Posted on Thu, Mar 14, 2013 : 5:59 a.m.
Dexter tornado interactive map: Take a tour of our coverage and trace the storm's path
By Melanie Maxwell
- Related: One year later: Tornado that tore Dexter apart also brought community together
- See more: Photo gallery: Dexter tornado anniversary: Take a look back at the past year in photos
The tornado that struck Dexter on March 15, 2012, tore a path of destruction stretching more than 7 miles long. It wrecked homes, toppled trees and terrified residents who huddled in basements and closets waiting for the storm to pass.
As part of AnnArbor.com's coverage of the one-year anniversary of the storm, photographer Melanie Maxwell put together this interactive map that traces the path of the Dexter tornado and provides links to stories and photos that we've published over the past year.
View Dexter Tornado Coverage Map in a larger map
Comments
SB
Thu, Mar 14, 2013 : 8:59 p.m.
This is a great idea. Unfortunately, most of the images are not in the correct location. Additionally, the red line that goes across Noble is not accurate either. The houses on the corner of York & Noble and York & Meadow View were completely destroyed, so it is more likely that the tornado touched down there than 1/2 way down Noble, where houses were damaged, but still standing.
SB
Fri, Mar 15, 2013 : 12:17 p.m.
@Melanie I see. Well, I guess randomly adding the pics to the map to make it more interesting works for most readers. It is rather disorienting, confusing and disappointing though for those of us that live in this area. My home is represented in several different places on the map. One of them is correct. Photos of my neighbor's houses are scattered across different locations on the map as well. Several of the tags are in areas that didn't have houses damaged and weren't in the tornado path. So, it looks like the tags on the stories/photos were not accurate enough to be reliable. Bummer. This could have been cool.
Melanie Maxwell
Thu, Mar 14, 2013 : 9:23 p.m.
@SB, Thanks for the comments. The images weren't meant to be exact representations of location. I wanted to add visual elements to the map pins and pulled the photos from their corresponding stories which are linked in each pin. As for the red icon you are referencing, note there are two in the map, signify the general area where the tornato reach F3 status. The entire touchdown stretch is designated by the multicolored line running through the map with each color referencing the strength of the tornado in that particular spot as determined by the NOAA. Also note that the line simply references the estimated central portion of the tornado's path through Dexter as its actual diameter fluctuated. Hope that helps!
DexterGardener
Thu, Mar 14, 2013 : 6:55 p.m.
Agreed. Nice job.
John Counts
Thu, Mar 14, 2013 : 3:03 p.m.
I second that, Amy. Great job, Melanie!
Amy Biolchini
Thu, Mar 14, 2013 : 2:35 p.m.
This map presentation of links and stories is so valuable in understanding the geographic impact of this storm. I really like it -- and hopefully can use this method in the future! Thanks for putting it together.