Its that time of year!

For Kansas Storms! I love them! The thunder and lighting...brings shivers to my spine. I love the sound of it..the look of it. But there is just one down fall....Tornadoes!  Nobody likes tornadoes! I remember.. in 2007, there was a tornado in Greensburg, Kansas that took the whole town.


'The tornado was estimated to be 1.7 miles (2.7 km) in width — wider than the city itself — and traveled for nearly 22 miles (35 km). Ninety-five percent of the city was confirmed to be destroyed, with the other five percent being severely damaged.' (quote from Wikipedia)

To me, this is devestating. The whole town was gone! These people, have gone through one of the worst things that could happen to them..what do they do? Instead of hanging their heads down, and pitting themselves. They pick themselves up, brush off their shoulders, and build a new town. Its a 'green' town.
"The city's power will be supplied by ten 1.25 MW wind-turbines." (Quote from Wikipedia)

This year, Topeka will mark the 45th anniversary of the tornado(s) that tore through downtown.  Between June 2-12, a record 59 tornadoes hit Topeka. I was not born, but I remember hearing about it from my Grandparents.

On June 8,1966, Topeka was hit  by an F5 tornado.

'It started on the southwest side of town, moving northeast, passing over a local landmark named Burnett's Mound. According to a local Native American legend, this mound was thought to protect the city from tornadoes ^[1]. It went on to rip through the city, hitting the downtown area and Washburn University. Total dollar cost was put at $100 million (US$ 677 million in 2011) making it the costliest tornadoes in history.' (quote from Wikipedia)
I remember my Grandmother telling us about it. "We were not here at this time. We were living up in Wisconsin. But I remember hearing about it, and trying to get a hold of your Great-Grandmother. There was no way. The phone lines were down. The only way was to try and get a hold of the police department. And they would tell you that they couldn't just look for one person's family. There was too many missing. To hold on for a couple days, and they will contact you when they can.' She said It took about 3 or 4 days, and finally her sister called her saying everyone was ok.

Could you imagine?  Not hearing from your family, for days.

So 45 years, later...my husband and I bought a house in downtown Topeka. Smart right?  Well, on one hand no...yes a tornado went right down this area..it was along time ago.(This house actually survived the tornado, in fact my Great-Great Aunt lived in it at the time)But on the other hand, you never know when or where one will hit. My husband, when he was my boyfriend, was coming home from school one day. He looked over into a field....HELLO! TORNADO! It went right in front of his truck...


I guess its a part of living in Kansas. You have to listen, watch and run! lol! After all, you don't want to be carried off to Oz!

Until next time~