Gregory Berg's Kenosha tornado photos
By Mark Czerniec
January 23, 2008 5:30 PM

As people all over the world have heard, there was some frightening tornado activity just a few short miles from here on the afternoon of January 7. I received a lot of calls and emails from co-workers, friends, and family, but happily I had nothing to report. I spent a little time in the basement watching weather radar and reading ominous warnings.

Today, however, I was emailed by a former radio colleague — Greg Berg, Fine Arts Director and host of The Morning Show at 91.1FM WGTD in Kenosha. Greg, who is also Assistant Professor of Music at Carthage College, shot a number of remarkable photos of the tornado that day from right outside the Carthage music building. Yikes!

I have written about it here before, gentle reader, and I will harp upon it once again: As our weather becomes more volatile as a result of global warming, you must make sure that you have a decent weather radio. I recommend the Midland WR-100C (although I actually own the Midland WR-300, which is a slightly more expensive model that includes extremely poor AM & FM). I bought my radio from Amazon.com, but I have even seen big piles of them at local supermarkets.

It was my Midland weather radio that sounded an alarm and warning on the afternoon of January 7, a date when I would least expect that such a violent storm could be approaching.

Thanks to that radio, I was able to warn our neighbor Betty, who was out walking her dog and regarding the sirens quizzically. I alerted her and she scrambled back home with a frightened look on her face. Only later did Amy remind me that Betty has no basement, and could very well have been doomed by my inhospitable panic.

Oh, well. I can't think of everything.