Tornados?

They say you should get in a bath tub and put something on top of you, like a mattress, or atleast a blanket.

i live in central FL, and we don't typically have basements here. so what we are taught here is to go into an interior room that has no outside walls or windows. an example would be a bathroom located in the middle of the house or a hallway. i know growing up my mom had a bathroom in the middle of the house and she always told us to get into the bathroom and in the tub and if possible get a mattress to put over us to protect us from falling roof if that happened. i would also say if you have a smart phone get an app that will alert you to severe weather.

R.,

I grew up (and still live in) north/central Texas (where the movie "Twister" was set). I grew up in a singlewide trailer house... so if my mom heard a rumble we started getting our things ready for a sleep over at my grandma's... lol. I'm guessing you are further than five miles away from my Grandma... lol

So... you want to be protected by the strongest wall in the house. The bathroom is usally recommended because normally its fairly centralized, and the plumbing is anchored in concrete. However, You also want to minimalize the glass (and other loose debris) around you. If your bathroom has glass, you might think about using the end of a hallway. Central closets are good, especially one beneath a stairway.

I hadn't heard about the helmet idea, but I LIKE IT! Also, my mom always had us get dressed fully. Shoes, socks ON until the storm threat passed, jackets handy... or tied around our waist... If it looks like a stormy night, make it a sleeping bag party in the hallway. Sleeping bags will be some protection/padding, but Take a mattress with you to get under if you need.

If you are in a busy tornado area, consider packing a backpack for each person with a change of clothes, a couple personal irems, shoes and socks... flashlight... canned snacks like beanie weanies... granola bars... two bottles water... keep it in acost near your sheltering place.

Look up any north Texas news station and they have tornado safety and preparedness tips. If you are prepared you will feel better. Oh, and your local television station probably has a weather alert program that will text or call you if a bulletin is issued for your area. I still get alerts for our old address and call our family down there just in case they don't know they are about to get slammed.

Here is my BEST TIP: Once you are prepared, get the board games... out and Go bake cookies. My mom was so terrifed that she made me almost phobic of storms... when my daughter was born, I knew I did not want to do the same to her. In order to stay calm, I baked cookies. My girls still hear rumbling and say "Oatmeal Peanutbutter, or Chocolate Chip? :...ALL THREE!" They are 23 and 20...

Smallest inside room with no, or the fewest windows, I believe.

I agree with the bathtub and mattress plan. But one thing I learned, when we lived in Kansas, was to have a "tornado bag" packed. It was just a cloth bag, like those re-usable grocery bags, and I packed: small snack bags of chips, raisins, M & Ms, etc; individual packets of wet-wipes for hands and faces; a small supply of the prescriptions and medicines we used often like cough syrup, Tylenol, etc.; new comic books; flashlights for everyone and batteries; bottled water or juice boxes or the milk boxes that don't need refrigeration. It wasn't enough to live on for a week or anything, just enough to keep everyone sane in case we had to spend a few hours in the bathroom or at a shelter. You can adapt it to your children's ages (include formula and disposable bottles and diapers if necessary). I kept the bag right where I could always see it. We did spend a night in our bathroom once, and our front door blew off, and the back window of our car blew to teeny pieces. They said it wasn't quite a tornado, but it was terrifying, and having that bag to grab as we all hid in the bathroom was very reassuring to me.

And if you have any kids older than infants, practice a tornado drill. Have them put on their bike helmets, and head for the bathroom. Talk about where to meet afterwards in case people get scattered. Do a practice when they're expecting it, after you've gone over the safety rules, and then do one when they're not expecting it. If they're old enough, assign tasks: one grabs the tornado bag, another can be in charge of making sure everyone is accounted for, another can help with the mattress and should know which mattress will be used, etc. Practice NOT screaming or yelling, but behaving orderly like in a fire drill at school.

