Week of deadly tornadoes brings back memories

Last week was a week guaranteed to bring back memories in the Mahoning and Shenango valleys, none of which are pleasant.
Over a 10-day period, violent weather patterns spawned a record 300 tornadoes, the most in any similar period since record-keeping started in the 1950s, said Dan McCarthy, warning coordination meteorologist at the Storm Prediction Center. The only comparable period was in 1999, when about 200 twisters were recorded.
May is normally the worst month for tornadoes, but this one has been particularly deadly already. At least 44 people were killed by tornadoes that first hit Missouri, Kansas and Tennessee. The Oklahoma City area was hit twice.
It has been 18 years since this area suffered though its worst night of tornadoes, the May 31, 1985 storm that ripped across Trumbull County and into Western Pennsylvania. Those tornadoes, fed by winds estimated at 300 mph, were part of a massive front that continued on for hundreds of miles, through New York and into Canada, killing almost 90 people.
And while it has been almost two decades, the memories are still fresh for anyone who lived through it, as fresh today as are the memories of this area's most recent tornado victims. Just last November a storm ripped through Clark, Pa., destroying a dozen homes, damaging about 100, injuring 18 people and killing Charles E. Templeton, 81.
A stark reminder
Even for an area such as this, where there is no lack of understanding the amount of damage a tornado can do, a week like last week reminds people of two important things.
The first is that every community and every family should have a tornado safety plan. Safety should never be taken for granted and people must respond in responsible ways when warning sirens sound or radio or television alerts are broadcast.
The second is that at times such as these, people in tornado stricken areas are hurting and need help.
The best way of responding to that need is by giving generously to responsible fund drives and organizations. Other demands for help and the unprecedented magnitude of storms this month have virtually depleted the disaster relief fund of the American Red Cross. The fund, which typically has a $50 million cushion, is down to just $5 million, and there are thousands who need assistance.
Sometime over the next few days, it would be a good idea for you to review your family's tornado safety plan, hoping, of course, that you'll never have to use it. And send a check in whatever amount you're comfortable with to the Red Cross so that people who are hurting can get the help they need.