First came the rain, lashing down on to the tarmac at Bradley International Airport. Next were the howling winds. The sky turned black, and Donald J. Piacentini hopped into his car, left his job at the airport in Windsor Locks and headed home to Agawam. Piacentini was a reluctant witness to the tornado that swept…
Windsor Locks remembers devastating tornado 40 years later
WINDSOR LOCKS, Conn. (WWLP) – It was 40-years-ago Thursday that one of the costliest tornadoes in U.S. history caused devastation in southern New England. “The enormous task of cleaning up after a killer tornado is facing thousands of people in the Windsor Locks, Connecticut area this morning…” At around 3 p.m. on Wednesday, October 3,…
1979 Cheyenne tornado remains most destructive, costliest in Wyoming history
CHEYENNE – “It was the biggest and most destructive thing I’ve ever seen. And I’ve been to Vietnam. I thought I had seen it all.” Those were the words of Carl Lowery, a member of Wyoming Search and Rescue, in the July 17, 1979, edition of the Wyoming Eagle, describing the most destructive tornado in…
The 1979 Windsor Locks Tornado
The F4 tornado that hit Windsor, Windsor Locks, and Suffield on October 3, 1979 is arguably the most violent tornado in Connecticut history. The extraordinary and highly unusual circumstances that lead to the Windsor Locks tornado make the tornado not only one of the strongest but also one of most bizarre in New England history.…