Check and see if there is a tornado shelter nearby...when a lot of homes don't have basements there is usually a designated place to go to. A church, govt. building, something with a basement or at least interior rooms that are safer. You normally have plenty of warning with a tornado...it doesn't just spring up out of no where.
If you want to feel safer invest about $30 in a weather alert radio...and have the people who sell it to you set it for your county. It will tell you anytime there is a warning or watch in your area.
I have lived most of my life in Kansas and Missouri which is 'tornado alley" and I have spent a LOT of time in the basement but I have never actually SEEN a tornado. ( knock on wood)...so don't live in fear...just be aware and be prepared.
I keep flashlights, candles, a battery operated radio where i know where to lay my hands on them quickly. I also grab my medicine if I have to go downstairs. (AFTER I grab the kids and animals!!). Just think about what you would need or want and you will be fine if and when you have to react.

Bathroom walls are stronger because of the plumbing. So yes, in the bathtub is best. Preferably one that is the most central in the house.

Also, have your child(ren) wear a helmet - any kind. I heard several years ago on the radio about a little boy who died in a tornado. The doctor told the boy's father that if the boy had been wearing any sort of helmet, he would have lived. The biggest cause of death with tornadoes is head injury from debris. I went out and bought my daughter a bicycle helmet that day. I have her wear it if we have a tornado warning.

Stay safe!

I live in M'boro Tn and we had a bad one a couple years ago where houses were completely destroyed and people killed. I hate living here and it seems to have gotten worse since moving here in 2000. The best place to be is in a closet away from windows or doors in your case. Don't run outside thats how the 2 people died 2 years ago. A mother and her baby. I am in the same situation no basement but I do have a small pantry in the kitchen where I can fit me and my baby. Several people that I talked to survived by getting in a closet or pantry some with broken bones but they survived. Get you a good weather radio and go to news channel 5 nashville to find the codes for your county to program into your radio. Always keep a fresh set of batteries for it when the power goes off and a flashlight. The big one we had 2 yrs ago turned the sky green all my coworkers said the same thing about it being green. So watch for green skies and sleep with that weather radio by your bed.

Hi, we live in a mobile home and we leave when the sirens go off or the winds go above 60 miles per hour. We have withstood over 100 mile an hour winds but it's not fun. We usually go to the hospital, it's about a mile away, or to the kids school which has a huge basement. Check with your neighbors as to what they do. If a tornado was to hit your home you would not want to be in it.

Moore Oklahoma got hit several times in the past years. The tornado went up a street just about 1/4 of a mile away from the street it went up the time before. The houses on one side of the street were flattened and the other side had lots of damage but not the devastation of the other side where some homes had nothing left but their foundation/slab. Houses on both sides of the street were brick construction. No one had basements either. They hit on school days and most everyone works at that time so there were few, if any, casualties.

If you do not have a safe place in your home then start calling around, to civil defense, local businesses such as hospitals, schools, child care centers, etc...every one of these must have an emergency plan. If a tornado is coming you must have a plan and be able to do it quickly.

If storms are coming from Enid or Kansas I can guarantee that I have the TV on the Weather Channel or the local weather. If we are under a tornado warning then we have everything by the door, the van is backed in for easy access, we have on shoes and clothes for being out in rain and getting wet. Being prepared is very important and will help if you practice.

My friend B had practice every month when the sirens went off at Noon. Where ever her family was they practiced getting in the car and getting buckled. They did everything they would do in the event of a possible tornado. They have always been efficient in vacating when the actual sirens go off.

So, find a shelter you are safe in.
Make a plan on when and how to get there. Such as getting the family out of bed and in the vehicle quickly.
Have rain gear and safety equipment in an easy access place.
Practice regularly so when the time comes you will be prepared.

And just as an after thought there are many good books on emergency preparedness. They can help you build 72 hour kits for each person in your family. If a tornado did hit your home you would need a 72 hour kit for each person so they would have food, water, clothing, diapers, medication, etc...

I love Peggy Layton books, especially the one labeled:
Emergency Food Storage and Survival Handbook
http://peggylayton.net/index.php?app=ccp0&ns=prodshow...
It gives common sense ideas as to what to put in each persons "kit" and how to rotate it out and keep it up to date.

