Windstorm of September 14, 2008

On September 14, 2008, the remnants of Hurricane Ike combined with a cold front crossing the Ohio Valley to cause extermely strong surface winds to blow through the region. Hurricane-force wind gusts in Louisville felled countless trees and power lines. At one point, 60% of LG&E customers in the Louisville area were without power, with some folks expected to remain in the dark for up to a week. Minor damage occurred at Valhalla Golf Club just 2 days before the Ryder Cup was to begin, but it was expected to be taken care of before the first tee-off. Sadly, one fatality occurred in Shelby County when a tree limb fell on a 10-year-old child.

Scientifically, this phenomenon resulted from very strong winds around 3000-6000 feet above the ground (50-80 mph), i.e., a low-level jet associated with and ahead of the remnants of Ike, being directed downward to the surface as surface heating (due to some sunshine) resulted in steep low-level lapse rates (temperatures decreasing rapidly with height from the surface to the level of these maximum winds). Such lapse rates allowed winds aloft to mix down to the surface causing the strong, damaging wind gusts. This phenomenon typically is common with severe thunderstorms, although in this case, there were no thunderstorms at all associated with the strong winds.

Below is a map of area wind gusts, followed by some damage pictures. If you have any photos you would like to contribute, please send them to w-lmk.webmaster@noaa.gov. Thank you!

map

The following four photos were sent to us by Jeanne Newton in Scottsburg, Indiana, in Scott County. Click on the image for a larger version.


Marathon Gas Station on North Gardner St	Vail's True Value Lumber Shed on Railroad St	McClain Avenue	McClain Avenue

The following pictures were sent to us by Mike Howard. Click on the image for a larger version.


Barrett Hill Road at Sulgrave, Louisville	Boulevard Napoleon, Louisville	Boulevard Napoleon, Louisville	Carlimar Lane, Graymoor-Devondale	Alta Avenue, Louisville

Barrett Avenue and Beechwood, Louisville	Boulevard Napoleon, Louisville	Saratoga Avenue, Louisville	Taylorsville Road at Carolina, Louisville	Taylorsville Road at Carolina, Louisville

Taylorsville Road at Carolina, Louisville	Taylorsville Road at Carolina, Louisville	Winter Avenue, Louisville	Wrocklage Avenue at Bardstown Road, Louisville	Deer Park Avenue, Louisville

In the Highlands section of Louisville	Chenoweth Lane at Olympic Ave, Indian Hills	US 42 in Indian Hills	US 42 in Indian Hills	Chenoweth lane at US 42, Indian Hills

Louisville Boat Club	Louisville Boat Club	Pennington Lane in Mockingbird Valley	Baxter Avenue, Louisville	Baxter Avenue and Kentucky, Louisville

Roof damage in Prospect	Seneca Park, Louisville	Seneca Park, Louisville	Hycliffe Ave at Thompson Ave, Saint Matthews	Lake Springs and Dorsey Lane, Lyndon

Brittany Valley Road, Glenview	Westport Road, Plantation	Bellewood Drive, Anchorage	Creel Lodge Drive at Osage Road, Anchorage	Creel Lodge Drive, Anchorage

Evergreen Road at Log Cabin Lane, Anchorage	Owl Creek Lane, Anchorage	River Road at Wolf Pen Branch, Harrod's Creek	River Road at Wolf Pen Branch, Harrod's Creek	Shadow Wood, Harrod's Creek

Wolf Pen Branch and Nitta Yuma, Harrod's Creek	Wolf Pen Branch, Harrod's Creek	Wolf Pen Branch and Nitta Yuma, Harrod's Creek	Wolf Pen Branch and Nitta Yuma, Harrod's Creek	Wolf Pen Branch and Nitta Yuma, Harrod's Creek

Wolf Pen branch at River Road, Harrod's Creek	Mayfair and River Road, Prospect	River Road at Hays Kennedy, Prospect