Friday, June 7, 2019

Strong wind gusts send startling surprise falling from the sky — and right into this woman's windshield

By Ashley Williams, AccuWeather staff writer



Imagine driving along a highway in windy conditions when suddenly you spot a bird zooming in your direction — and crashing right into your windshield.
This was the frightening reality for a woman crossing the Galveston Causeway in Galveston, Texas, on Wednesday, during a particularly windy day. Shane Long told local media that as his wife drove across the Causeway on her way to church Wednesday night, she spotted brown pelicans struggling to fly. "I guess the wind was really, really strong, and they were just struggling coming over the Causeway," Long said. "It was forcing them down."

The Galveston Airport reported sustained winds around 15-25 mph much of the day on Wednesday, according to AccuWeather Meteorologist Jake Sojda.
“The afternoon was the windiest, with sustained winds of 20-25 mph much of the time and frequent gusts of 30-40 mph, with a few gusts here and there closer to 45 mph,” Sojda said. “It was also raining most of the time, so that could have reduced visibility for drivers, making it harder to see birds struggling in the wind.”
Local news crews reported several dead pelicans while traveling across the Causeway on Thursday.
Other drivers had reported seeing the same occurrence of birds appearing to fall from the sky, according to KTRK-TV ABC13 News in Houston. In the blink of an eye, and before she was able to react, one of those birds collided with Long’s wife Shannon’s windshield with a crushing impact.
Sojda noted that the winds were out of southeast to south, which would be a strong headwind for any birds attempting fly southward along Interstate 45 and the Galveston Causeway, which crosses over the Galveston Bay.
Winds are typically stronger over water, Sojda said. “The wind blowing over water experiences less friction than over land, especially land with a lot of trees and changes in elevation. Therefore, it’s usually consistently stronger than just a little bit inland.”
Fortunately for Shannon Long, the heart-stopping impact of the pelican directly into her windshield did not result in a crash. An image of the windshield following the hit showed the lower left side of the windshield utterly shattered — but miraculously, the force of the bird did not appear to push the windshield nor the bird into the vehicle.
Shannon’s husband said that she was left with some glass shards and pieces in her lap, and other than being quite startled by what happened, she was fine after getting home safely and washing off the glass.
Shannon told KHOU-TV in Houston that she thanks God for not being injured. “With that type of impact, it could’ve been way worse," she told local media. "So the first thought through my mind was, 'Once again, thank you Lord that your angels have protected me.'"

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