Monday, March 27, 2006

Let's go fly a kite


Woo hoo! Another sign of spring!



Check out the kite designs below.

Which one is your favorite?




Visit the Springfield email list at:

Springfield Dog Park



Wow, there was a bunch of folks with their dogs at the dogpark on Sunday.


Scenes from the dogpark on Sunday...



What the dogs are using for their game of keep away...


Be sure to check out the Springfield Dog Park email list.

You might also be interested in this website:

www.springfieldparks.org

You'll also enjoy the Springfield, IL email list at:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/springfieldillinois/






Caption these two photos...

Wabash Avenue


I guess every Springfield tornado photo collection must include a picture of this now headless fellow.
I'd like to encourage everyone to click on the photo for the larger image, save it and use an photo-editing program to give him a new head...of your choosing!
Email it to me and I'll share the best photo-editing efforts here.








A traffic signal is still down at the S. 6th & Stevenson Drive intersection.


More tornado damage photos

Gary sent in these photos of Springfield area tornado damage.

Thanks Gary.








As always, click on a photo for a larger picture.

Be sure to join the Springfield email list and join in the discussions there.


Tuesday, March 21, 2006

If you missed the tornado...

If you missed the tornado...

This page

http://www.illinoishouse.org/sangamon.htm

States that at the Springfield Children's Museum you can engage in such activities as "Be a Judge," "Touch a Tornado," "Farmers Market," etc.







Monday, March 20, 2006

MacArthur Blvd tornado damage photos

Photos from a drive down MacArthur Blvd on March 16, 2006

I still haven't been to the worst hit areas.

I'm just taking pictures out the window as my family runs errands around town.









The tornado didn't knock down the world's ugliest K-Mart sign.
Hopefully some kind company will get rid of this eyesore.



Below is a photo of the middle Dirksen Parkway,
facing South as I traveled across Cook Street.



Links of the day:

http://iles-house.blogspot.com/

http://storm-experiences.blogspot.com/

Click here for links to photos from the areas I couldn't access.

The Springfield email list is discussing the Springfield tornados.

Join the list and share your experiences from this day.

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/springfieldillinois/



Tuesday, March 14, 2006

Springfield IL tornado damage photos


Photos taken after the Springfield tornado

Pictures from a drive down Jefferson and then turning left onto Veterans Parkway.
Then another left onto Wabash Avenue.

I couldn't get to the worst hit areas, since those were blocked off by police and probably quite unsafe to be near.

These are photos from outside of the worst hit areas.

Imagine the wind force it would take to knock down a traffic light.


Click on a photo for a larger view.


On the path I took, most of the traffic lights were either down or non-functioning.

Oddly enough, traffic flowed pretty well.
Probably because there was less traffic that day since state workers, schoolchildren, etc. spent the day at home.



Sam's Club was open to the public today.
It was odd not having to flash them my Sam's Club card.
Note what happened to their cart corral and the lack of birds on the utility lines.
Usually those are loaded with birds on them.



You'd think with all the work that went into that traffic light system at Veterans Parkway and Wabash that they'd include a battery back-up system.
This photo is of the traffic as I turned left onto Wabash Ave from Rt 4.


In front of the old lighting center...



Driving on I-55 you see some interesting truckloads.
Any idea what this is?


As you can see, I didn't get photos of the areas that were most affected by the tornado, as those were blocked off by police.

Click here for links to photos from the areas I couldn't access.

The Springfield email list is discussing the Springfield tornados.

Join the list and share your experiences from this day.

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/springfieldillinois/

Springfield, IL tornados

Here are some weblinks to tv, newspaper and local resident's coverage of the Springfield, IL tornados.

Supercell Thunderstorm of March 12, 2006
NOAA's National Weather Service
www.crh.noaa.gov/ilx/?n=mar12tor
Includes an overview of radar and other weather observations during the event.

