OPINION: Potpourri: Beware the Ides of December

Dec. 19—We have been conditioned to believe that severe weather (like tornadoes) in Kansas does not occur in December, but anyone who has lived any length of time in the Sunflower State knows that's not true.

Remember that horrific windstorm Dec. 15, 2020? The National Weather Service classified it as a derecho, a storm with winds of at least 58 miles per hour sustained for a prolonged period of time that travels a length of at least 250 miles, according to KWCH 12 in Wichita.

A derecho can be as destructive as a tornado, but it is a "straight-line" windstorm. The 2020 storm caused widespread damage from Kansas all the way to Wisconsin with hurricane-force winds that reached gusts up to 120 miles per hour in Iowa and also spawned 21 tornadoes.

I remember leaving the Reflector-Chronicle mid-afternoon. Weather forecasters were warning about a high wind event and I wanted to get home before it hit. Already a windy day, the wind just got stronger and stronger. My house creaked and the roof vents moaned as sticks and leaves pelted the structure. I may have seen Miss Gulch from "The Wizard of Oz," pedaling along on her bike as the debris swirled around her!

I had some outdoor furniture on my back deck, including a heavy wrought iron table with a glass top that was large enough to seat six people. I could see and hear it rocking and I started screaming, "There goes the table!" as the wind picked it up and scooted it several inches across the deck. I was relieved it didn't hit the patio window.

What made this storm really unusual was the fact that it went on for hours. If the sustained winds were scary, the gusts were terrifying. I was impressed the electricity stayed on as long as it did, but eventually it went off.

And that's when the temperature started plummeting. Luckily, it was only off a few hours in our neighborhood. Around town there was a lot of damage, including downed trees, limbs, broken plate glass windows and the like.

Another memorable December weather event was the ice storm of Tuesday-Wednesday, Dec. 6-7, 2007, that impacted nearly all of Kansas. The National Weather Service website classifies it as Number 1 on its list of Kansas' worst ice storms.

The storm was caused by freezing rain that resulted in widespread 1-2 inch ice accumulations, causing staggering damage to trees, power lines, power poles and other structures. The resulting power outage affected around 260,000 people and some areas were without power for 1 to 2 weeks, according to the NWS.

I remember the house we rented at the time on Buckeye Avenue had power that was going on and off by Tuesday night. We picked up my Dad from his house and brought him to stay at ours since power at his place went out early. My Mom had just died a couple weeks earlier and I was thankful she wasn't around to witness the storm.

On Wednesday morning, the branches of our trees were encased in ice. Many of those limbs had fallen onto Buckeye and were impeding traffic — not that there was much at that point, but there was some. My husband and son ventured out to move the branches off the street and narrowly missed getting hit by other ice-covered branch bombs.

Meanwhile, the power in our house was in a brownout, with electricity shutting on and off. A neighbor had called an electrician, so I approached the expert and asked what I should do and was advised to cut the main power so everything in the house wouldn't fry.

The radio station was on the air, and we learned that Dickinson County had opened a warming station/shelter at Sterl Hall. Heated by generator, that building was warm and very crowded.

We stayed there about an hour before deciding to try our luck at home. (It was partly due to that experience which led county leaders to build the addition to Sterl Hall years later, increasing restroom capacity, adding shower facilities and addressing other emergency needs.)

Living in Abilene, we were happy when the power returned about three days after the storm. Granted, we had it much easier than a lot of people — including many from the rural areas — who had to stay in hotels or with friends for weeks.

While most would agree we all need moisture, here's hoping it doesn't come with devastating ice, wind, blizzards, tornadoes, earthquakes, volcanoes, tsunamis, etc.