WGN Weather Center Blog

The programs are free of charge and seating is on a first come, first served basis--so we suggest getting there early to get a good seat. There is much to talk about on the severe weather front this year. The community of Greensburg, Kansas, was all but leveled last year by a late-evening May tornado. The deadly twister emerged from the darkness of night to produce a path of destruction up to two miles across and was responsible for nine deaths and scores of injuries. The residents of Greensburg have worked hard since to resurrect their devastated community since. But, it's a lesson to us all what can happen when these devastating storms sweep any town or city.

We ask, how did this happen--what were the underlying conditions? A tornado watch and warning preceded the deadly storm. How were these issued--what signs did nature provide alert forecasters that such a tragedy was about to unfold? We welcome to our Fermilab seminars this year Larry Ruthi, meteorologist in charge of the Dodge City, Kansas, National Weather Service Forecast Office, which issued the warnings on this devastating storm, who will explain.

We've had our own severe weather troubles in the rapidly expanding Chicago metropolitan area in recent months and years. One twister, which set down on the north side of Loyola University-Chicago campus in Setpember 2006, then moved out onto Lake Michigan, had origins in a severe thunderstorm which first formed above the Fermilab grounds in Batavia. Using Doppler Radar data, Ed Fenelon, meteorologist in charge of the Chicago National Weather Service Forecast office, fills us in on a frightening in-office study of this storm which indicated how close this area came to a real disaster. The storm's circulation traveled across many commuter packed major thoroughfares including the Tri-State Expressway and moved directly across O'Hare's terminal in the evening rush hour, kicking out multiple TVS (tornado vortex) signatures along the way--indicating it could have gone tornadic at almost any time. That it waited until reaching the Lake Michigan shoreline on Chicago's north side and spared the area major damage was just luck. A much more horrifying scenario might have ensued--a development which underscores this area's tornado vulnerability.

The rare mid-winter tornadoes which devastated some of Chicago's northern suburbs as well as sections of southeast Wisconsin this past January are the subject of Jim Allsopp's presentation this year. What caused such furoius storms to sweep this region at such an odd time of the year? Jim will tell us.

Ginno Izzi, forecaster at the National Weather Service here in Chicago, returns to the Fermilab stage to explore the devastating squall line which swept out of the afternoon and evening sky this past August 23, producing damage and power outages in almost every corner of the greater Chicago metropolitan area. How did this so-called "derecho" happen? Gino addresses that in his talk.

Lightning kills hundreds each year in this country. This year, perennial Fermilab seminar favorite and world recognized lightning-strike injury expert Dr. Mary Ann Cooper, MD of the University of Illinois-Chicago is joined by John Jensenius of the National Weather Service Forecast Office at Gray, Maine, to talk about lightning--what it does to the human body when it strikes and what an underrated killer it is in this country.

And, what would our annual Fermilab programs be without Dr. Joe Schaefer, Director of this country's NOAA Storm Prediction Center? Joe returns, as he has for over a decade now, to talk about one of the most damaging aspects of severe storms--HAIL! This promises to be an fascinating talk about one of this country's most fascinating yet devastating natural phenomena.

And, Brian Smith, with whom I started our Fermilab Tornado seminars 28 years ago, returns again this year to fill us in on the new Enhanced Fujita Tornado Damage Scale. There have been significant changes in the benchmark index of tornado damage and severity based on years of research and careful examination which are important for us to know. No one is better equipped to cover this important subject than Brian, who worked for years at famed tornado researcher Dr.Ted Fujita's side and has conducted field surveys of these storms' aftermath. He serves as Warning Coordination Meteorologist at the National Weather Service's Omaha Forecast Office, and we're excited he's back with us this year.

Newly added to the list of speakers is Chad Cowan, a life-long weather enthusiast and longtime storm chaser based in Chicago. Chad has storm-chased for years all across this country’s Heartland. He and colleagues were in the field the night the devastating Greensburg, Kansas twister hit last May, all but wiping the community off the face of the earth. Chad joins us at our Fermilab/WGN-TV Tornado and Severe Weather Seminars with some of the video of that horrific storm---video which is included in a DVD he and fellow storm chasers have put together in an effort to aid relief efforts by the Red Cross and the town of Greensburg. We’re looking forward to Chad’s appearance!

So, we've got quite a program lined up and we really hope to see you at noon or at 6 p.m. (we repeat the program twice and you are free to attend which ever best fits your schedule) at the beautiful Fermilab facility in west suburban Batavia. It's completely free of charge and there are no tickets required.

Fermilab is easy to get to from anywhere in the Chicago area and Midwest--just travel west from Chicago on I-88 (the Ronald Reagan Tollway) to the Farnsworth Avenue/Kirk Road exit and head north past Butterfield Road to Fermilab's west exit off Kirk Road. Head to the main high-rise building which houses the Ramsey Auditorium where this year's programs will take place. Look forward to seeing you there and many thanks!

The 28th Annual Fermilab/WGN-TV Tornado and Severe Weather Seminar Line-up for Saturday, April 5 and Noon and 6 p.m.:

Dr.Joe Schaefer, Director, NOAA's Storm Prediction Center:
"Hail: Size really does matter!"

Ed Fenelon, Meteorologist in Charge-National Weather Service-Chicago:
"The September 22, 2006 tornado touchdown on the Loyola University northside Chicago campus: How close much of the Chicago area came to a disaster"

Gino Izzi, Lead Forecaster, National Weather Service-Chicago: "The Chicago area's devastating derecho of August, 23, 2007: A look at one of the region's most damaging squall lines in decades with tree and powerline downing 80+mph wind gusts"

Jim Allsopp, Warning Coordination Meteorologist, National Weather Service-Chicago: "Rare January 7 Mid-Winter tornadoes slam north suburban Poplar Grove and Harvard in Boone and McHenry Counties and devastate Kenosha County communities-How did they happen?"

Dr. Mary Ann Cooper, MD, Professor of Emergency Medicine, University of Illinois-Chicago: "Lightning strikes and their life altering effects on a human body and how to protect yourself"

John Jensenius, Warning Coordination Meteorologist, National Weather Service, Gray Maine: "Lightning: Understanding One of Nature's most underrated Killers"

Larry Ruthi, Meteorologist in Charge, National Weather Service, Dodge City, Kansas: "The monster Greensburg, Kansas twister of May, 2007: The killer storm which nearly wiped a town off the face of the earth---how it happened and how warnings for it were issued"

Brian Smith, Warning Coordination Meteorologist, National Weather Service-Fall City (Omaha), Nebraska: "The new Enhanced-Fujita Tornado Damage Scale: What it is and how it's different from the original Fujita Tornado Damage scale"

Chad Cowan; life-long weather enthusiast and longtime storm chaser based in Chicago: "The Greensburg Storm: Storm Chasers capture the devastating tornado on tape; and description of a fundraising effort to help rebuild that community"

Tom Skilling, Chief Meteorologist, WGN-TV/Chicago Tribune: "Don't be complacent: Nature provides evidence that a tornado disaster can happen here"