Severe Weather – Be Prepared

Alabamians should be pretty good at this; we have two tornado seasons annually, one coming in the spring (March, April, and May), and the other in the late fall (November, December). Severe weather threats during these seasons are like heat waves in the summer… they are not unusual. But, despite their frequent nature, we all need to freshen up our plan from time to time.

GETTING THE WARNING: First part of any severe weather plan is having a way of getting warnings. Forget outdoor warning sirens; they are designed to reach a limited number of people outdoors. Sure, you might hear them inside your house on a sunny day… but in the middle of the night when your family is sleeping, no way. The “siren mentality” has killed countless Alabamians over the years. It is World War One technology. We must do better.

The baseline for every family is a NOAA Weather Radio. They cost about 30 dollars, are easily found in local retailers, and can be programmed without too much difficulty. Every Alabama home, church, and business must have one. Find the frequencies and county codes for Alabama right here.

APPS: Modern cell phones are equipped with WEA (Wireless Emergency Alert) technology. In theory, you should get tornado warnings, flash flood warnings, and amber alerts automatically. But, we strongly recommend you go past that and get a really good warning app. The one I like is Weather Radio by WDT. If you are in a warning polygon, you are alarmed. If you are not in the polygon, no alert. And, you can program in fixed locations as well. It works very well, and is extremely reliable.

Weather Radio by WDT – iOS version (for iPhones and iPads)
Weather Radio by WDT – Android version

WATCH OUR LIVE COVERAGE: Sure, most still use television to watch our continuous severe weather coverage on ABC 33/40, but you can watch it easily on a phone or tablet with the ABC 33/40 “all in one” app. This includes not only our live stream, but it also has content from this blog, the Weather Xtreme videos, and much more.

Our live tornado coverage is under the “live news” tab on the left sidebar.

ABC 33/40 App for iOS (iPhones, iPads)
ABC 33/40 App for Android

Be sure and have all your devices charged before severe weather begins.

KNOW WHERE YOU ARE GOING: In a site built home, the safe place is a small room, on the lowest floor, away from windows, and near the center of the house/building. You do NOT have to be underground to survive, and you NEVER drive away from a storm. A car is a death trap during a tornado.

In an apartment building, you cannot stay on upper floors, you have to be on the ground level.

You cannot stay in a mobile home; you need to go to a nearby shelter, or site built structure like a store, restaurant, or business. And, remember, we can’t always give long lead times… the safe places needs to be as close as possible.

HAVE THESE THINGS IN YOUR SAFE PLACE: Helmets for everybody, including adults. Batting helmets, bicycle helmets, etc all work fine. Have infants in a car seat during a tornado warning. Everyone needs a portable air horn, or whistle; first responders can hear you with them if you need help. And, hard sole shoes; you won’t be able to walk over tornado debris with tennis shoes, or in your bare feet.

STAY UPDATED: If you looked at a blog post or update several hours ago, you are working with old information. Things can change quickly, so be sure and check the blog for updates often on severe weather days. We work long, hard hours to provide very detailed information here. You won’t find it anywhere else.

WILL THIS BE LIKE APRIL 27, 2011? Yes, we still hear that question before every severe weather threat. And, a question I really don’t like to answer. Of course, the answer is NO, April 27 was generational. But, understand all it takes is one tornado in the entire state. If that one tornado happens to come down your street, that is YOUR April 27. We have to be ready for every event.

Never be afraid, just prepared, and we will get through severe weather days just fine together.

Tags: safety

Category: Alabama's Weather, Severe Weather