How to Be Tornado Prepared, The Complete Guide

Did you hear the tornado sirens go off this past Thursday in the Wisconsin area? Did you take that opportunity to discuss or create a family emergency plan with your family on what to do in the event of a real tornado?

If not, no worries…..we have prepared a pretty comprehensive post on all you need to know to prepare as well as recover from a tornado if you should ever find yourself in the midst of one.

Did You Know?

The United States' particular topography and wind patterns mean our nation experiences about 1000 tornadoes a year on average, the most of any country, according to the National Weather Service.

Did you know that data shows that on July 4th, there is a good chance there will be at least one tornado touchdown somewhere in the United States on this day. Since 1950, 222 tornadoes have occurred across America on the 4th of July.

Although funnel clouds occur more frequently in the Midwest and southeastern United States, all 50 states experience some level of tornado activity.

Is It a Watch or a Warning?

(Know your storm terminology)

Tornado watch: Conditions are favorable for the development of severe thunderstorms and multiple tornadoes in and around the watch area. People in the affected areas are encouraged to be vigilant in preparation for severe weather.

Tornado warning: Spotters have sighted a tornado or one has been indicated on radar, and is occurring or imminent in the warning area. When a tornado warning has been issued, people in the affected area are strongly encouraged to take cover immediately.

Severe thunderstorm watch: Conditions are conducive to the development of severe thunderstorms in and around the watch area. These storms produce hail of ¾ inch in diameter and/or wind gusts of at least 58 mph.

Severe thunderstorm warning: Issued when a severe thunderstorm has been observed by spotters or indicated on radar, and is occurring or imminent in the warning area. These warnings usually last for a period of 30 to 60 minutes.

In addition to knowing storm terminology, another good idea is to know which months your state is more likely to experience tornadoes. For those of us in the Midwest, June and July seem to be the months that have the highest tornado related activities.

Warning Signs of a Tornado

A couple of quick facts on tornadoes…… they move quickly and can change direction on a dime! Pay attention to the warnings issued by the National Weather Service, because even if they are only issuing a tornado watch warning, that could change in an instant to a tornado warning and you will need to find cover immediately.

The first inkling that a tornado is coming is that the clouds pass by rapidly, indicating strong winds. Additionally the sky may turn to a greenish hue, either a dark green or a greenish yellow, due to the hail, so if at all possible, watch the skies when a tornado watch has been issued and be prepared to take action.

Here are some of the tornado warning signs:

Wall cloud — There is a wall cloud or a lowering of the base of the thunderstorm. Take heed if the wall is rotating.

Large hail — Powerful thunderstorms can produce tornadoes. More powerful thunderstorms can produce large hail. The hail producing of the thunderstorm can actually spawn the tornado.

Debris cloud — Even if a tornado is not visible, look for a debris cloud, which will indicate the location of the tornado.

Funnel cloud — This rotating extension of the cloud base signals the formation of a tornado.

Roaring noise — A tornado has a loud rumbling sound that has been compared to the roar of a freight train.

Tornado Planning 101

Creating a Family Plan

When a severe thunderstorm is imminent or already occurring in your area, it's time to put your plan into action; and to put that plan into action you need to have one in advance. The following tips will give you some ideas on what your tornado safety plan needs to include.

• To start with, you need to have an emergency kit. This kit can be used for many emergencies not just a tornado. Your kit needs to contain food, water, medicine, as well as basic disaster supplies to last 72 hours. The full list of supplies needed (provided by FEMA) is at the end of this section. The time to assemble this kit is well before you need to use it. The kit should be ready to go at a moment’s notice.

• The next thing you need to consider is how you will connect with family if a tornado strikes during the day and everyone is scattered among school, work and social events. Ideally you should choose an out of the area friend or family member to have your family make contact with. Then, in the event of an emergency each family member can call the out of the area contact to check in. It will save precious time and can ease the stress and worry of not knowing how to reach family members. The phone number for this person needs to be memorized. If there is a tornado, your smart phone may get damaged or lost in the storm; you need to be able to use any phone available and dial the number from memory. It is also a good idea to memorize everyone in the family’s phone number.
• Depending on where you live, your city may have an evacuation route already established. I think of Charleston, SC as I write this; all along the highways in that area are evacuation signs that will assist folks to leave the area safely and quickly. If you live in an area that does this, learn the routes and share that info with your family.
• Practice, practice, and practice this plan…….don’t wait until a tornado is bearing down upon you to realize you forget a key element in the plan.

• When you are working on this plan, another thing to consider is insurance coverage. Do you have enough coverage to rebuild your home in the event it was destroyed by a tornado?
• What about a home inventory? We have shared a couple of blog posts on creating a home inventory. If you haven’t already created one, now is the time to do so. To read our blog post on home inventories, click here.
• Another area to consider when creating this plan is your landscaping. Do you have any dead or severely damaged tree limbs on your property? If so, you may want to consider having them removed. If not, they could become projectiles during a storm or high winds.
• Again, depending on where you live, especially if that area is a tornado prone area, have you considered having a safe room or storm shelter professionally built?
  

Basic Disaster Supplies Kit

A basic emergency supply kit could include the following recommended items:

• Water, one gallon of water per person per day for at least three days, for drinking and sanitation
• Food, at least a three-day supply of non-perishable food
• Battery-powered or hand crank radio and a NOAA Weather Radio with tone alert and extra batteries for both
• Flashlight and extra batteries
• First aid kit
• Whistle to signal for help
• Dust mask to help filter contaminated air and plastic sheeting and duct tape to shelter-in-place
• Moist towelettes, garbage bags and plastic ties for personal sanitation
• Wrench or pliers to turn off utilities
• Manual can opener for food
• Local maps
• Cell phone with chargers, inverter or solar charger

Before the storm

If a storm is heading your way, even if it turns out to be only a severe thunderstorm, there are some precautions you can take. Check your backyard and secure any lawn furniture, trash cans, hanging plants, along with anything else that can be picked up by the wind, turning it into a projectile.

