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Accessory equipment include a hand-held anemometer, various maps for tracking, compass (handheld and vehicular mirror), and dual-band ham radio handheld (Alinco). I also keep fire extinguisher, tools, medic kit, and winter emergency gear on board.
I FINALLY CAUGHT ONE!
April 21, 2003. Thunderstorm watch was in place. Storm reports being relayed to Wilmington Weather indicated high winds and hail damage coming our way from Dayton. One report was “measured 109 MPH.” Reports of 50 MPH were common, with some damage. As I drove home from a day dispatching for Mifflin, I could see a definitive storm front approaching - with a dark cell aimed right at our home. The Boltek lightning detector was clearly active with severe levels and proximity alarms going off regularly. I set up the weather monitor, and headed down the road to our nearby Meijer’s parking lot. As I waited, reports began to come in from Dublin and Worthington of hail and high winds.
As I watched, it grew dark and began to rain. Wind was calm to 11 MPH when the rat-tat of hail started on the roof. As I looked down to the pavement I could see garden-variety hail, which mixed with then grew to 1/2 inch. Since that is the trigger for severe thunderstorms, I radioed it in. I was not prepared for what happened. A moment or two later, a deluge of large hail crashed down on the area. It wasn’t just intermingled - it was steady, solid downpour of hailstones easily passing 1 1/2 inches - with larger stones mixed in. These weren’t round like golf balls as we might imagine, they were shaped like (and sounded like) heavy gravel. The noise was deafening! I had to shout to be heard above the roar when reporting the hail on the radio. It continued for a minute or more, when I noticed the truck begin to rock. I couldn’t see out the windshield because everything was black. I looked at the wind speed indicator, and it showed 55 MPH ! As I watched it settled back to 49 MPH and stayed there for the remaining four to five minutes of torrential hail and rain.
With this much lift and power, the storm would be expected to have other things going on as well - and in between wondering if the hail was actually going to come through the windshield, I wondered what would immediately follow the hail! A couple other spotters were chiming in with reports of the super-sized hail storm.
Then, it quieted. The hail had stopped, and the rain and wind died out with it. It began to brighten enough so I could see other cars parked in the lot, and the torrent of water and hailstones being washed to the drains. On the ground, the hail had been blown into small drifts and ridges - 6 to 10 inches deep. It was like driving on a gravel road. I got out to check the truck - the lightbar was ok, still in place. My wind-deflectors suffered though, with one-inch holes showing where hail had simply gone through the plastic.
The hail storm continued east and out of the area. In a day or two, auto dealers with up to 500 cars on their lots, and homeowners with shattered siding would help push the insurance claims to an estimated $52 million. (Yes, mine was included - new hood, visors, paint. :)
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