OT: Freak Storm in Conroe, TX

[M.B. Naegle]

So yesterday about 3:00 everyone started getting Tornado alerts on our phones telling us to seek shelter. Not too common around here so we peek outside to see a big ball of black clouds coming at us. Everyone hunkered down inside as rain and hail start in and the power goes out. I'm on the phone with my wife as she's stuck in the car with our 2 year old in line waiting to pick up our other two kids from school (kids sheltered inside). After maybe 20 minutes of chaos the hail and rain die down and stop. Back to blue sky. Families all OK with minimal property damage. We lost two trees behind the shop. Half the town is without power, including the shop, and linemen are scrambling all over. Lots of down trees and lines around town.

So this morning we all show up to work and still no power. We hauled in 3 little generators from home and after some TLC from our resident gas engine wizard, we're finding ways to stay busy. No CNC or other 3 phase, but still lots of assembly to do with some make shift lighting. Only two computers hooked up, but we got wifi.

Can't blame "the grid" on this one as they're actually doing lots of improvements around town and this was a freak storm. Word is there was a tornado touched down on one side of town but no word yet how bad it hit. Worst I've heard so far is that there was a crew building a house in a subdivision on the south side that sheltered in it but it collapsed killing two and injuring several others.

Stuff like this is weird. You prepare as much as you can but in the end it takes a fair amount of MacGyvering to keep things going. The alternative is to go home, but there's still plenty to do even if it isn't the most productive. There's always sweeping and mopping to get done.

When we built our shop, we had to keep in a budget with no on site generator and the contractor advised us to forgo windows or skylights in the shop in favor of emergency battery backup lights. Well we'll need an electrician because they don't work, and the ones in the offices only lasted 12 hours. Now I'm wondering just how expensive it would be to add windows and a small on site generator. On the bright side, our little generators are ready ahead of hurricane season!

 

[DDoug]

I don't see the hail, how big was it ?

 

[guythatbrews]

Glad you didn't have excessive damage and no injury.

When there is a tornado alert we joke who will climb into which machine when the warning comes. Steel buildings don't do well.

 

[M.B. Naegle]

I don't see the hail, how big was it ?

I didn't get any pictures while it went down. Pictures are from today, working via generator. Biggest I saw was marbles, and no vehicle damage that I've seen from it. Just big enough to get our attention.

 

[dalmatiangirl61]

Glad you didn't have excessive damage and no injury.

When there is a tornado alert we joke who will climb into which machine when the warning comes. Steel buildings don't do well.

I've been thru a few hail storms at the Tx shop, it was an ungodly roar on the roof and walls, when the rollup door started bowing inwards I climbed under the steel work bench.

 

[FredC]

Glad you are OK. We had a threat of heavy hail here a few weeks ago. I thought of putting all the vehicles in the covered cattle pens for protection. Then thought about penning the cattle in there instead. I then heard a rancher on TV say that the noise from a bad hailstorm will drive the cattle out of the pens into the hail. Cows many times do not know what is good for them.

Our storm did not materialize so all was OK.

 

[gtermini]

Cows many times do not know what is good for them.

Growing up we had a small heard that we moved in trucks, and I remember learning at a young age that without fail, a cow's head was on the wrong end.

 

[M.B. Naegle]

Glad you didn't have excessive damage and no injury.

When there is a tornado alert we joke who will climb into which machine when the warning comes. Steel buildings don't do well.

We were joking about climbing in the storage containers, as most of them are likely 10,000 lbs. Or more.

 

[Limy Sami]

Yikes, if you're not getting shot in Texas, the weather's out to kill you.

 

[memphisjed]

Naders do not play- neither do straight line winds.
Happy you have all fingers and toes-

 

[FredC]

Yikes, if you're not getting shot in Texas, the weather's out to kill you.

Limy,
There are a lot of things out here trying to kill you. I have had cows that would just a soon kill you as look at you. Venomous snakes, spiders and such also. Sometimes wild pigs get upset with you for trying to kill them, you would think they would understand you are just trying to protect the crops you planted.

The snake by my boot my cat killed.

 

[DDoug]

Yikes, if you're not getting shot in Texas, the weather's out to kill you.

Pot, kettle, black eh ?

