One downside to the unseasonably warm weather area residents have been enjoying lately is an unseasonably early start to severe weather season, said local weatherman “Blizzard Bill” Spencer.
“Here it is the middle of March when we should be talking about more cold and snow and instead we’re talking thunderstorms and May temperatures,” Spencer said. “When you’re talking about 20 degrees above normal and a jet stream farther north, we’ve already seen signs it could be a very busy season for severe weather.”
The 13abc meteorologist will discuss summer weather safety during an upcoming Ready U presentation. The free, hour-long session will start at 7 p.m. March 26 at the Main Library, 325 N. Michigan St., in Downtown Toledo.
Ready U, a yearlong series presented by the Red Cross of Greater Toledo and the Lucas County Emergency Management Agency, is designed to educate the public and prepare individuals and families for potential emergencies in Northwest Ohio.
Tornadoes — such as the fatal 2010 storms that destroyed Lake High School and the recent fatal storms in southern Ohio on March 2 — are the weather event most people think of when they think of severe summer weather, but hail, lightning and thunderstorms can also be dangerous, Spencer said.
“Everyone is always concerned about tornadoes, but you can get 100 mph winds out of thunderstorms, hail causes a lot of property damage and lightning on a soccer fi eld or in the pool can and does cause fatalities,” Spencer said.
Floods are another concern, Spencer said. “Fortunately, this year we don’t have a snow melt to worry about, but all these thunderstorms can create flooding,” Spencer said. “The flooding in Findlay a few years ago was caused by a summer thunderstorm complex that just sat over the city for several hours.”
Severe weather season in the Great Lakes region is typically May and June, Spencer said. It’s still unclear whether the early start will mean the season will also end early or be extended.
“There’s no way of knowing. Those are the two theories being floated,” Spencer said. “I think in the short term, over the next couple of months, we will see a very active severe weather season nationwide, including here.”
Despite the early warm weather, area planters should be wary of one more frost in late April or early May.
“There’s a potential there could be a frost issue down the road with plants,” Spencer said. “That could be a problem for farmers and gardeners.”
If the late freeze never comes, that could set the stage for a buggy summer, Spencer said. “We do want a frost and freeze to kill the fleas, mosquitoes and other bugs,” Spencer said. “We didn’t get that bad of a winter and people are saying, ‘Oh boy, it’s nice and warm,’ but wait a minute, what does that mean down the road? There’s a price to pay for everything.”
Allergy sufferers may feel the effects of the high pollen counts earlier than normal because of the warm temperatures, Spencer said.
“That’s something that’s going to be an issue for a lot of people and something to be aware of,” he said. “Everything is accelerated — allergies, blooming plants, severe weather. It’s crazy. It’s just nuts.”
Spencer said he hopes Ready U attendees leave feeling more confident about how to keep themselves safe.
“Preparedness is obviously the key with severe weather, whether it’s tornadoes, hurricanes, flooding, anything,” Spencer said. “With any natural disaster, if you are well prepared, your chances of survival are much greater.”
Emergency information packets and smoke detectors will be given away to the fi rst 50 attendees, said Red Cross Communications Specialist Jason Copsey.
Toledo Free Press is a media sponsor for the Ready U program. For more information, visit the website ready-u.com. ✯
