Tornadoes... (Denver, Aurora, Greeley: apartment, to rent, new home)

[flamingo24]

We are about to move to CO and I never lived in a place that has so many different weather conditions. So I am asking for help.
We are going to rent an apartment in Castle Rock, and the tornadoes scare me so much! It is probably because it is new to me.
Would you recommend to rent an a aprtment in the 1st floors or higher? I would think that the 1st floor is the safest?
Most of the places that we looked at do not have basements (That is something that I do not understand... How can we build homes in a place where there is a chance of a tornado?
What if there is a tornado in the middle of the day and my kids are at school? What if it happens in the middle of the night while we sleep and we have no idea about it?

I really don't know anything about tornadoes and I am just freaked out about it.

Any help, explanations about tornadoes will be much appreciated.

Thanks

[tfox]

I wouldn't get too worried about tornadoes. They do happen, even rarely ones that are destructive (for example, a big tornado hit Windsor, Colorado last year, near Greeley). The closer you get to the mountains, though, the smaller and less destructive they tend to be.

On the overall scale of tornadoes, Colorado is WAY down the list in terms of both the frequency of tornadoes and the severity. Pretty much every state east of Colorado has much higher incidence than we do, though we're slightly higher incidence than states to our West like Utah, Arizona, or Nevada. Most of the big tornadoes that do hit Colorado tend to hit in the sparsely populated eastern plains near the Kansas border, where few people live. Of course, things do happen, the Windsor tornado being a rare exception. But, exceptions happen everywhere -- did you know that every state in the country has had tornadoes hit -- even downtown Salt lake City had a major tornado strike that destroyed a power substation? Chances are, Colorado has no higher an incidence than wherever you live now.

As for your comments about basements, I've found that the vast majority of homes on the front range DO have basements. There are some very old homes that just have crawlspaces, and it is increasingly common for new homes to build on slabs to keep costs down, but I'd say overall that most of the houses out there have basements. If you want one, then you should have no problem finding them.

If you're concerned about tornadoes, I'd also point out that it's very uncommon for a tornado to touch down west of I-25 on the front range. Prevailing winds here blow to the east, most of the time, so tornadoes that do form out to the east tend to stay out east. So, if you're worried about tornadoes, you could consider living on the western side of Castle Rock or wherever you decide to end up.

[edesign]

The chance of being hit by a tornado ANYWHERE in the US is extremely small...even in Tornado Alley. Also, not all tornados are humongous F5's that destroy everything in their path...the ones that occur in this area and my previous locale (south Louisiana) are generally on the small side (F1's and F2's). Don't let the movie Twister scare you but at the same time don't take a tornado lightly.

The chances of being impacted by a tornado are slim at best I wouldn't let it worry you too much. Schools usually have guidelines in place should a tornado warning be issued. I can understand your concern since you have kids but really I think you're basically worrying over practically nothing.

[Jerry Bckr]

You appear to have a tornado fobia. You have a greater chance of being run over by a blue bus than even seeing a tornado. Don't worry about it.

[ramanboy33]

Since 1950 there have been 4 tornado deaths in Colorado. Two in 1960, one in 2007, and one in 2008.

I've always run outside to look for funnel clouds whenever I've heard a tornado siren. It's eerily beautiful to see a greenish-hued, swirling cloud.

[ramanboy33]

Originally Posted by flamingo24

We are about to move to CO and I never lived in a place that has so many different weather conditions. So I am asking for help.
We are going to rent an apartment in Castle Rock, and the tornadoes scare me so much! It is probably because it is new to me.
Would you recommend to rent an a aprtment in the 1st floors or higher? I would think that the 1st floor is the safest?

I'd recommend to rent an apartment you like and not to worry for one second about tornadoes. They're not a big deal at all.

If one were to strike where you live, a basement is the safest place. If you don't have access to a basement, just move to an interior space away from windows and with as few potential flying projectiles as possible. Take a radio with you so you can listen to news reports, and if a tornado actually strikes your house take cover (under a table, in a bathtub) if possible.

Originally Posted by flamingo24

What if there is a tornado in the middle of the day and my kids are at school?

Your kids school with perform tornado drills a few times a year with the students. All schools have designated "safe" places in case of a tornado warning.

Originally Posted by flamingo24

What if it happens in the middle of the night while we sleep and we have no idea about it?

Tornadoes very rarely form at night. They almost always form during sever thunderstorms, which almost always occur during a hot afternoon. That said, tornado sirens are very loud and would most likely wake you up.

[yesterday6r4]

I remember when a huge twister struck near Downtown Denver back in 1988. Sirens went off and I was pretty scared.

[mczabe]

About two weeks after we moved here, we came out of the Safeway to see many people just staring to the south. We looked and indeed there was a funnel cloud (the one the went through Parker last summer). It was cool. I called my mom to tell her what I was looking at and she started screaming at me for just standing there like an idiot with her grandkids. I just can't explain it - it just wasn't in the least bit concerning at the time.

Now...I've also lived through two tornados in New Jersey - not exactly tornado alley. Those were scary...and with all the trees, you didn't have a chance of seeing it coming.

I think it's just so open here, you get a confidence in at least seeing what's heading your way. No big surprises on the high plains.

Definitely NOT a reason to NOT move here.

[ebeth79]

We are moving to SE Aurora from Arkansas. I asked my realtor about this subject two weeks ago when I was in town looking at houses. She actually laughed at me. She said yes, they do happen but, like someone said earlier, mostly on the very eastern side and in the "Plains Towns" where things are very flat.

I have grown up around tornados my entire life, and honestly they scare the holy ^%$#* out of me. But, even living in a state that has tornados on a constant basis in the spring months, I have never been closer than 1/2 a mile away from them and never directly impacted by one.

Schools do have safety precautions for them... when I was in school, typically you went into the hallway - away from all doors and windows, knelt on your knees, put your head in your lap and covered your head & neck with a book - or something that would protect you from head/neck injury should debris fall.

The ground level is, interior hallway (or basement) is the safest place to be in a tornado. But really, the chances of one actually hitting you are relatively minute. I wouldn't let tornadoes in Colorado affect my decision - maybe in Kansas or Oklahoma - but not in CO.

Beth

[DenverAztec]

Originally Posted by yesterday6r4

I remember when a huge twister struck near Downtown Denver back in 1988. Sirens went off and I was pretty scared.

Was this Denver, TX or Denver, KS? There has never been a 'huge' twister that struck near Denver, CO. We have funnel clouds that have hopped and skipped within the city and knock over a few trees, caused roof damage and are usually accompanied by hail. I would worry more about hail and then lightning then tornados. Sirens do go off as a warning for sever fast moving spring and summer storms.

There is such a thing called the Denver Cyclone therory, which is when cold air mixes with the hot air on the ground. Toss in the ability for the winds along the foothills to create their own wind patterns and you can easily see funnel clouds over the city, which almost never touch land. They will hit higher gound and well away from the city. DIA heading east, east of I-225, is the beginning of the tornado belt. When the clouds have a light green huge to them, it is usually because the ice in them is significant and reflecting light, this eventually will fall as hail.

I would recommend getting someplace that has a carport or a garage to park in, home and work. Every car I have owned, sans the current one, has had hail damage and it really bites.