PORTSMOUTH, Va. (WAVY) – A string of deadly storms slammed parts of the country over the Memorial Day Weekend.
Violent tornadoes and heavy downpours were reported in Texas, Oklahoma, Iowa and Kentucky, claiming several lives and leaving hundreds more injured. Hampton Roads was among the areas impacted by the severe weather surge, with flash flooding and hail hammering Norfolk and Chesapeake.
10 On Your Side Meteorologist Jeremy Wheeler said the storms are above average for this time of year.
“Yes, well, there’s a lot going on,” Wheeler said. “I mean, this year alone, you can see that red line. That’s how many tornadoes we’ve had so far this year. And it’s about the second busiest. Going back to 2010, where 2011, that was when we had that tornado outbreak across parts of the country.”
The Storm Prediction Center shows a median of roughly 1,000 tornadoes annually nationwide. The number has already been surpassed this year, Wheeler said. So, what’s the root of the abnormal spike?
“We’ve got a lot of warm, humid air out there at the surface,” Wheeler said. “And so we’ve also had a lot of cold fronts moving through the Midwest and coming into our region. Luckily, a lot of the front by the time we got here have been weaker. But in the Midwest, they’ve been some very powerful cold fronts. And so they’ve also been stalling out, which has created some issues for us.”
Another major factor at play is global warming.
“I do believe that climate change plays a big part in this,” Wheeler said. “You know, we just have more warm air, more humidity for a longer part of the year. So that’s at the surface. It’s ironic, though, because, you know, this time of year we’re getting these cool pockets in the upper levels coming down out of Canada, and that’s helping to create some of those severe weather zones.”
With the tropics heating up, an active hurricane season en route and the weather woes happening in between, Wheeler wants people in Hampton Roads to stay prepared.
“The best thing to do is to try and educate yourself a little bit, maybe go a little beyond to what you know and try and dig in and find a little bit more on our weather blogs and put out a lot of information,” Wheeler said.
The National Weather Service has information on what to do during a tornado, and searching the internet can provide extra tips and information, Wheeler said.
For the latest on weather updates, you can visit WAVY.com or download the WAVY weather app.