In October 1859, the U.S. military arsenal at Harpers Ferry was the target of an assault by an armed band of abolitionists led by John Brown (1800-59).
A tornado appears as a rotating, funnel-shaped cloud that extends from a thunderstorm to the ground with whirling winds that can reach 300 miles per hour. Damage paths can be in excess of one mile wide and 50 miles long. Some tornadoes are clearly visible, while rain or nearby low-hanging clouds obscure others.t is not uncommon to see clear, sunlit skies behind a tornado. 1  Tornadoes cause an average of 70 fatalities and 1,500 injuries in the U.S. each year. 2  The strongest tornadoes have rotating winds of more than 250 mph.
A strong updraft allows hailstones to grow large enough to reach the ground. In general, the stronger the updraft, the larger the hail. Once hailstones grow large enough to begin falling despite the updraft that's been holding them up, they hurtle toward the ground as fast as 90 mph. Small hailstones often melt before reaching the ground, but the larger ones reach the ground and can cause extensive damage to crops and vehicles caught in the storm.