That is me on top, photo assitance by Allison. Finally the last in this series and I am glad to see it end.

We came out on top of this storm. Sometimes people and regions are not so fortunate. I wonder sometimes how long we will be able to keep coming out on top. I've never witnessed a storm before where the trees simply exploded and the ground tore free. Once was enough for me.

In his book Hot, Flat, and Crowded author Thomas Friedman spoke of a global weirding (coined by Hunter Lovins) to explain to people that global warming is going to trigger all sorts of unusual weather events. He cited a CNN report of a UN World Meteorological Organization study of unprecedented weather extremes of 2007: the wettest May to July period in England in 250 years, unusually heavy rain and flooding in the Sudan destroying 23,000 homes and killing 62, record breaking heat in Russia and Southeastern Europe, blizzards and snowfall in South America in Chile and Argentina, and 10" of snow in South Africa.

In 2008 in Iowa, heavy rains caused record breaking flooding. "'Usually if you break a record, you only do it by an inch or two ,' said Jeff Zogg, a hydrologist for the Weather Service in Davenport, Iowa. 'But breaking it by six feet? That's pretty amazing.'"

What weirdness have you experienced? A couple of years ago here in Lockport, we had a string of three or four days where the temperature reached the upper 70 degrees Fahrenheit in January, which is about fifty degrees higher than normal. All of the maple trees in the area were tricked into thinking that it was spring and started to bloom. When the weather turned back to normal, the small developing seedlings froze. During the following summer the seeds were all dead and the leaves were curled up and damaged. I'm not sure what animals, if any, feed on those seeds and whether or not they were affected. I'm positive that one off year did not impact the maple tree population in the big picture. I can't help but wonder how things would be impacted if a similar event did have a major impact on one part of the holistic environmental life cycle and started a chain reaction.

I don't come to Flickr to espouse on the world events, whether political, environmental, social or whatever, nor to read the ravings of others. I come to Flickr to see, read and feel the beauty and positive attitude of the world in which we live. Sometimes, however, those worlds collide.

Tags:   Derecho Tree Damage Lockport Storm Aftermath

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Second to last for this series. I am really glad that it is coming to an end.

All three images are of three different trees.

I hope that everyone has a wonderful Friday and a fantastic weekend.

Tags:   Derecho Storm Damage Lockport Tree Explosion

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The storm violently burst forth and cast us into complete and utter darkness. Lightning occasionally lit up the sky in a deep purple to reveal the trees dancing wildly in the wind. The only consistent illumination that was present was the soft glow of our phones which highlighted us searching frantically for information of what was happening.

Tags:   Derecho Night Storm Darkness Reflection Long Exposure

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Chicago-style Bungalow located in sunny and quaint downtown Lockport. Newly rehabbed, full brick 3 bedroom and 1 bath home. Great for first time buyers! Avant-garde landscaping will have all of the neighbors envious and will be the talk of the town.

Tags:   Derecho Storm Damage Tree Uproot

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After the first of the storm, all we could see was a giant tree toppled on the side of the road!

Tags:   Derecho Storm Damage Tree Destruction Cars

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