Raging Skies

The weather here in Omaha is strange. One hour it's a gorgeous sunny day and just a few hours later storm clouds are rolling in and people are being warned of the impending dangerous weather! But I can't remember having a severe thunderstorm warning in September in years past. It's typically a bit more calm at this time of year.
But tonight, the TV was beeping every few minutes to get the attention of its viewers and warning everyone of the fury of Mother Nature that was sure to arrive. I had just been out on my deck enjoying the warm evening air, grilling my steaks and looking forward to the season finale of "Big Brother" and the season premier of "Survivor: Nicaragua" when the alerts were popping up on the TV screen.
I checked the skies towards the northwest and sure enough, the clouds were off in the distance and very dark in color. The breeze had settled into complete stillness. You could here every bird chirping, kids playing in the distance and cars on streets that I wouldn't normally notice.

As I stood in my front yard taking pictures, I saw other neighbors standing outside their homes checking the sky as well. The storm clouds were moving in very quickly and if I just stood and watched them, I could literally see them rolling and drifting ever closer to my area. The sky appeared to be on fire. The sun was setting behind the clouds and as they moved eastward and away from the horizon, the sun lit them up like a torch. It seemed as if a fire was burning somewhere and the flames were reflecting off the clouds above. Within seconds, a breeze began to blow and the sounds of it moving through trees was getting louder. At this point, I decided to take down hanging decor from or around my house; such as my wind chimes and the items that had been adorning my railing. Before I had it all done, the wind was pretty strong.

The clouds are moving in.




It got dark so quickly that the street lights came on.

The sky appears to be on fire over my neighbor's home!

Beautiful....

Here it comes!! The clouds were hanging very low.

There had been reports from communities just to the west of Omaha, that the wind had been blowing at 65 MPH. It must have settled considerably before it hit my house. It was windy but it wasn't nearly that bad! It also passed through as fast as it arrived. Before I knew it, the skies were clear. And even though it was dark, I was able to go out and put things back where they were. The temperature dropped a little bit as well. But that's to be expected after a thunderstorm. One thing's for sure......Omaha never has a dull moment where the weather is concerned!