Severe thunderstorms: How they form, potential damage, what you can do to stay safe
As part of our Summer Weather Outlook Week, the News 8 Storm Team is discussing the various types of severe weather that can impact the Susquehanna Valley.
We can't talk about summer weather without discussing strong to severe thunderstorms.
Multiple ingredients must come together for the worst of storms to develop.
- Moisture (high dew points): Getting fuel to come in and aid in getting these storms to fire up.
- Lifting mechanism: A strong front, whether cold or warm, can also spark storms.
- Unstable air (energy): The heating of the day comes together with the moisture in the air and creates an unstable air mass, which is the energy needed to really get these storms to ignite.
- Strong wind shear: Storms are organized by the twisting of the winds or strong wind shear. That's the difference in wind speed and direction as you head up into the atmosphere.
And all of these ingredients are needed to get the worst of storms here.
These storms could bring large hail and damaging wind. Tornadic activity is also possible.
What makes a storm severe?
For a storm to be classified as severe, it must have quarter-sized hail or larger and/or winds of 58 mph or higher.
Lightning
Lightning doesn't necessarily make a storm severe, but it's something you often encounter during thunderstorms.
Stay away from trees.
Remember the saying, "When thunder roars, get indoors."
As soon as you hear thunder, you should get inside as quickly as you can. Stay away from any windows.
Lightning is five times hotter than the surface of the sun. It's nothing you want to mess around with.
Safest place in house
And speaking of safety and taking those precautions, you want to know the safest location in your house.
It's the innermost room on your lowest level.
A lot of times, it's a basement if you have one.
There doesn't have to be a tornado warning to go to the safe room.
It's a good idea to go there, even if it's just a severe thunderstorm warning or a severe thunderstorm moving in.