A tornado in December? It can happen when the weather conditions are just right

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Is this latest weather disaster a sign of things to come?

The tornadoes we saw over the weekend were unlike any of the weather events we normally see in December. Tornadoes are not unheard of this time of year, but they can happen when the conditions are exactly right.  And that’s what we saw Friday night into Saturday. 

So is climate change to blame? Researchers say it’s hard to pin any individual weather event on the larger climate picture. But the conditions we saw this weekend are what scientists have been warning us about. A new study from Advancing Earth and Space Science found that as temperatures increase, so do the key ingredients for severe weather outbreaks. 

Most tornadoes last less than 10 minutes. With an average distance of about 3-1/2 miles. Showing how rare this event was and sadly, with the new normal, it could easily happen again. 

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