As winter turns into spring, tornado season once again appears over the horizon. Take a look at the following information to be prepared for when a tornado occurs at home.
Keep alert for tornado conditions during thunderstorms. These include:
- Strong persistent rotation in the cloud base
- Whirling dust or debris on the ground under a cloud base – tornadoes sometimes have no funnel!Hail or heavy rain followed by either dead calm or a fast, intense wind shift. Many tornadoes are wrapped in heavy precipitation and can’t be seen.
- Day or night – Loud, continuous roar or rumble, which doesn’t fade in a few seconds like thunder.
- Night – Small, bright blue-green to white flashes at ground level near a thunderstorm (as opposed to silvery lightning up in the clouds). These mean power lines are being snapped by a very strong wind, maybe a tornado.
- Night – Persistent lowering from the cloud base, illuminated or silhouetted by lightning – especially if it is on the ground or there is a blue-green-white power flash underneath.
The civil alert sirens will sound in the event of a tornado warning. During this time, avoid windows and proceed to the basement or under some kind of sturdy protection (heavy table or work bench), or cover yourself with a mattress or sleeping bag. Know where very heavy objects rest on the floor above (pianos, refrigerators, waterbeds, etc.) and do not go under them. They may fall through a weakened floor and crush you.S pecific tips based on your living conditions may be found online at http://www.spc.noaa.gov/faq/tornado/safety.html
If you have any questions or concerns about this information, feel free to contact the security office.