From WNNS
www.wnns.com/stormphotos.htm

Springfield Closed road map
http://www.springfield.il.us/Weather/ClosedRoadsMap.pdf

City of Springfield, IL website
http://www.springfield.il.us/

WTAX tornado photo gallery
http://www.wtax.com/galleries.php?gallery_id=127
From Rose
http://community.webshots.com/album/548537069AgPhpF

Flickr pool for photos of the Springfield tornados...

www.flickr.com/groups/springfieldstorms/pool/

From Larry
wxguy.livejournal.com/50170.html#cutid1


From Dizzee Daizzee
www.dizzeedaizzee.com/index_files/Page598.htm


See what Bloggers have written about the tornado here:

search.blogger.com/?ui=blg&q=springfield+%2B+tornado


Click on the link for:
7am Severe Weather Coverage
to view WGN's tv coverage from this morning.
wgntv.trb.com/news/local/morningnews
(will probably only be available today)

WGN-TV Weather Blog!
wgntv.trb.com/news/weather/weblog/wgnweather/

Large tornado downstate, microburst here
wgntv.trb.com/news/weather/weblog/wgnweather/archives/002774.html


Twister hits Springfield, IL
wgntv.trb.com/news/weather/weblog/wgnweather/archives/002773.html

From CNN - Includes video
100 twisters across 5 states
'It's just amazing how devastating it is'
Tuesday, March 14, 2006; Posted: 11:17 a.m. EST (16:17 GMT)

Springfield, Illinois, was hit hard twice in 24 hours, first by a tornado late Sunday and then by strong wind early Monday that blew debris through the city. Windows in the Illinois Capitol were blown out, and even the five-story Illinois Emergency Management Agency building lost part of its roof. (Watch the swath of destruction as residents awake after the storm -- 1:22)

cnn.com/2006/WEATHER/03/14/severe.weather.ap/index.html

From our local paper, the State Journal Register...

Wind speeds in excess of 120 mph
By JAYETTE BOLINSKI and AMANDA REAVY
STAFF WRITERS
Published Tuesday, March 14, 2006
www.sj-r.com/sections/news/stories/81017.asp

Track of destruction
Tornadoes roared over everything in the way
By SARAH ANTONACCI,CHRIS YOUNG and DEAN OLSEN
STAFF WRITERS
Published Tuesday, March 14, 2006
www.sj-r.com/sections/news/stories/81016.asp

Storm silences sirens
Most become useless after initial front knocks out power
By CHRIS WETTERICH and JAYETTE BOLINSKI STAFF WRITERS
Published Tuesday, March 14, 2006

Springfield Mayor Tim Davlin said Monday that "everything went like clockwork" in the city's response to Sunday's tornado, but questions remain about the effectiveness of the decrepit siren system.

www.sj-r.com/sections/news/stories/81018.asp

Click here to view what the paper editions looked like this week.
www.sj-r.com/frontpages/

Check here for breaking news
www.sj-r.com/extras/breaking/index.asp


The State Journal-Register's coverage of the tornados.
www.sj-r.com/extras/storm06/

WICS.com news
wics.com/news/news.shtml#Headline1


From the Chicago Tribune...

Midwest Assesses Damage After Tornadoes
chicagotribune.com/news/weather/sns-ap-severe-weather,1,326908.story

Springfield schools remain closed
chicagotribune.com/news/custom/newsroom/chi-060314springfield,1,982194.story

Winds rip through Illinois
7 counties ruled disaster areas as storm leaves heavy damage
chicagotribune.com/news/local/chi-0603140288mar14,1,6508485.story

Find more at:
chicagotribune.com/search/dispatcher.front?Query=springfield&target=article

Not tornado related, except that he was traveling at around or faster than the speed of the tornado winds...

Motorcyclist Clocked at 155 Mph Jailed

At that point, Livingston Parish sheriff's deputies and Springfield police chased Willis back toward Riley, who made the arrest, he said.

"He pulled over once he saw all of us, without incident," Riley said. "He just said he didn't think he was going that fast and he didn't know we were behind him. He thought he was only doing 120 or 130."

chicagotribune.com/news/showcase/sns-ap-really-speeding,1,108507.story

From the Sun Times

Tornado rips through parts of Illinois
March 14, 2006
BY ANN SANNER ASSOCIATED PRESS
www.suntimes.com/output/news/tornado14.html

Links from yesterday...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/springfieldillinois/message/1232

Photo Gallery: Storm hits Springfield - March 12
www.sj-r.com/extras/galleries/viewgallery.asp?gallery=130&Image=1

School / work closings list
www.wfmb.com/pages/school.html

Violent storms hit Springfield
The Associated Press
Published March 13, 2006, 9:34 AM CST
chicagotribune.com/news/custom/newsroom/chi-060313springfield,1,195761.story

