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PUD will appear on March 2004
ballot: PGE vows fight
Dundee says no to library district
Nine Russian orphans still looking
for homes through IFS
Tuesday
lightning
electrifies some,
scares others |
No injuries reported as Mother Nature's fury unfolds under threatening
skies; county antenna hit
|
By Amy Grennell, Newberg
Graphic Reporter
Email Amy at agrennell@eaglenewspapers.com
|
 Thunderbolts of lightning were frightening Tuesday afternoon for some,
while others decided it was more of a spectator sport.
Emily Krier, 23, was watching the storm outside her home on River Road in St.
Paul.
“I really am thrilled by thunderstorms,” she said, adding that most
people don’t share her love of Mother Nature’s fury, including earthquakes.
“We were watching the lightning in the blueberry field across from
us,” Krier said.
Then things hit a little closer to home. Literally.
Krier and her friend Ryan were about 200 feet from a tree where lightning
struck on the Ruiz family’s property.
Krier said it appeared the lightning hit the tree dead center; bark flew off
in every direction.
“You could feel it,” she said. “It was a really wicked feeling.”
The two went inside after the lightning struck; it was a little too close for
comfort.
“We were really lucky it didn’t hit the tree (we were standing
near),” she said.
Throughout Yamhill County fire and police personnel responded to trees being
hit and on fire and stoplights in McMinnville that were out.
The Yamhill County Public Works building antenna in McMinnville was directly
hit by lightning, knocking out power, computer and phone systems that days later still
weren’t up and running.
Many who work in the department were making calls entirely on their cell
phones Tuesday.
The Newberg Fire Department didn’t have any direct calls related
to lightning, but had to back up the Yamhill Fire Department while it was out on a
wildland fire due to a lightning strike.
Generally thunder and lightning aren’t frequent occurrences in the area.
Estimates are that about 15 of these storms are spotted in the area each year.
Newberg’s location has a lot to do with the absence of thunder and
lightning in the area.
“We live very close to the Pacific Ocean and the waters of the North
Pacific are cold and west of the mountains the cold air has an influence on the atmosphere
and so the weather is stable,” said Bill Schneider, meteorologist with the National
Weather Service.
Another reason for this type of weather in Midwestern or other states is due
to subtropical moisture from Mexico. In the Northwest the area east of the Cascades
usually has more of a chance for thunder and lightning storms.
“We aren’t in a big lightning productive area and it usually takes
the upper level dynamics to produce thunderstorms in our area,” Schneider said. |
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From Aug. 9,
2003, Newberg Graphic
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