The photos of the damage in East Nashville are devastating. I am desperately trying to learn news of homes on Fatherland Street.
5
Former resident of Birmingham, Alabama. Alabama has seen a lot of devastating tornados in the last decade. Some scientists have concluded that climate change is causing tornado alley to move east and south to areas that are not as prepared to deal with them. For one thing, we have hills in the South, and you can't see the horizon. For another, tornados tend to strike more at night due to climate patterns. Finally, our building codes are not sufficient. Tennessee, you're in my thoughts today.
5
Looking at the level of destruction of these stick frame houses, I have to wonder about the local building codes. I know stick frame is the common construction practice in the US, but why aren’t more substantial building practices required? New construction in Europe seems to always be multiple layer of insulated cement block on top of full slabs or cellars. While that type of construction is not good for earthquake zones, it seems that it would be the right approach for severe weather zones (i.e. most of US and Canada) and would help minimize casualties in these events.
2
@Joe C The tornado mostly hit a historic district. Many of the buildings were 100 or more years old. While building codes and practices have changed, these buildings were not constructed with any recent technology. Overall, it was, still is in parts, a beautifully preserved neighborhood. Updating historic buildings to withstand extreme weather events isn't practical. Unfortunately, there's only so much we can do.
My thoughts are with Nashville and those that made it through safe.
9
So sorry! Six months ago, Hurricane Dorian swept across Marsh Harbour Abaco. Just there in January and the whole town still looked like the devastation in Nashville. So sadly familiar!
2
Bidding Nashville plenty of healing and restoration and neighborly support.
31
Mr.Trump said "It's a vicious thing , these tornadoes." It certainly is. We should also wonder whether the increasing viciousness of tornadoes and all other examples of extreme weather ---floods, winds--inflicting increasingly more damage --is related to climate change as climate scientists assert, but which the present Administration has labeled a "hoax".
In this Tennessee tornado , one also wonders why the National Weather Bureau did not issue any warning at all for this deadly tornado which struck in the dead of night while people were sleeping. Is this Bureau manned by scientists or by Trump loyalists? Or is weather under climate change becoming so quick to harm that it hits before it can be detected?
6
@shimr I live 5 miles south of where the tornado plowed through Mt. Juliet. We had seen warnings on weather-related channels and social media of the potential of this storm to produce tornadoes. All our phones blared emergency alarms, waking us up, in time to get to our safe place. Also heard tornado sirens going off, which I have never heard before except in a test. So, although we personally had no property damage, we were aware and prepared and are thankful for the emergency system in place. So thankful this did not happen during the day, as at least 4 schools were hit by the tornado. The loss of life could have been potentially tremendous if it had happened in the daytime. Thankful, thankful, thankful.
10
More extreme weather
7
Forget the wall; give millions to Tennessee and the victims of these horrendous tornadoes. These are our brothers and sisters, neighbors and friends. Heal them, lift them up, salve their wounds, give them housing, food, hope and the will to rebuild. They need us; we do not need a sick wall.
101
Heart goes out to people in Nashville area. We know from natural disaster out here on the west coast.
Prayers with you and help on the way.
16
Thinking of everyone in Nashville and surrounding areas affected by this. My hometown, St. Louis, has a history of tragic, severe tornadoes, and they are devastating. You will recover and rebuild. Best to all. I hope you get the help you need.
16
Please stay away Trump. Marsha Blackburn the other stable genius has us covered.
60
My deepest sympathy to the people of Nashville affected by this Tornado. I hope when the President arrives on Friday he doesn’t make his usual insensitive, off-the-cuff uninformed remarks. We, the people of the United States, stand in sympathy and empathy to your plight, willing to assist.
77
I'm from Nashville, and here's the weird thing: This was incredibly localized. In my neighborhood, only a few miles from the affected areas, we didn't get winds strong enough to blow down the usual leaves and dead limbs we get after a bad thunderstorm. But a deadly tornado cut a swath through neighborhoods in North and East Nashville, destroying homes, a beloved business hub--5 Points--in East Nashville, and the Basement East, a nightclub where my husband and I have attended the local NRP station' Moth Radio Hour story slams. One wall of the Basement East is still standing; the rest is rubble. The incredible swiftness of this destruction is sobering. Only about half the people in my office are here today, because many freeways are impassible due to semis that were blown over. And other counties, especially Putnam County (Cookville, TN), have a worse death toll. It's now up to 19 deaths, 14 in Putnam County.
52
I am glad you are safe. I’m so sorry to know there were deaths.
17
I am very impressed by the warning system. Vanderbilt warned us way before and other alerts were right on time which must have been lifesaving for a lot of people.
Condolences for the ones who lost their loved, properties and faced destruction.
55
@Rana I work at Vanderbilt and also appreciated their warning system, which sounds a loud alarm from my phone.
27
I just left Nashville Sunday after a first time visit. Amazing city with great people. I hope they recover quickly. What a tragedy.
22
Sending thoughts and prayers. Hopefully Nashville will be able to rebuild and build stronger so that the city is more resilient to storms in the future.
4
Absolutely devastated to see all the destruction around us, but Nashville is a beautiful and resilient city. We will be an even closer and supportive community starting today.
Shout out to NashSevereWx on Twitter for stepping up to provide coverage on Periscope when thousands had lost power and couldn’t access the news. They saved so many lives through effective and calm reporting.
62
So sorry about the loss of life and devastation. Nashville is one of America’s crown jewels.
10
@Rae H Agree - NashSevereWx is a gem!
3
The fact that this is not the headline news on every news site blows my mind. "Forty buildings collapse. Downtown Nashville is devastated. 19 dead and many others missing."
Breathing in and out.
121
I agree. It was a tragedy. A large city in shambles.
4
@Julie It is a small city actually, working to medium size. The damage was severe but localised. It is local news. I speak as a part time resident, who has been affected and is here now.
It’s no wonder everyone in America is so stressed out. This is Nashville’s problem, not America’s problem. Ridiculous.
4
I hope the casualties stay low and Nashville is able to rebuild and resume a normal situation soon. But I wonder why there isn't a better system for notifying people that a tornado is actually touching down. It seems to me that in tornado-prone areas, just stating there is a heavy storm with possible tornadoes is not enough to get people to shelter. If storm shelters are not standard, there should be large ones throughout a city that people could readily reach.
My condolences too to the family and friends of the deceased. Sudden, unpredictable deaths are the worst to absorb, and I hope they manage to endure their grief.
5
@Dan Stackhouse The utter unpredictability of a tornado is what makes notifications so difficult to accomplish. They touch down/they skim over. They zig/they zag. And when they come in the night invisible til the last moment when people are sleeping how is any warning/notification possible?
19
@Dan Stackhouse Usually there wouldn't be time to leave the house and get to a shelter. When you hear the tornado sirens, it's time to head for the interior bathroom/closet.
17
@Susan Hughes
Doppler weather RADAR.
It can detect rotation and debris being lifted.
The alert system you personally choose can make all the difference.
6
Very powerful and long lasting tornados happen in the spring. In 1974, while I was living in Tennessee, there was an outbreak that had the world rocking all night long and killed more than 300 people, injuring nearly 6000. There was no weather radar in those days. When tornados hit at night, you got virtually no warning. I was plenty scared, but fortunately none hit where I was. Close, but not a hit.
17
It was one tornado that stayed on the ground, without skipping, for an extraordinarily long time... We all have such an illusion of control.
74
To reporter/eds: Wondering what time the tornado hit and how long it lasted, thank you.
24
@Elsiemac It hit around 1:00 AM - 2:00 AM. Local paper (Tennessean) is now saying 19 dead across the region.
18