Aug 02 2009
Ocean City Maryland Storm Coming
On July 31, 2009, I was on vacation in Ocean City, Maryland. Most of the day was sunny and warm, a perfect beach day. Although there were weather warnings that an isolated thunderstorm might appear during the day, the sun shone and the beach was full of people.
I was sitting on our cottage deck when lifeguard whistles started blaring and people began scrambling off the beach. I grabbed my camera and went out onto the boardwalk a few feet from our cottage.
I took about ten pictures of the ocean storm in less than two minutes and the progression of the storm was intense. One woman described these clouds as “clouds banking over the ocean”.
I didn’t know at the time, but there was also a tornado warning that lasted about 30 minutes. No tornados struck down, but the thunder and lightening for the next few hours after this storm hit were incredible. One minute it was sunny on the beach and less than ten minutes later these clouds had formed over the ocean. Nature can be amazing and this storm proves just how powerful nature can be.
People still scrambling to get off the beach.
eek, that looks like the Fist o’God or something!
I was on guarding on 124th street that day- that was a supercell cloud. I’ve seen water spouts touch down before- even pick up lifeguard stands! The ensuing storm was one of the strongest I’ve ever seen with golf ball sized hail and winds pushing 70 mph. Luckily, there was no tornado!