Dear Tom,
Has there ever been a tornado on Christmas or New Year’s Day?
Zak McTee, 7th grader at Holy Family School, Shorewood, Ill.
Dear Zak,
The Chicago area has never experienced a tornado during the winter months of December, January and February, and while not impossible, it is highly improbable that one would ever occur here on Christmas or New Year’s Day. That is not the case, however, in the southern Plains or the Southeast, where twisters can occur throughout the year.
Just last Christmas, a tornado moved though Columbia County in northern Florida west of Jacksonville, destroying three homes and damaging at least 10 others as it churned along the ground for nearly 5 miles. On New Year’s Day back in 1999, eight twisters (two of them F2s) blasted portions of southeast Texas north and east of Houston, injuring eight and producing damage in excess of $1.3 million
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Tom Skilling is chief meteorologist at WGN-TV. His forecasts can be seen Monday through Friday on WGN-TV News at noon and 9 p.m.
WGN-TV meteorologists Steve Kahn, Richard Koeneman and Paul Dailey plus weather producer Bill Snyder contribute to this page.
