Alabama 811 | Know What's Below.

What To Do If a Tornado Warning Is Issued

| February 7, 2017 @ 5:01 am

Knowing instinctively what to do if a severe weather warning (tornado, severe thunderstorm or flash flood warning) is issued for your location could mean the difference between life or death for you and your family. It’s not difficult to learn the actions that you can take in order to be safer. This post focuses on tornado warnings. Check our Severe Weather Safety Guidelines for more information on your severe weather plan and what to do during watches and other warnings.

DURING A TORNADO WARNING…

IN GENERAL
…The time for action is NOW! You are in a TORNADO WARNING!
…DO NOT GET CAUGHT IN A VEHICLE OR MOBILE HOME.
…GET TO THE LOWEST FLOOR.
…PUT AS MANY WALLS BETWEEN YOU AND THE TORNADO AS POSSIBLE.
…GET UNDER SOMETHING STURDY. Seek shelter under a sturdy table in the basement.
…PROTECT YOURSELF: Put on a helmet or something that protects your head. Cover up with blankets. Wear sturdy shoes and long sleeved clothes.
…THINK AHEAD: Take cell phone and charger. Make sure you have ID, credit card and cash.
…If no basement is available, go to a first floor, small interior room or a room on the opposite side from a tornado. Stay away from windows.
…In schools, churches, and shopping centers, go to a designated shelter.

HOME WITH A BASEMENT
…Seek shelter in the basement.
…Get under a sturdy object such as a large table, workbench or pool table because debris may fall into the basement.

HOME WITHOUT A BASEMENT
…Seek shelter on the first floor in an interior small room, such as a closet or bathroom.
…Try to shelter in the part of building opposite to approach of storm.

MOBILE HOME
…DO NOT GET CAUGHT IN A MOBILE HOME.
…More than 50% of tornado fatalities occur in mobile homes.
…Leave mobile homes for a safe shelter before a tornado threatens.
…Seek safety in a designated safety shelter.
…As a last resort, lie down in a ditch or depression or culvert.

CAR/TRUCK
…DO NOT GET CAUGHT IN YOUR VEHICLE.
…Vehicles are usually tossed into the air and destroyed.
…If you are in a vehicle during a tornado, drive away from the storm’s path.
…Stop and go in a substantial building if available.
…If no substantial shelter is available, abandon your vehicle and lie in a ditch or culvert.
…Choose a location such that the vehicle won’t roll over on you.

CHURCH
…Church sanctuaries and fellowship halls are not safe in tornadoes.
…Get away from outside walls, glass, and large rooms.
…Get under a table or desk in a basement area.
…If no basement is available, a small room or interior hallway in part of building opposite to approach of storm.
…Get under a table or counter or in a restroom or small storeroom.

SCHOOL
…Auditoriums and gymnasiums are not safe places in tornadoes.
…Get away from outside walls, glass, and large rooms.
…Go to the basement or a designated shelter area on the first floor.
…Restrooms or other small, sturdy rooms are usually good choices.
…Avoid areas into which high walls could collapse.
…Stay away from windows.
…If there is no time to move to a safer location dive under tables or desks.

LARGE RETAIL/SHOPPING CENTER
…Go to a designated storm shelter (ask in advance).
…Get away from outside walls, glass, and large rooms.
…Stay out of mall walkway areas.
…Stay away from outside walls and windows.
…Get under a table, behind a counter or in a restroom or small storeroom.
…DO NOT GO TO YOUR PARKED CAR.

HOTEL/MOTEL
…Go to the designated shelter area. Ask the front desk when you check in. If they don’t know, make sure you identify one in advance.
…Alert others as you go.
…Underground locations are the best.
…Stay away from windows.
…Get under a table or counter or in a restroom or small storeroom.
…As a last resort, get in the bathroom in your guest room. Get in the smallest space you can find there and cover up.

LARGE BUILDING
…Large, concrete reinforced buildings are usually not destroyed.
…Go to the designated shelter area, usually a basement or a hallway on the lowest floor.
…Stay away from windows.

SMALL BUILDING
…Go to the designated shelter area, usually a basement or a hallway on the lowest floor.
…Stay away from windows.
…Get under something study. .

DANGEROUS MYTHS THAT CAN GET YOU KILLED
…Don’t open windows.
…The southwest corner of a building is not necessarily the safest location.
…Highway overpasses do not provide protection.

DURING A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
…If you are caught outdoors seek shelter in a nearby basement, shelter, or sturdy building.
…If you cannot quickly walk to a shelter, immediately get into a vehicle, buckle your seat belt, and try to drive to the closest sturdy shelter.
…Leave mobile homes for sturdier buildings.
…The basement is the safest place in homes and small buildings.
…If there is no basement, seek shelter in a windowless closet, bathroom, or inside hallway.
…Lightning and flash flooding kill as well.

DURING A FLASH FLOOD WARNING
…TURN AROUND, DON’T DROWN!
…Act quickly to save yourself. You may have only seconds.
…Get out of areas subject to flooding and go to higher ground.
…Do not walk or drive into standing or flowing water.
…If your vehicle is caught in water, abandon it immediately.
…Do not camp or park your vehicle along streams and washes, particularly during threatening conditions.
…Have redundant sources of weather information and stay weather aware.

Category: The Attic

About the Author ()

Bill Murray is the President of The Weather Factory. He is the site's official weather historian and a weekend forecaster. He also anchors the site's severe weather coverage. Bill Murray is the proud holder of National Weather Association Digital Seal #0001 @wxhistorian

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