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Tag: tornado
The April 9 tornado near Franklin Grove, Ill. Photo courtesy Walker Ashley, NIU Department of Geography
All DeKalb-area residents can remember the violent and deadly tornado that tore through Rochelle and Fairdale last April, leveling houses and trees in its path. At the next STEM Café, “Tornado Tracking: How Meteorologists Predict and Pursue Storms,” NIU associate professor Walker Ashley will tell the story of how he forecast and chased the tornado....
Each year, Illinois gets hit with more than 60 tornadoes, on average, and ranks in the Top 10 for the most tornadoes of any state in the nation. The odds of one or more tornadoes hitting a portion of DeKalb County is at least one in three every year. Our area also encounters 60 mph...
An early shot of the tornado near Franklin Grove, Ill. Photo courtesy Walker Ashley, NIU Deparment of Geography
On the early evening of April 9, 2015, a large, violent tornado moved across portions of Lee, Ogle, DeKalb and McHenry counties, with winds as high as 195 mph. DeKalb County’s small community of Fairdale sustained a direct hit from the twister, which killed two and injured dozens of others. Unfortunately, the odds of some...
An early shot of the tornado near Franklin Grove, Ill. Photo courtesy Walker Ashley, NIU Deparment of Geography
In response to the April 9 tornado in the northern Illinois region, the NIU Department of Geography is inviting the public to a tornado and weather preparedness symposium that will feature talks by weather and emergency-response experts. It will be held from 7 to 9 p.m. Thursday, April 30, in the auditorium of Montgomery Hall...
An NIU football player helps with the recovery in Fairdale.
The April 9 tornado that ripped through the towns of Fairdale and Rochelle passed less than a half-hour away from the Northern Illinois University campus. In the weeks following the devastation, it’s not surprising that members of the Huskie community have moved forward together to aid in the recovery effort. “NIU staff and students have...
Tornado
  UPDATES as of Wednesday, April 22 … TORNADO RELIEF VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITY THURSDAY AND FRIDAY There has been a wonderful outpouring of support and willingness to help those in Fairdale and Rochelle from the NIU campus. Recovery from disasters of this kind require long-term assistance. NIU has pledged to continue to be a resource for the on-going...
Photo of a storm watcher
For storm chasers, the coming of spring means one thing: tornadoes. Recent tornado-related disasters have led experts to wonder how climate change is affecting the frequency and intensity of these destructive storms. At the next STEM Café, NIU STEM Outreach will present “Chasing the Storm: Tornadoes in a Warming World.” This free presentation and discussion...
Photo of a tornado
As the severe weather season approaches, NIU Weather and the NIU American Meteorological Society are offering the opportunity to become a trained weather spotter. The weather spotters training will take place at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 18, in the Cole Hall Auditorium. This event is free, open to the public and does not require pre-registration...
Meredith Wood strikes gold during a storm chasing trip in Campo, Colo.
Meredith Wood never thought about pursuing a science degree because she was not confident in her mathematics skills. After taking a meteorology class at the College of DuPage (COD) and going on a storm-chasing trip, however, she was hooked. “I was fortunate enough to see many supercell storms and tornadoes. It was absolutely unreal,” Wood...
Photo of a tornado
Severe weather has already impacted parts of Illinois and neighboring states thus far in 2012, and during Illinois’ Severe Weather Awareness Week, which runs through March 10, Northern Illinois University reminds all students, faculty, staff and visitors to be prepared for severe weather conditions such as flooding, thunderstorms and tornadoes and have emergency plans in...