Why is the NWS seemingly misusing the EF scale in recent tornado ratings?

[SeekerOfTruth007]

I swear. I can read and I did major in STEM fields in college and I've studied weather for my entire life.

The type of damage they showed on the NEWS the past 2 days used to get rated as 130mph wind damage. NWS rated the tornado as only 95mph. I double checked the EF scale, and a complete removal of a roof and joists with outer walls still standing is supposed to be rated from 104mph to 142mph, depending on quality of construction. I saw with my own eyes a decent level of construction on the remaining structure, I mean it wasn't "above katrina code" like my house, but it was decent, but the tornado blew multiple roofs like that completely clear of the walls and took the joists too. This is supposed to be rated at 130mph wind damage.

This is not the first time the NWS ignored their own damned scale when rating tornado damage. It matters for engineering and construction purposes, because lawmakers, contractors, and buyers need to know what the real threshold of wind damage is to be able to code a home or business to survive as much as possible wind damage.

[Quiet_Man]

they might be updating their scales as they gather more data.

[SeekerOfTruth007]

Not what's happening. If they update the scale, it gets changed in the files. The scale has only been updated one time since it first came into use, and that was when they made it harder for single-residence home damage to qualify as being "over 200mph". So it's harder to rate EF5 now than in the past. Other than that, the scale doesn't change. They've tested this stuff in wind tunnels for decades.

Another indicator was a double wide mobile home which was disintegrated, which the scale says should be rated from about 120mph to 150mph... and again, they rated it 95mph.

I'm actually a Master Carpenter's son, and i know how to build affordable houses that resist 150mph+ winds with no damage. The house I live in was the last house my father built before he became disabled, and we went straight through at least 2 tornadoes and the eye wall of Ida, and the only damage the hous suffered was about ten shingles got blown off. That was 6 hours of 110mph winds with gusts to 150mph regularly.

I'm telling you, 95mph winds does not blow a roof and joists clear of a house.

[FrodoSkywalker007]

Conspiracy!! 😱