Tornado alley is undergoing a transformation. The Wichita Eagle reports the number of days with damaging tornados has fallen sharply. But the number of days with large outbreaks has climbed dramatically.
There was an average of 150 days with at least one F1 tornado in the 1970s. Now, that number has dropped to about 100.
There were six days in the entire decade of the 1970s with at least 30 F1 tornadoes. Now, there are three of those days every year.
Harold Brooks is a researcher with the National Severe Storms Laboratory in Norman, Oklahoma.
He says somehow the atmospheric pattern has changed. The cause is not clear. However, there is considerable discussion about the Arctic ice melt, and the changing jet stream.
The pattern shift could significantly affect insurers and emergency managers around Tornado Alley and the Deep South.
Sharon Watson is the spokeswoman for the Kansas Division of Emergency Management. She says Kansas is well-prepared for a massive outbreak.