Tornado deaths and tornado frequency do not coincide

Maggie Koerth 8:48 am Tue May 10, 2011

Tornadoes are most frequent in central Oklahoma. But more tornado deaths occur around the region where the borders of Alabama, Tennessee, and Mississippi touch. This graphic comes from a really interesting article by Chris Rowan on the Highly Allochthonous blog. Rowan compares the disparities between tornado frequency and tornado deaths to earthquakes, discussing the difference in earthquake preparedness between areas that ride the lines where plates of the Earth's crust touch, and areas prone to intraplate earthquakes. The latter receive much less attention—both in terms of research, and safety preparation.

Meanwhile, speaking of tornadoes, a group of writers from Tuscaloosa, Alabama, have put together a downloadable ebook of stories and essays about their hometown. The download is free, but the writers are hoping that people who like the book will donate money toward relief efforts that will help the city recover. Download the ebook. Donate.

Thanks to Brian Oliu!

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