The day after lightning shattered this tree at Riverside Cemetery.
Saturday’s thunderstorm in the Albany area didn’t last long, but it brought down at least one big tree.
About mid-afternoon Saturday, as rain sluiced down in buckets, people in the neighborhood of Riverside Cemetery heard what some said was the loudest lightning strike they could remember.
The bolt smashed one of the tallest conifers in the cemetery. On Sunday the shattered stump and the wreckage of tree limbs and branches around it attracted onlookers to see the damage.
The falling debris appeared to have damaged some of the gravestones.
Saturday’s rain, by the way, was the first substantial precicipation in the mid-valley since mid-June.
The rainfall total at the Hyslop weather station between Albany and Corvallis has not yet been posted.
But on its website the National Weather Service said Saturday’s rainfall in the Salem area was slightly more than a quarter of an inch. (hh)
Postscript: If you read this far, you recognize that I did not know what kind of conifer this was. Then I uploaded a photo of the needles and cones to the app “plant.id,” and the app said it was a blue spruce.
The lightning-caused mess in Riverside Cemetery from another side on Sunday, Aug. 18, 2024.
This was the photo that “plant.id” identified as a blue spruce.
I remember a couple of loud bursts (I live 2 streets down from the hospital and cemetery). I remember jumping almost out of my skin. That said, I thought to myself I bet something was struck. Now I know what/where. Wow.
Stopped by Sunday and walked around and found shreds of splintered wood as far as 40-50 feet! So glad that it was far enough from the road as well as someone’s home.
Hasso, thank you for reporting on this. Unfortunately, some headstones in the cemetery went down with the tree and will need repair. I have included a link to a nonprofit that can arrange repairs, if anyone is inclined to help. Any amount is greatly appreciated to preserve those monuments.
https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/FOHAoregon
If someone is interested in making a donation to the cemetery, please contact us directly at Riverside Cemetery, PO Box 687, Albany, OR 97321 or albanyriversidecemtery.org.
Thank you for your consideration.
On the same side of town as the cemetery, there were 3 loud lightning bursts spaced a ways apart. One of them had a different sound to it…a sound as if the lightning struck something. I could hear sirens of fire trucks, too. Those 3 loud hits shook my house. A few years ago a tree was hit by lightning near the hospital, also.
And, in the early 2000s, a lightning strike hit the blacktopped street I live on. It took out my computer because I didn’t have a heavy-duty surge protector. I now keep my computer unplugged when I’m not using it. (It is, of course, not the same computer that the lightning strike ruined.)
This has all happened since our lightning storms have intensified due to climate change.
You have a basis for your last sentence as we haven’t had lightening this year that I can remember or much in previous years. Oregonians do not have a clue as to real thunderstorms like the Midwest have.
The mountains around us where most of the serious wildfires start have more and more lightning storms every year during our hot months. Research this on your computer if you need the charts, graphs, etc.
I was in the Midwest in my teens one summer with a friend and her family…visiting their relatives. (Missouri to be exact.) Went through a big sheet lightning storm and was afraid to use the outhouse. Lots of farms still had outhouses then. I just “held it,” until the storm subsided. You can do that when you are 15 years old.
We got half an inch out here in Oakville. A much needed drink.
Thanks for your reporting Hasso. This was where we saw it first. My husband and I went out there this afternoon to have a look. Very impressive. I posted some pics on Facebook and someone said it looked like more than one tree. Too bad about the headstones that were knocked over. As we were close to downtown we made a stop at Hasty Freeze for some ice cream.
Hasty Freez is always a good idea.
I measured a half inch of rain on my patio in Lebanon
Riverside Cemetery is a 501(c)3 non-profit and self-sustaining entity dependent upon revenue from burials and donations. As revenue from burials and donations has dwindled we are dependent upon grants and donations for our survival. The latest storm damage will require several thousand dollars for remediation. Already in 2024 we have been faced with repairing damage from last winter’s ice storm that caused significant damage to several trees and fencing as well as having to replace the roof on our maintenance building. If you are interested in assisting us in covering these expenses, please consider a donation to the cemetery. Checks payable to Riverside Cemetery may be mailed to PO Box 687, Albany, OR 97321.
Pam Dodson, Secretary, Riverside Cemetery Association Board of Directors.
Was that tree near the maintenance shed ? My late father and mother are buried by it.
No, it was near Seventh Avenue in the eastern half of the cemetery.