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Tornado Protection
Name: Shelby
Status: student
Age: 18
Location: N/A
Country: N/A
Date: 11/21/2004
Question:
How can I protect myself from a tornado?
Replies:
Shelby,
First, know where the nearest tornado shelter is and how
to get there the quickest way. If you are not in a building
with a designated tornado shelter (such as your home), go
to a room in the middle of your house without windows or
skylights, such as a small bathroom (and close the door),
or go into the basement or a crawl space (this is the best
place to be) and close the entrance to that space.
Second, familiarize yourself with the tornado siren signal
in your town. These are usually tested once per month
(first Tuesday usually). Your town emergency management
supervisor or the fire department can provide you with more
information on this. When you hear the siren, it means
that severe weather is in your area; go to the tornado
shelter with a radio so that you can hear about the weather
situation on your local radio station.
Third, know when severe weather is possible in your area by
watching the local weather report on TV or the Weather Channel
if you have cable TV. When the National Weather Service issues
severe weather warnings, they are usually broadcast on TV and
on your local radio station. Another possibility is to get a
weather radio (a lot of portable radios have a National Weather
Service channel on them) and leave it on the "alarm" setting so
when a weather alert or warning is issued the radio will
automatically turn on.
If you are outside and a tornado is approaching, go to the nearest
substantial building if there is one close by; do not try to
outrun the tornado or drive from it. If there is no building nearby,
find a low place (roadside ditch, gully, etc.) well away from
buildings, your vehicle, and trees (being near a tree poses a
danger from lightning), and lie down in the low area with your
head covered.
David R. Cook
Atmospheric Physics and Chemistry Section
Environmental Research Division
Argonne National Laboratory
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Update: June 2012
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