If a tornado watch has been issued, be prepared to take cover immediately in the event the watch turns into a warning.

During the storm

Inside a building:

· Seek shelter in the lowest level of your home, such as a basement or storm cellar. If you don't have a basement, go to an inner hallway, a smaller inner room or a closet.

· Keep away from all windows and glass doorways.

· If you're in a building such as a church, hospital, school or office building, go to the innermost part of the building on the lowest floor. Do not use elevators because the power may fail, leaving you trapped.

· You can cushion yourself with a mattress, but don't cover yourself with one. Cover your head and eyes with a blanket or jacket to protect against flying debris and broken glass. Don't waste time moving mattresses around.

· Keep pets on a leash or in a crate or carrier.

· Stay inside until you're certain the storm has passed, as multiple tornadoes can emerge from the same storm.

· Do not leave a building to attempt to "escape" a tornado.

When you are outside:

· Try to get inside a building as quickly as possible and find a small, protected space away from windows.

· Avoid buildings with long-span roof areas such as a school gymnasium, arena or shopping mall, as these structures are usually supported only by outside walls. When hit by a tornado, buildings like these can collapse, because they cannot withstand the pressure of the storm.

· If you cannot find a place to go inside, crouch for protection next to a strong structure or lie flat in a ditch or other low-lying area. Cover your head and neck with your arms or a jacket, if you have one.

Inside your car:

· If you can safely drive away from the tornado, do so.

· If there is a sturdy structure available, go inside.

· If no building is available, it might be better to pull over, stop the car (but leave it running so the air bags work), and crouch down below the windows. The airbags and frame of the car will offer some amount of protection, but certainly not absolute safety.

· A long-standing safety rule has been to get out of the car and into a ditch. If you do that, you should get far enough away from the car that it doesn’t tumble onto you. Being below the prevailing ground level may shield you from some of the tornado wind and flying debris, but there is still danger from those.

· Do NOT get out of a vehicle and climb up under the embankment of a bridge or overpass. This often increases your risk.

Inside a mobile home:

· Do not remain in a mobile home during a tornado. Even mobile homes equipped with tie-down systems cannot withstand the force of a tornado's winds.

· Heed all local watches and warnings, and leave your mobile home to seek shelter as quickly as possible before a tornado strikes, preferably in a nearby building with a basement.

· If no shelter is immediately available, find the lowest-lying area near you and lie down in it, covering your head with your hands.

The notes above are courtesy of The Weather Channel.

After the storm

Once the storm has passed and you are certain there are no more tornadoes in the area, keep your family together in a safe location and wait for emergency responders to arrive.

• Assess your family for any medical emergencies.
• Keep away from down power lines, trees and puddles that could be hiding live wires.

• Walk carefully and be alert to avoid sharp objects.
• Never go into a damaged structure; they could collapse upon you.

• Never ever ever use matches or lighters because there could be leaking natural gas as a result from the tornado.
• If you are inside a building and smell gas, or hear a hissing noise, open a window and get everyone outside ASAP.
• If your NOAA radio survived the tornado, keep listening to it for updated information as well as instructions on what to do.

• Do not re-enter your home until the authorities give you the go-ahead. When you do re-enter your home, make certain you are wearing long sleeved shirt and sturdy shoes as you examine your home for damage. Use only battery powered flashlights when examining your home. Never use a candle.

Recovering from the tornado

If your home has received significant damage as a result from the storm, contact a professional restoration company. Do not hire one of the transient companies that will drive by offering their assistance. If you do, you can be assured of either being scammed and receiving no work done or receiving poor workmanship, leading to further damage down the line.

Some of the things to consider when having your home restored:

• Look at common connections in wood frame buildings and add anchors, clips and straps to provide more strength to your home.
• Have your masonry walls reinforced to provide additional structural support to your home.
• Masonry chimneys that extend more than 6 feet above the roof or have a width of 40” or more should have continuous vertical reinforcing steel placed in the corners to provide greater wind resistance.

• If you live in a mobile home, have the home permanently connected to its foundation to decrease the damage from high winds. NOTE: This does not mean you can stay in the home in the event of another tornado. You will still need to evacuate and find sturdier shelter.
• Have your existing garage doors strengthened to improve wind resistance, especially if you have double-wide garage doors.
• If your home did receive significant damage, and you live in a tornado or severe storm prone area, see about having your contractor build you a tornado safe room. Information on what to look for in this room can be found on the FEMA web site, by clicking here.

Though tornadoes can leave a path of destruction, Emergency Fire & Water Restoration is available 24/7 to help you in the event your home was part of that path of destruction.

Our thanks to www.weatherchannel.com, www.ready.gov, www.redcross.org and www.fema.gov for sharing their information that went into compiling this blog post.

From beginning to end, we can handle 100% of the restoration process so you don't have to. This can include content pack-outs, cleaning & storage of personal property, structural drying & mitigation, mold remediation, lead & asbestos abatement, and full re-construction services. We are licensed, bonded, and fully insured. We abide by all state and federal laws, and are certified as a "Lead Safe Renovator" with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and accredited with the IICRC.

For more information on Emergency Fire & Water Restoration, or the services we provide, give us a call at 414-810-3522, or visit our website at www.emergencyrest.com. We are available 24/7, 365 days a year.