Major Disaster Declared in Oklahoma after Mega Tornado Kills Dozens
The Disaster President has declared a major disaster exists in the State of Oklahoma in the area affected by severe storms and tornadoes beginning on May 18, 2013, and continuing.
The areas worst affected are the counties of Cleveland, Lincoln, McClain, Oklahoma, and Pottawatomie.
At least 91 people, many of them children, are feared to have been killed and about 240 others injured after a mega tornado ripped through Oklahoma City suburbs, leveling numerous blocks in the city of Moore (pop: ~ 55,000), Cleveland County, Oklahoma.
The death toll included 51 confirmed deaths and an additional 40 bodies on their way to the Medical Examiner’s office. (See also the ‘Joplin Syndrome’).
- The tornado was rated as at least an EF4, with winds of up to 200mph, according to NWS preliminary damage ratings.
- The tornadic event began at 2.56pm CDT on Monday and lasted for 40 minutes.
- Moore twister was as much as two miles wide, and carved a 20-mile path of destruction.
- The tornado left obliterated many hundreds of homes and other buildings in Moore.
This is a preliminary tornado track for the tornado that affected Newcastle, Moore, and Oklahoma City on May 20, 2013. The tornado touchdown at around 2:56 pm in Newcastle, OK and moved through Moore and south OKC before lifting at around 3:36 pm. The path length is estimated to be about 20 miles long with a preliminary damage rating of at least EF4. —NWS
“Our hearts are broken,” Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin said. “This is bigger than anything I’ve ever seen. It’s absolutely huge. It’s horrific.”
More Severe Weather Expected from Great Lakes to Central Texas on Tuesday
More severe weather is expected on Tuesday from the Great Lakes across the Mississippi River Valley and into central Texas. Primary threats will be very large hail, damaging winds and tornadoes. Some of the storms could also produce heavy rainfall leading to flash flooding concerns, especially in the Ark-La-Tex region. —NWS
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Other Global Disasters/ Significant Events
Average CO2 at Mauna Loa Observatory: Last 5 days of preliminary daily average CO2
- May 20 – 400.15 ppm
- May 19 – 400.06 ppm
- May 18 – 399.77 ppm
- May 17 – 399.87 ppm
- May 16 – 399.74 ppm
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Groundwater depletion in the U.S. has accelerated
Groundwater depletion in the United States during 1900–2008 was about 1,000 cubic kilometers (km³), according to a new study released by USGS.
- The rate of groundwater depletion has increased significantly since about 1950, with maximum rates occurring during the most recent period (2000–2008), said the report.
- The average depletion rate climbed to about 25 km³ [6.6 trillion gallons] per year during 2000–2008, compared to 9.2 km³ per year averaged over the 1900–2008 period.
Map of the United States (excluding Alaska) showing cumulative groundwater depletion, 1900 through 2008, in 40 assessed aquifer systems or subareas. Colors are hatched in the Dakota aquifer (area 39) where the aquifer overlaps with other aquifers having different values of depletion. [Konikow, L.F., 2013, Groundwater depletion in the United States (1900−2008): U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2013−5079. http://pubs.usgs.gov/sir/2013/5079.(Available only online.)]
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Kamchatka, Russia
At least 2 dozen significant quakes, measuring between 5.0 and 6.0Mw, have struck off the east coast of Kamchatka Peninsula, Russia since Monday May 20, 2013.
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DISASTER CALENDAR – May 21, 2013 —
SYMBOLIC COUNTDOWN: 1,026 Days Left
Mass die-offs resulting from human impact and the planetary response to the anthropogenic assault could occur by early 2016.
- SYMBOLIC COUNTDOWN: 1,026 Days Left to ‘Worst Day’ in the brief Human History
- The countdown began on May 15, 2011 …
GLOBAL WARNINGS
Global Disasters: Links, Forecasts and Background
Fire Earth 