The news today is filled with photographs and stories about tornados that have blasted through Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Kentucky. At least 25 people have been killed and another round of storms was expected to hit Texas Tuesday evening. CNN is calling the weather this Spring “freakish.”

It's unknown if the record-breaking reports of severe weather over the Memorial Day weekend are a product of global warming, but after this Spring, that conclusion appears unavoidable. According to CNN, there were 622 reports of severe weather between Wyoming and New Hampshire on Sunday alone. The previous record was 565 reports of severe weather in one day, and that was on May 8, only three weeks ago.

CNN reports that there have been 14 tornado emergencies announced so far this year, with five over Memorial Day weekend alone. One tornado touched down in Oklahoma and stayed on the ground wreaking havoc and destruction for an hour. Tornado emergencies are issued by the National Weather Service only when a storm threatens severe property damage and loss of life. On average, about 12 tornado emergencies occur each year. With 14 on record already, this year promises to be a record-breaker when it comes to severe weather.

You can’t prepare for storms like tornados. They don’t announce themselves in advance. When severe thunderstorms move in, tornados just drop from the sky and begin sucking up anything in their paths. The funnel clouds that drop from thunderheads appear white at first and only become dark from the debris in their lifting whirlwinds. They are terrible things to witness. A friend and I were about a quarter mile north of a tornado in Ohio that was moving east as I was riding a bicycle cross-country going west. They do sound like a freight........

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