Massachusetts residents were hit by an unexpected tornado last week that left three people dead and sent student transporters scrambling to provide service to students who were displaced by the storm.
While residents in other parts of the country are not shocked when tornadoes make their ways through the area, New England states rarely see the same weather patterns. Residents of Springfield, located about 90 miles west of Boston, saw two tornadoes touch down on June 1, causing the death of four people and leaving 40-mile stretch of damage behind.
The destruction was even visible from space, as seen by NASA’s Landsat 5 satellite. This year has been dubbed by some as “The Year of the Tornado” after severe storms caused widespread destruction and death in Alabama, Missouri and Oklahoma.
Although tornadoes can occur anywhere in the country, they are commonly focused in “Tornado Alley,” the area between the Rocky Mountains and Appalachian Mountains. Some schools in Springfield had to move classes to local Elms College, with school bus service being offered to both students who were eligible in the past and those that normally walked.
