Isabel in Virginia. It was amazing.

On Tuesday night I was travelling back from a funeral in Kent when I managed to get myself stuck on the M25 for the best part of 8 hours due to bad weather causing accidents and generally shitty driving conditions. I was desperate for the loo which didn’t help!!!

Walking against wind that could throw you down from the right angle, at -35 (-45 with windchill) .. felt like -50. But this is not extreme weather in Winterpeg :)

I have been caught out in a storm twice on my boat.
One of those times,I was alone,The other time,I was with a bunch of screaming fools.Alone is better..;)

The one I remember most is the April ice storm in 1992 o 93. I was in my first apartment. The power was out, but I was peacefully reading until it started to get too dark. Then I realized my predicament. I had electric heat and only a cordless phone. There was already an inch of ice and no sign of it letting up. I knew I was screwed.

My boyfriend at the time was thankfully thinking of me. I think it was at this point that I realized how serious he was about me. He stopped by in his work truck to get me on his way home. I stayed with his family for several days.

Tree limbs were hanging completely upside down from the weight of the ice. I remember feeling so sad for them. Large trees broke and had to be cut down. Power was out in the middle of town for a week, which was unheard of. There wasn’t even a grocery store up and running.

Had an almost tornado in my town when I was younger. I remember riding in the back seat of the car the morning after and a lot of trees, telephone poles, and other things were damaged. They called it the Labor Day Storm.

Had a tornado jump over my house around 1980. I was at the dining room table eating crabs when I felt this pressure like being at the bottom of the deep end of the pool. Then the power went out and that was about it. The next morning the path of destruction was clearly visible but it seemed to have jumped over my house on it’s way to the river.

Two years ago, my wife and i were driving to a casino, located in Evansville, Indiana. it was winter and the weather forecaster promised me a huge snow storm was heading the opposite direction of our traveling. NOT.

The blizzard hit us headon on the Pennyrile Parkway in Kentucky.

We were in the middle of a whiteout. visibility was about 12 feet ahead.

Snowflakes were the size of silver dollars. we traveled at about 6 mph. we made it to the casino in 6 hours, a trip that normally only takes 2.5 hours.

We soon forgot about the blizzard, when i won $1,600.00 on a slot machine. that warmed us up in a hurry.

@thekoukoureport Haha, just imagining that is too funny. You, just sitting there, eating crabs, while a tornado comes by and gracefully jumps your house. Albeit at the time you were probably extremely grateful to have survived.

I really didn’t even know what it was until the next day, it was just really wierd. It was also the first day of school, which was cancelled. So I got to follow the path of downed trees and messed up homes. Ran for about a mile right down to the river. I think two people died total but every one else had evacuated to shelter. My dumb ass family had no idea.

Wow all you Tornado peeps…I am being half humorous, but only half!
I think a tornado would be an exhilarating experience, provided, of course, one was not actually caught in the vortex.

Of course California earthquakes and wildfires are pretty exhilarating as well. ;-)

An annual event @Coloma usually before and after mudslide season in California.

@thekoukoureport When the tornado came through our neighborhood one of our neighbors said he saw the tornado jump a few houses and then came down on all of us. I’m so happy it was just a minor tornado. Our house was on a concrete slab. Had it been any larger, the house would have been destroyed. I’m sure that would have been interesting (and scary) to see.

Mine was a ranch house on a slab as well. @jonsblond coincidence?

Reading this question I was just reminded of a sand storm I was stuck in. I don’t know how a story about snow reminded but anyway I was maybe 3 years old and my whole family and I were somewhere together having fun when there was a massive sand storm. Sand was pelting us to no end and it got in all of our eyes. Not fun!

@daytonamisticrip Where were you?

I was caught in a Category 3 hurricane once, multiple snow storms/blizzards.

Hurricane Ivan knocked a few shingles off of our roof. We got close to the eye of it, too, near Mobile.

Pick up the pace, LA.~

@erichw1504 I have no clue, I was 3-ish and the only thing I knew was to follow my parents.

I have lived the majority of my life in the 2000s Australian Drought.

Our air conditioning went out during one of the hottest summers ever in Northern California, 105 plus days and high 90’s most of the night. The repair team wasn’t available for 21 miserable days.

I was in Virginia Beach during Hurricane Floyd, category 2, but with a huge rainfall of over 16 inches.

I experienced several earthquakes over the years, if that counts.

The three of us kids almost died one year when we were crossing the Rockies to visit Grandma for Christmas from carbon monoxide in the back seat. My Dad stopped at a closed gas station in the middle of a white-out snowstorm. The owner, who lived on site, came out and when he saw the three of us sleeping and my folks disoriented, he made us all get out of the car, and opened the station for us. It probably saved our lives.

It did save your life @YARNLADY, I have read of that happening more than once.