The summer of 2012 will be remembered by many as the one where storms wreaked havoc across the nation. Buildings were destroyed, property was damaged, electricity was cut, and lives were lost when Mother Nature unleashed her rage on over half the states.
nj.com
The eastern states were struck by strong winds and heavy rains. Even some of the largest trees weren’t big enough to remain standing, like this one in Cumberland County, New Jersey.
csmonitor.com
The first half of 2012 ended with a savage storm in our nation’s capital. This home was saved from being crushed by a massive tree because of some utility lines. Imagine the kind of force it takes to dislodge that huge root system.
wxyz.com
This Takoma Park, Maryland woman probably lost power to her home (as did millions of her neighbors). So she took the opportunity to go outside and inspect the damage to this car that was left in the middle of the road.
latimes.com
For those who wondered why it took so long to restore power to some homes in Maryland, this is part of the reason. Workers in Huntington had to remove trees from downed power lines before the actual repair process could begin.
www2.timesdispatch.com
The commonwealth of Virginia wasn’t spared from the storms that struck the East Coast. This building was once a cheerleading activity center, and 14 cheerleaders were inside as the storm’s fury destroyed the facility.
interactives.foxonline.com
Even though the region is better known for its heavy snowfall, the Midwest also suffered through its own bout of inclement summer weather. Winds were strong enough to demolish this outbuilding northwest of Green Bay, Wisconsin.
thesouthern.com
It’s always hard to fathom how huge storms can rip roofs right off of the tops of buildings. But that’s exactly what happened to Christopher Elementary School in Franklin County, Illinois. The damaged section is estimated to be 2200 square feet in size. At least the gutters stayed intact!
minnesota.publicradio.com
Among other things, Minnesota is known for its extremely tall trees. However, a large number of them are no longer standing after a storm ripped through the state on the day before Independence Day. This home and garage in Grand Rapids bore the brunt of two of them.
northlandsnewscenter.com
About 60 miles west of Duluth, Minnesota, the Isedor Iverson Airport in McGregor was more apt to host seaplanes than airplanes after the facility was left largely underwater by what is already being called the “Northland Flood of the Century.”
aurorasentinel.com
It wasn’t just the eastern and central U.S. that had to deal with severe weather. Storms of a different flavor dropped massive amounts of hail on Colorado Springs, Colorado in June. You can see the hail piled atop debris next to this intersection.
