Could we see an extreme tornado in the Upper Peninsula?
MARQUETTE -- From Joplin, Missouri to Tuscaloosa, Alabama, the extreme tornado count seems to be spiraling out of control this season, killing hundreds and wreaking havoc across the nation. But why? One factor at fault is urban sprawl.
"Anytime you have tornados of the magnitude we've seen so far this spring coming anywhere near populated areas, you're going to have some unfortunate results, and we've seen that play out here over the last several weeks," said National Weather Service meteorologist, Matt Zika.
And with a ton of twisters recently popping up in the Midwest, a "Yooper" begs an answer to the question: could the Upper Peninsula experience such a disaster? I went to the National Weather Service to find out.
"The idea of having an EF-5 tornado that tears through the U.P., the probabilities are very low," Zika said. "I don't want to say it will never happen, but the probabilities are pretty low."
Pretty low, but also possible. The U.P. does have a history of tornado touchdowns.
"We have had a few cases where we had tornados rated as high as EF-3 or had wind speeds in excess of 130 mph. It's almost been 20 years since the last one touched down in parts of Menominee County.
In any case, it's better to be safe than sorry. There are several measures you should always take when a tornado touches down in your neighborhood. First and foremost, be prepared.
"That's the key to make sure that everybody has a plan ahead of time before the incident happens," said Marquette County's Emergency Manager, Teresa Schwalbach.
Decide on a meeting place in case your family gets separated. Also, designate a shelter for your family, and stock it with three to five days of food and water. And most importantly, take all tornado warnings seriously.
Wherever you are, get to the lowest lying place you can find immediately.
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