Tornadoes Rip Across Midwest, Killing 10
By JOHN O'CONNOR Associated Press Writer
Published March 13, 2006, 10:12 AM CST

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. -- Swarms of tornadoes killed at least 10 people
across the Midwest, shut down the University of Kansas and caused so
much damage in Springfield that the mayor compared it to the aftermath
of Hurricane Katrina.
chicagotribune.com/news/custom/newsroom/sns-ap-severe-weather,1,3976345.story

Tornado reported in Springfield; power out
From Tribune staff and wire reports
Tribune staff reporter
Published March 13, 2006, 3:42 AM CST
chicagotribune.com/news/local/chi-060313weather,1,1664777.story

Tornadoes Rip Across Midwest, Killing 10
cnn.com/2006/WEATHER/03/13/midwest.storms.ap/

Update 18: Tornadoes Rip Across Midwest, Killing 10
forbes.com/infoimaging/feeds/ap/2006/03/13/ap2590574.html

Tornadoes Rip Across Midwest, Killing 10
abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory?id=1718587

Tornadoes rip across US midwest (from an Australian newspaper)
theadvertiser.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5936,18459077%255E1702,00.html

Storms do heavy damage in Springfield
March 13, 2006
suntimes.com/output/news/cst-nws-storm13.html


Tornadoes Rip Across Midwest, Killing 10

Sample:

Even the five-story Illinois Emergency Management Agency building was
damaged, its roof partly torn off and the top floor flooded, said IEMA
spokeswoman Patti Thompson.

abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory?id=1718810

More news articles here:

news.google.com/news?hl=en&ned=us&ie=UTF-8&q=Springfield+%2B+tornado

I hope everyone is okay. Please reply and report what you've seen on the Springfield email list at:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/springfieldillinois/
or reply to this post.

Hope your electricity is back on and no damage occured too.

If you have photos, you can post them in the PHOTO GALLERY here or
upload them to your own webspace (most ISP's seem to give free
webspace) and then share the url's to the photos here.

Or you can start a free photo blog -
http://www.blogger.com is easy to use and then share your photos that way.
Once your account is started, create a new post, select COMPOSE and click
on the upload photo option (It looks like a landscape)to get started sharing photos.

My thanks to all of you who have shared Tornado photos and links to tornado photos.

Did anyone happen to see what happened to my favorite restaurant, Little Saigon?

I look forward to hearing from you.


More tornado damage photos

Some Springfield area tornado damage photos - from outside of the worst hit areas..

A glance down Wabash Avenue




Tuesday, March 07, 2006

Gubernatorial Debate in Springfield, IL



Sen. Bill Brady, Ron Gidwitz, Jim Oberweis and Judy Baar Topinka
debate at the
Hoogland Center for the Arts in Springfield, Illinois.
The
debate was hosted by the
Illinois Chamber of Commerce,
National Federation of Independent Business
and WICS TV 20, who also televised the event.





www.judyforgov.com


www.bradyforgovernor2006.com



www.oberweisforillinois.com



www.ron2006.com

Related articles...


GOP Debate (from WICS.com)
http://wics.com/news/news.shtml#Headline1

Topinka, Oberweis clash in debate Brady decries squabble; Gidwitz says it's natural
www.sj-r.com/Sections/News/Stories/80530.asp

Topinka and Oberweis trade jabs

Treasurer spurns rival's request for apology in ad dispute


www.chicagotribune.com/news/elections/chi-0603080157mar08,1,4788607.story

Your guide to the Illinois Primary
www.chicagotribune.com/news/elections/

Oberweis booed for gripes against Topinka

www.suntimes.com/output/elect/cst-nws-debate08.html

WBBM-CBS 2 coverage of Springfield debate.
Includes video interviews, news coverage.

Election coverage on Chicago Public Radio

WGN-TV 9's candidate interviews

Transcript of Jan 25, 2006 GOP Gubernatorial Debate held in Naperville, IL.
(I haven't found a transcript for the Springfield debate yet.)

WLS TV 7 ABC / Chicago hosted a debate on March 8, 2006.
Review and video files of the debate available here.

Scroll down the page for more photos.

Remember, you can click on an image for a larger view.





The non-handshake between Jim Oberweis and Judy Baar Topinka after the debate...