[kcvl]

Posted on Thu, May. 08, 2003

Thunderstorms Flash Across Plains
Associated Press

Severe thunderstorms swept across the Plains, while cloudy skies mostly were reported in the Pacific Northwest and Great Basin.

Over the central portion of the country, isolated strong to severe thunderstorms were found across eastern Oklahoma, Nebraska, southwestern Iowa, western Arkansas, eastern Kansas and western Missouri.

A tornado touched down in Oklahoma City as the afternoon rush hour began Thursday, and several warnings were issued over southeastern Missouri and northwestern Mississippi.

Rain that has been falling for days sent the Tennessee River to its highest level in three decades and caused damage estimated in the millions. Alabama and Georgia continued to see rivers and streams near or above flood stage.

A low pressure system off the coast of Washington brought cloudy skies across the Pacific Northwest and Great Basin, along with scattered light rain and snow showers. In Lander, Wyo., visibility was reduced to a quarter of a mile as the snow became fairly heavy at times.

Temperatures in the Lower 48 states on Thursday ranged from a low of 19 degrees in Stanley, Idaho, to a high of 93 degrees in Harlingen, Texas.

[thunders]

I was talking to my mom on the phone a little while ago; she was watching the news, where the storm chasers were reporting seeing the tornado that was near Caw City jumping up and down--they said it would come down and sort of bump the ground 4 or 5 times, then go back up into the cloud, then come back down and 'bump' again, then go back up, etc. I don't know how long it kept this up or anything....