Tornado Safety 101
The popular Maryland-based “crab cake” analogy explains severe weather alerts: a tornado watch means conditions are right to gather ingredients for crab cakes (severe weather is possible). A tornado warning means the ingredients have come together and the crab cakes are hot and ready to eat NOW (a tornado is imminent or occurring). So what should you do when a tornado watch or warning is issued?
- Stay weather-ready: Continue to listen to your local news or a NOAA Weather Radio to stay updated about tornado watches and warnings.
- At your house: If you are in a tornado warning, go to a basement or interior room on the lowest level of the house away from windows.
- At your workplace/school: Follow your tornado drill and proceed to your tornado shelter quickly and calmly. Stay away from windows and do not go to large open areas as gymnasiums, auditoriums, or cafeterias.
- Outside: Seek shelter inside a sturdy building immediately if a tornado is approaching. Sheds, storage facilities, tents, bridges, and overpasses are not safe. Watch out for flying debris that can cause injury or death.
- In a vehicle: Being in a vehicle during a tornado is not safe. The best course of action is to drive to the nearest shelter. If you are unable to do so, either get down in your car and cover your head and neck, or abandon your car and seek shelter in a low lying area like a ditch or a ravine.
Remember that a tornado can:
- Happen anytime anywhere.
- Bring intense winds, over 200 miles per hour.
- Look like funnels.
