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Tornadoes typically strike with little warning, giving you only 10-15 minutes to take action. Knowing how to check for tornado risks and recognizing the warning signs can save your life. This guide explains how to monitor for tornadoes, prepare a tornado emergency kit and plan, and respond quickly when a warning is issued. With the right preparation, you can protect yourself and your family from the dangers of severe storms.
How To Check if You’re at Risk From a Tornado
Here are some of the best ways to check if your area is at risk from a tornado.
Listen to Local News
Regularly monitor your local news and weather reports for tornado watches and warnings.
Watch For Emergency Alerts
Sign up for your community warning system to get notifications on your phone if available. If your community has sirens, know what they sound like. Also, check the Emergency Alert System (EAS) for warnings.
Check a Weather App
Install a weather app on your phone. If you set your local city or town, most apps will routinely issue any weather alert in your area.
NOAA Weather Radio
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) weather radio provides tornado warnings. However, this requires a special receiver that uses frequencies not available on a standard AM/FM radio.
What Should You Do if There Is a Tornado Warning in Your Area?
If you experience a tornado warning, follow these recommendations to help keep you and your family safe.
Move to The Lowest Interior Room
If you receive a tornado warning, it means you only have about 10-15 minutes before it might strike. So, take action immediately as soon as you hear one. Whether at home, school, work, a shopping mall, or any other building, always head for the basement or lowest floor.
Stay Away From Windows and Doors
Avoid all exterior walls, doors, windows, and corners, and seek the most central location on the lowest level of the building. Try to put as many interior walls between you and the outside as possible. If a sturdy desk is available, climb under it. A small closet is another good choice.
Use a Storm Shelter
If you have a storm shelter at home, work, or school, use that instead. These are designed to weather severe storms and offer the best protection. However, never get in your car and attempt to drive to a shelter; only use one if it is nearby.
If You Are Outside or in a Car
If you are in a vehicle, drive to your closest shelter. If you cannot reach a shelter or are outdoors, immediately seek shelter inside the nearest sturdy building. If there are no sturdy buildings, seek the lowest-lying area in the landscape, like a ditch or a ravine, and climb inside and hunker down.
Protect Your Head
No matter where you are, cover your head with your hands and arms to protect yourself from flying debris. Keep your head covered until you hear the storm pass by and you are no longer in danger.
Stay Informed
Stay informed by listening to local news, NOAA Weather Radio, or commercial radio. Meteorologists monitor storm conditions closely, so listen to their updates and follow any directives from your local emergency officials. You can use an EcoFlow DELTA Series Solar Generator to power up your radios and phones and stay connected during power outages.
Tornado Preparation Tips
The following emergency preparedness tips will help keep you safe if a tornado hits your area. Including all family members in your planning will ensure everyone knows what to do.
Identify Storm Shelters or Safe Rooms
Always determine where your safest room is according to FEMA criteria long before you hear a warning. Identify the storm shelter nearest your home, work, school, shopping malls, and other areas you frequent often.
Create an Emergency Kit
Keep a kit filled with emergency supplies in a waterproof bin in your tornado shelter, safe room, or next to your door so you can quickly access them when an emergency strikes.
Your kit should include:
- 3 days of non-perishable food and water for every household member, including pets
- A complete first-aid kit
- Medications for all family members
- Dust masks for all family members
- Emergency whistle
- Blankets, jackets, and warm clothes
- A radio for emergency broadcasts
- Rechargeable LED flashlights
- Hand sanitizer and toilet paper
- Cash for supplies during power outages
- A household emergency power supply.
The best emergency generator depends on your particular energy needs. However, traditional gas generators are not recommended since they cannot be used indoors due to carbon monoxide poisoning, which kills 400 people annually. EcoFlow Portable Power Stations, on the other hand, use no fossil fuels, produce no pollutants, and can be safely used indoors.
When choosing your emergency power supply, choose one that will run all your essential appliances. Ideally, choose expandable ones in case your energy needs increase, and select ones that can be recharged with solar panels during extended outages. For instance, the EcoFlow DELTA 3 Plus starts at 1024Wh, enough to keep your devices charged, run some lights, and run a refrigerator to keep your food from spoiling.
However, if you have additional essential appliances or medical equipment you need to run, the EcoFlow DELTA Pro 3 starts at 4000W and can run 120V and 240V appliances. Both are expandable and can be recharged with your rooftop solar panels or portable solar panels that you can set up after the storm passes. If you have rooftop solar installed, inspect them now and ensure their mounting brackets are secure to help prevent storm damage.
The EcoFlow RAPID Magnetic Power Bank is another good device to keep your phone topped up. It’s compact enough to easily fit in your pocket with your phone.
Develop a Family Communication Plan
A critical part of emergency preparedness is your family communication plan. Sit down with your family and develop a plan so everyone knows where to go during an emergency, no matter where they might be, who to contact, and what to do when family members are not home, including having a backup meeting place in case your house needs to be evacuated. Everyone should also know where the emergency kit is stored and what is in it. Once a year, practice your plan with your family, freshen your water, food, and medical supplies, and fully charge all your flashlights and power supplies.
Sign Up For a Warning System
Sign up for your community warning system to get immediate updates on tornado activity. If your community doesn’t have one, the Emergency Alert System (EAS) and NOAA Weather Radio also provide emergency alerts.
Always Be Alert
Learn the danger signs of an approaching storm so you don’t have to rely only on alerts:
- Dark, often greenish skies
- Large hail
- Large, dark, low-lying clouds
- Funnel-shaped, rotating clouds
- A loud roaring sound, like a freight train
If you see any danger signs, don’t wait for an emergency broadcast; take shelter immediately.
Frequently Asked Questions
After you hear a tornado warning, you usually only have 10-15 minutes before a tornado is expected to touchdown. This means you should take action immediately and seek your nearest safe room or storm shelter if one is close by.
Final Thoughts
Staying prepared and informed is key to tornado safety. Use weather apps, NOAA radio, and emergency alerts to monitor conditions and act quickly when a warning is issued. Set up a safe room, stock an emergency kit, create a family communication plan, and consider a reliable power backup like the EcoFlow DELTA Series Solar Generators to keep your essential appliances and devices running during an outage. Taking these steps now will help you stay safe when severe weather strikes.