Moment shop worker wrestles gun-wielding robber

Niall Stranix showed "incredible bravery" in tackling armed robber Marlon Stewart, police say.

www.bbc.com

 

[gustafson]

We were joking about climbing in the storage containers, as most of them are likely 10,000 lbs. Or more.

Where is that video of a tornado with a bunch of stuff whipping around....caption notes that those are freight cars...

 

[Ox]

Limy,
There are a lot of things out here trying to kill you. I have had cows that would just a soon kill you as look at you. Venomous snakes, spiders and such also. Sometimes wild pigs get upset with you for trying to kill them, you would think they would understand you are just trying to protect the crops you planted.

The snake by my boot my cat killed.




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What is the pistol?
Is that a .410, or just .22 with bird shot?


Back in the late 90's we had a cpl years with some really bad straight lines roll through, but there was signs of a small twist in there as well. Took down 2 miles of 18" power poles on one side of our section, and 1 mile of 18" poles on the other side of our section. Happened 2wice back then, and we lost a few more just last year again...

At that time I had a high skewl kid working here, and to calm his concerns about big storms, I told him to just hunker down between the two biggest Acme's. At 25K# each, if those move, there likely isn't going to be anything worth living for on the other side of the storm anyhow.

He seemed content with that. (Engineering student)


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Think Snow Eh!
Ox

 

[M.B. Naegle]

We have power back on as of 7:45 last night. Back to work. Cases like this feel like Michael and Jan's conversation at the end of this bit on the office.

 

[FredC]

What is the pistol?
Is that a .410, or just .22 with bird shot?




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Think Snow Eh!
Ox

45/410 The 45 shot shells are plenty heavy for snakes. I bought a box of 410 shells. My son and I shot one each and will never do that again! Somewhere around here there is a box with 23 410 shells.
I have used the Bond with 45 Colt cartridges for close in protection when hunting pigs, but I do not do that anymore. With pigs you need heavier loads than the Bond can handle. One heavy load in a Ruger single action stopped an angry 350 lb boar at 2 paces from my feet. An experience like that rattles you for several days.

 

[DDoug]

When the Taurus "Judge" first came out, gas welltenders were buying them for rattlesnake protection, IIRC they ran the 410 shot shells in them.

 

[Ox]

So, am I to understand that _ that pistol will shoot both 45 and 410?
But you will not use the 410 chamber anymore?
Too much charge for not enough gun I ass_u_me?
And so you can get bird shot in 45's as well then?
The shot is caged to protect the rifleing?
(I don't think .22 are caged?)

But you can shoot .45 "bullets" in it as well?
If so, that must kick like a mule too eh?
And likely have a hard time hitting any target - between kick and short barrel?

I think that I would prefer a little more gun with a bore coming down.

My mom was looking itno buying one with .410 and .38 chambers for the desert, but I think she ended up with sumpthing else. Just a reg .38 or some such. IDK.


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Think Snow Eh!
Ox

 

[FredC]

When the Taurus "Judge" first came out, gas welltenders were buying them for rattlesnake protection, IIRC they ran the 410 shot shells in them.

The Judge may better handle the recoil, and that may change as the shells are fired and the gun gets lighter. The other explanation is I am a wimp.

Ox, the Bond is fairly heavy, and regular 45s as well as the 45 shot shells have manageable recoil for me. The Snakeslayer 4 has the chamber reamed for 410 with about 3/4 inch of rifling at the end of the barrel. The CCI 45 shot cartridges have a blue plastic capsule that probably breaks up when it hits the riffling. It makes a nice shot pattern at 6 to 10 feet with the reloads that I use.

And getting between the machines is what i would do during that bad of a storm. Shipping containers are too light, you see videos of semis being thrown around.

 

[Ox]

When I was a kid, I used to go pest hunting with a fella that bought an old .22 revolver, and used bird shot.
That was the cats meow for hunting rats!
That was WAY better than trying to git a pellet gun (rifle) in tight spots quickly!

However, I don't think that it would be enough to even piss the bore off to begin with. LOL!

350# bore sounds big, but when market hogs are going in at 285# these days....
Kind'a puts a new spin on the bore...

There are fellas from up here that will go south (anywhere south as I understand it) to hunt piggies for the weekend.
They set up live feed game cams and go to the fire pit until something pings them.
Seems more like a harvest than hunt, but with the volumes that y'all have down there, I guess that's OK eh?

Doo you like the meat?


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Think Snow Eh!
Ox