After The Tornado
Mapping April's severe weather outbreak in Slidell, Louisiana
On Wednesday, April 10, 2024, four tornadoes touched down within a few miles — one within a few hundred feet! — of my home in Slidell, Louisiana, all within a span of about 30 minutes.
Sarah and I were home with the dogs, watching the weather anxiously (me) through the windows in the front of our home. We were looking north toward the neighboring country club and, beyond that, Interstate 12.
Just before 10 in the morning, the wind started doing something different, something I never witnessed before in person — it was blowing violently in different directions all at once. Some trees bent toward the ground one way, other trees bent another way, all at the same time. How was this even possible?
The question was not pondered for long. It was convincing enough that this was no ordinary weather event. We immediately sought shelter in the bathroom with the dogs.
A few seconds later, the emergency alert hit our cell phones. A tornado was indicated near our home by radar according to the local news broadcast. For the first time ever in our lives, as far as we can recall, Sarah and I found ourselves smack dab within one of those tornado warning boxes produced by the National Weather Service.
It was a harrowing hour of severe weather from that point forward. Three more tornadoes would touch down in and around Slidell within the half hour. One of those, the most severe, was classified as an EF-2 tornado by the National Weather Service. It traced an 11-mile, 350-yard wide path across the city before dissipating near the Louisiana-Mississippi border.
We were lucky. The tornadoes spared us from property damage and physical harm. Others in our community were not so fortunate on this day, as the spate of tornadoes tore through a number of Slidell’s suburban neighborhoods and bisected several of its commercial corridors.
Many were left homeless in the immediate aftermath of the outbreak. Some still are to this day.
Afterward, the destruction in parts of Slidell was likened to that of Hurricane Katrina. Comparing anything to Katrina is a dangerous proposition around here. Some things are too painful — and probably will be forever — to use as a comparable.
Somehow, thankfully, there were no fatalities as a result of the severe weather outbreak, and the scale of destruction was smaller than Katrina’s. In terms of the severity of the damage where damage was done though, this event, for those residents and business owners affected, is measuring up.
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
The United Way of Southeast Louisiana, in partnership with WWL-TV Channel 4, is accepting donations for those affected by the severe weather on April 10. If you are able, please consider a donation.
If you are a St. Tammany Parish resident and your home or business was impacted by the severe weather event, you can submit a storm damage assessment review with the St. Tammany Parish Assessor’s Office.
The St. Tammany Parish Assessor’s Office ordered aerial imagery along the track of the EF-2 tornado that cut across Slidell on April 10. The imagery was captured two days after the event by Environmental Science Services, Inc. of Denham Springs, Louisiana, using drone technology. It is available for public use via this ArcGIS Online map service.
Finally, it is going to be a long road to recovery for many of Slidell’s residents and business owners. When the time is right again, please consider visiting Slidell to help boost the local economy.