Ah, memories. I grew up in Oklahoma (actually, I went to the Moore School District, and Moore, as Gamma G mentioned, has been hit by tornadoes a few times). My senior year of high school, the school and the neighborhood around it was hit by a tornado. It was evening and I was at school for a practice AP calculus test, and thankfully all of us were okay. We went down to a room that was below ground (the small auditorium) and thankfully our school wasn't hit that badly. I heard that the people in the apartment complex across the street all ran to the school and they were fine (the apartments were destroyed, though). My parents were at home, and we did not have a basement, so when they heard the sirens go off (or heard that the tornado warning was close to us) they drove in the car to Wal-Mart. It was scary, but everyone from my school and my family were all okay, thank goodness. In the 18 years I lived in Oklahoma, that was the only time I was in an actual tornado (many tornado watches and warnings, but the only time it actually hit where I lived). I heard that many people were in their bathtubs with the mattress over it, and many people did what my parents did (drove to Walmart or another building that seemed like a safe place to be). It's good that you're planning ahead for what to do in case of a tornado, because even though your neighbors tell you that the tornadoes don't usually hit where you live, you never know what can happen; it's much better to be prepared.

Our house does not have a basement either and all of our rooms have outside windows. The hallway or linen closet would work for us, but we have not had very many tornado warnings in the 6 years that we have lived here.
Everyone has good suggestions from wearing helmets to packing supplies and getting a weather radio.
The weather man from Channel 4 goes around and does tornado and severe storm presentations at many local schools and businesses. You should contact them and see when he might be doing one in your area. We call him Dan, Dan, the Weatherman, and he is amazing at demonstrating how tornadoes form and what to do during a storm. I am originally from New England and knew about hurricanes, but not tornadoes. His presentation taught me a lot and helped me to get prepared before an emergency.

yup...tub and mattress :) and remember that while hurricanes flatten everything in their (hundreds of miles long) paths, and earthquakes can effect entire states, tornadoes cause relatively very little damage because they are so small and last for such a short time. statistically i'll take my chances here in kansas :)

Ever since that tornando hit last year in smyrna i would not stay in a house unless there is a crawl space or something under neath the house. This was a newly built house and the tornado ripped everything off the foundation and there was only the foundation left and floor. So if you was in the closet or bathroom of the house you def. would of died. You would be okay if the tornado doesnt hit your house directly. I would try to get a storm shelter put in in my yard. I know where we are living is in cheatham county and we get alot of tornado warnings and had several touch down. But we live in a mobile home as of now but we live where theres hills and i will def. not be staying in this house if a tornado touches down. Our back yard is a big drop off with alot of woods and we will run down there and hug a tree lol. But when we buy a house next year and it doesnt have a basement or crawl space then my husband is putting a storm shelter in for us since tn does get a lot of tornado warnings.

A "Tornado Watch" is not the same as a "Tornado Warning". A "Tornado Watch" means a Tornado could devolp. A "Tornado Warning" means one has touched down near you.

To me, a watch means don't stray too far from the tv or radio, because you want to be listening in case the situation changes. A warning means go somewhere safe.

Try not to worry. During a watch, you don't need to do anything except keep listening. And honestly, a tornado can be very bad, but often times it passes by with minimal damage: tree branches, a shingle or too. Most of the time, no one gets hurt.

Ditto the tub and mattress.

Just moved from Iowa. I agree about going in the bathtub. Think that purchasing helments is an awesome idea. We had blankets nearby too. A mattress is also a good idea, but you might not have enough time to get it.? Maybe you can put all of your safety items in a plastic bin near or close by the bathroom. In the city where we lived, the news station would let the community know info on where they could purchase a programmable radio that alerted you anytime of the day. It also had an alarm with lights that came if a tornadoe was spotted near your area. This was essential when at night when people were sleeping. Also recommend browsing your local news website. They usually post great info about natural disasters. :) hope this helps.

