1974 Tornado Superoutbreak:
Part 4 – Forecaster Recalls
When Russell Conger reported for his evening shift as a forecaster intern at the National Weather Service Office in Louisville, Kentucky, on April 3, 1974, he had no idea he'd soon witness one of the worst tornado outbreaks in U.S. history.
"Severe weather was beginning to break out near Louisville as I reported to work for the 4 to midnight shift," Conger said. "My duty was to record weather observations. Little did I realize I was about to witness one of nature's most spectacular events."
About a half-hour after starting his shift, Conger and his fellow forecasters found themselves uncomfortably close to one of the tornadoes that would eventually snake through the city.
"The electronics technician stuck his head out of the radar room and yelled there was a tornado about two and a half miles away. Ignoring our own safety warnings, we all ran to the windows to look."
When rocks started flying off the roof and hailstones pelted the window, the meteorologists ran for cover. But they returned seconds later to see the tornado over the airport parking lot, adjacent to the NWS office.
Weather records indicate the tornado formed at 4:37 p.m. EDT right "before the eyes of the National Weather Service Meteorologist in Charge," who was giving a live radio interview at the time.
This visual identification allowed Conger and his co-workers to issue a tornado warning 37 minutes before the tornado struck Louisville.
The twister quickly moved away from the airport and toward the Kentucky State Fair and Exposition Center, and Freedom Hall on the University of Louisville campus. In just 21 minutes, the tornado had wreaked a trail of destruction 660 feet wide and 22 miles long. More than 900 homes had been damaged beyond repair.
