Community Chat

[just bee]

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@SilleeMee wrote:

I've lived in Colorado for more than 50 years and I don't remember experiencing this kind of relentless, never-ending high wind. Maybe a few days, or a few more, of it but not like this...going on for weeks!...even in the middle of the night!

And worst of all, we're getting the smoke from the NM fires, too.

I had a gust of 102mph blast down my wooden fence. I feared for my life that my tall trees were going to crash down on me in my house. That day my house was shaking like it was on a vibration thingee.

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@SilleeMee 

Sorry!

We usually get all the smoke from Arizona when it's on fire.

I hate it when the fences come down here because dogs get out of their yards and... well, you can imagine.

[just bee]

The saga continues...

[LindaSal]

The wind has been crazy in the northeast too.  Nothing like what you people are experiencing though.  I hope you all stay safe and that the winds and fires calm down soon!  

[Kachina624]

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@just bee wrote:

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@house_cat wrote:

I was in Colorado last week, visiting a friend who just moved there. The winds were brutal - even driving was treacherous at times.

Is that typical weather for this time of year?

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@house_cat 

Wyoming, Colorado and New Mexico experience fierce "spring winds" but it seems like New Mexico's winds occur earlier in the season, in March and April.  This is May and it's still windy.

Colorado is seeing gusts that are 70 to 80 miles an hour.  Much worse than anything we're experiencing here.  We're used to blowing sand.  I hate to think of Coloradans being sandblasted.

Driving in this sort of wind is treacherous.  Cars in Colorado are overturning.

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@just bee    Seemed to me that the whole winter this year was unusually windy, then Spring came and it got worse.  I've had a hard time finding a day when I could spray for weeds so I've gotten up at dawn and done it before it starts to blow.

I believe there have been a few occasions when winds of slightly over 90mph have been clocked in the moubtains. They were described as "hurricane force".

West Texas is no slacker in the wind department either.  Its especially fun when the red dust is blowing then it starts to rain....mud balls.  You can't drive a block without washing your windshield.

[just bee]

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@Kachina624 wrote:

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@just bee wrote:

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@house_cat wrote:

I was in Colorado last week, visiting a friend who just moved there. The winds were brutal - even driving was treacherous at times.

Is that typical weather for this time of year?

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@house_cat 

Wyoming, Colorado and New Mexico experience fierce "spring winds" but it seems like New Mexico's winds occur earlier in the season, in March and April.  This is May and it's still windy.

Colorado is seeing gusts that are 70 to 80 miles an hour.  Much worse than anything we're experiencing here.  We're used to blowing sand.  I hate to think of Coloradans being sandblasted.

Driving in this sort of wind is treacherous.  Cars in Colorado are overturning.

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@just bee    Seemed to me that the whole winter this year was unusually windy, then Spring came and it got worse.  I've had a hard time finding a day when I could spray for weeds so I've gotten up at dawn and done it before it starts to blow.

I believe there have been a few occasions when winds of slightly over 90mph have been clocked in the moubtains. They were described as "hurricane force".

West Texas is no slacker in the wind department either.  Its especially fun when the red dust is blowing then it starts to rain....mud balls.  You can't drive a block without washing your windshield.

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@Kachina624 

You think we should warn the others about moving out West?

It's a stampede!!!

[SilleeMee]

Part of the blame of why it's been so windy out west is the dry air. Any kind of breeze or wind will kick up particles up into the air and cause friction which has an accelerating effect with wind. The drier it is the more wind will ensue creating the perfect storm for fires.

[Jk9]

So sorry to hear about the winds and fires.  Even we in the southeast have been having a lot more wind this year but nothing like what you describe.  My prayers are with you. 

[brandiwine]

Just FYI, these are not Chinook winds. Those only happen during winter months and they are warm during very cold periods. They melt lots of snow quickly. These winds are from the jet stream and cold fronts. We are sick of them.

[SilleeMee]

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@brandiwine wrote:
Just FYI, these are not Chinook winds. Those only happen during winter months and they are warm during very cold periods. They melt lots of snow quickly. These winds are from the jet stream and cold fronts. We are sick of them.

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Exactly. The jet stream has become very extreme in it's movements b/c of an unstable arctic air mass which has gotten that way from upper atmosphere warming. Normally arctic air acts like a fence to keep the jet stream in a sort of straight-ish line. But since the arctic air has warm spots within it, that causes a whiplash effect on the jet stream meaning way up and way down weather patterns bring in more wind.  We can expect more extreme weather in our future unfortunately. 

I studied meterology in college and I wanted to get certified to work for NOAA. But like so many other things in my life, that changed.

[Malcontent]

@SilleeMee 

These winds have been relentless this year.