Just wanted to say that all of the ideas below are awesome! I live in New England where there are rarely tornado issues....thank God! I have such a fear of them, and think I would die from anxiety....

Many of the ideas such as packing a bag with meds, water, snacks, diapers etc are a great idea for anyone in the case of any sort of disaster.

Bathrooom is good or if you have a walk-in closet in the interior of the house. A room without windows is preferable. If you do have a walk-in closet you can reto fit it to be a tornado shelter. They have been doing alot of research into this at Texas Tech and there may even be plans you can get on the web.

We also get lots of tornadoes here. We live near a school and a siren will wail if there is a severe storm nearby.
You might want to save this website on your computer: http://www.weatherunderground.com
You can look at radar to see exactly where the storm is and its path. Since the tv stations give warnings for an entire county this can be more helpful.

no central rooms go to the bathroom cover up with a mattress..(i live in ky) I personally am terrified of storms and will not have a house with out a basement lol

i am from tornado alley and i agree if you have a mountain next to you the tornado will go over you. for hte most part you will get a lot of funnel clouds but no tornados. this is where your warnings come in. i can tell you from experience if the atmosphere gets an very earie feeling to it watch the sky. tornados travel e ne and watch the pattern on your tv. keep track of what the tornadoes do. if a warning hit in okla and i am going to name towns which wont make sense to you but if the storm hit enid i watched it close cause it would hit ponca everytime. now if it hit south of enid i never worried it would go south of us if it hit north of enid it would hit blackwell everytime.

you will get used to it. get a scanner you will know just where the tornado is and sit on your porch and drink beer and watch the storm:) you will do this when you get used to them. but if it is heading your way get in a closet or bathtub and put a mattress over you. if you are driving and it is heading straight for you get in a ditch but watch the flash flood waters that come with them every time. if you are in a car stay south west of it. very seldom do they turn but they can. if you are in a trailer seriously go to a regular house. dont stay in the trailer. watches are not a big deal we kinda ignore them when you are used to it it happens all the time. warnings is what you have to worry about.anything under a f2 i stayed where i was at and lived in a trailer. the tornados always come after the hail. no hail no sweat.learn what a wall cloud is it is a cloud that kinda has a rectangular shape to it that sits lower than the rest of the clouds. those you keep an eye on. if it gets cold quick watch the sky. you will feel a sudden temp drop when the front hits.

but seriously all the old tales that tornados wont hit a town that is in the nook of 2 rivers isnt true. for the most part it is but not always. straight line winds is a tornado they forgot to sound the sirens on. you will learn this. it is to cover thier rear and keep them from getting sued. you will learn in time not to worry to much about them but at first it will freak you out. i lived in tornado alley 41 yrs seen 1 tornado and 3 "straight line winds" so the odds of it happening are very slim. my best advice is listen to the ones who have lived there awhile they arent going to lie to you about a safety issue. they are experienced and will tell you what to do listen to them.

ps i second the packed bags, weather radio and make sure you sleep with shoes next to you so you can find them in the dark if necessary. there is alot of debris after a tornado you will need shoes. give the kids flash lights and use candles for when the lights go out. which will happen alot. also watch for cars with lots of antennas on them those are storm chasers they stay behing the concern area. if they are east of your house you are in the clear if they are north clear also if they are west or south pay attention. if you are driving stay behind the storm chasers. they will normally park on the side of the road and are in everyday cars.

We didn't have a central room in our old house either and we actually were home during the April 2009 tornado that hit Murfreesboro, TN. It was really scary. we went to the hall bathroom that didn't have any windows. You want to go to a central closet or room with no windows. We would now go into the coat closet I guess, it is under the stairwell. Or our master closet is between the garage and our bathroom. Somewhere that is away from an outer wall or windows. You want to bring a cell phone, flashlights, a weather radio if you have one (you might want to get one). You want to bring pillows or a mattress in too, to cover with. If you are out, go to a ditch like you said, don't stay in your car. You can go into a bldg too, when it hit here, many ppl went into the stores they were near. Try not to worry too much but you are doing the right thing thinking about it.