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Actually warnings only happen once a confirmed tornado has touched the ground somewhere, and the warnings go out to places nearby that meteorologists believe the tornado/weather will move towards.
Tornado watches happen more based on cold/warm fronts, but even that happens extremely fast, no more than an hour or two in advance.
So yeah, tornadoes happen *extremely* fast. You can't prepare a day in advance, or even a few hours in advance for a tornado.
This is no longer the case. Today's radar technology can detect tornadic rotation inside a storm cell before a funnel cloud even forms, and the National Weather Service will frequently issue tornado warnings based on that data. The EAS alert will indicate whether radar indicated rotation or someone spotted an actual tornado on the ground.
Here's a current tornado warning for northeastern Kansas.
Quote:
Severe Weather Statement
National Weather Service Topeka KS
750 PM CDT Tue May 28 2019
KSC201-290100-
/O.CON.KTOP.TO.W.0028.000000T0000Z-190529T0100Z/
Washington-
750 PM CDT Tue May 28 2019
...A TORNADO WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 800 PM CDT FOR
NORTHWESTERN WASHINGTON COUNTY...
At 750 PM CDT, a severe thunderstorm capable of producing a tornado
was located near Hollenberg, moving northeast at 35 mph.
HAZARD...Tornado and ping pong ball size hail.
SOURCE...Radar indicated rotation.
IMPACT...Flying debris will be dangerous to those caught without
shelter. Mobile homes will be damaged or destroyed. Damage
to roofs, windows, and vehicles will occur. Tree damage is
likely.
This dangerous storm will be near...
Hollenberg around 755 PM CDT.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
TAKE COVER NOW! Move to a basement or an interior room on the lowest
floor of a sturdy building. Avoid windows. If you are outdoors, in a
mobile home, or in a vehicle, move to the closest substantial shelter
and protect yourself from flying debris.
Tornadoes don’t come out of nowhere. If you live in an area prone to them, pay a little attention to the weather forecast and you ll do well.
I totally agree. I've lived in tornado prone areas for most of my 57 years on this earth and while I have had to take shelter a coupla times due to alarms going off or warnings, I have never had a smidgen of my property seriously damaged and certainly never been hurt. Nor have I ever known anyone that's had any significant property damage or been injured.
The weather forecasts are very helpful. We've never had any severe weather without having been warned accurately beforehand and been able to take precautions.
I mean, never say never and knock on wood and all that, but I have a much better chance getting killed getting out of the shower or driving down the road, even with a seatbelt on, than I do of being killed by a tornado.
Actually warnings only happen once a confirmed tornado has touched the ground somewhere, and the warnings go out to places nearby that meteorologists believe the tornado/weather will move towards.
Tornado watches happen more based on cold/warm fronts, but even that happens extremely fast, no more than an hour or two in advance.
So yeah, tornadoes happen *extremely* fast. You can't prepare a day in advance, or even a few hours in advance for a tornado.
This hasn't been my experience at all, living 25 plus years in Tornado Alley. We get TONS of coverage whenever there's the possibility of severe weather heading our way. Sometimes days of heads' up.
This hasn't been my experience at all, living 25 plus years in Tornado Alley. We get TONS of coverage whenever there's the possibility of severe weather heading our way. Sometimes days of heads' up.
Severe weather is one thing. Tornadoes are another. Though I guess living in that area, severe weather could easily equate to tornadoes, so there it makes sense.
Here in Chicago though, severe weather normally just means severe thunderstorms, so really all that needs to be done is roll up the car windows and take the patio cushions off. People here don't assume "tornado" until a watch or warning is officially issued. Of course we're warned if thunderstorms are in the forecast days in advance, but there's no way of knowing if that means tornado.
Severe weather often includes the risk of tornadoes, and if your area is under the gun for a severe threat, keep an eye on developments.
If you want to get a better read on what lies in store though, consult the products of the Storm Prediction Center at spc.noaa.gov. They had Dayton, Ohio on the edge of a zone of Enhanced Risk of severe weather ahead of last night.
They said the following in their afternoon outlook yesterday:
Severe thunderstorms, including a risk for tornadoes, severe hail and damaging wind gusts, are expected to persist across the Midwest this afternoon into tonight including eastern Iowa to northern portions of Illinois/Indiana. Severe threat should spread eastward through the Ohio Valley this evening.
Their evening update - posted at around 9.15 pm Eastern - said:
Severe thunderstorms, including a risk for tornadoes, large hail and damaging wind gusts, will persist across Indiana, and the mid and upper Ohio Valley area this evening and tonight.
and
Several severe/supercell storms are ongoing at this time over east-central and northeast Indiana, and will begin to spread across the Indiana/Ohio border shortly. Several tornadoes have been reported across this portion of Indiana, and this risk may continue for the next couple of hours.
West Central Ohio incl. Dayton had been placed under a Tornado Watch at around 8.20 pm, which said:
A cluster of supercell thunderstorms over Indiana will track eastward across the watch area this evening, posing a risk of a few tornadoes, damaging winds, and hail.
Clearly this threat was anticipated several hours in advance, and the wider sense of a severe threat in this region of the country was anticipated days in advance. I'm not saying you can't be afraid of them, but they clearly don't come out of nowhere. Several factors become apparent in the lead up to tornadic events and allow vigilant people to be on the lookout.
Tornadoes? You pay attention to the weather and have a sturdy place to shelter underground.
Hurricanes? You have literally days to get ready. Live in a house that is built to relatively new building codes. And if it's coming your way, throw the valuables and the cat in the car and drive 300 miles and wait it out in a Hampton Inn.
But earthquakes? You don't know when, where, or how bad it's going to be. You just know it's going to happen.
I live in Seattle. Rainier isn't a danger to the core city. It could cause a mudflow on a river that ends up in Tacoma.
Even a sideways blast like St. Helens would only get a fraction of the way here.
Rainier could bury Seattle with ash, which depending on how much fell, could cause roofs to collapse. Extremely unlikely, but a possibility. And still much better off than Ashford, Enumclaw, and Orting will be.
Most likely we will see a massive earthquake rather than Rainier becoming active.
Hurricane Sandy shows how bad a hurricane can be even when the winds are not much above hurricane-force and there isn't much rain for a major urban area.
Rainier could bury Seattle with ash, which depending on how much fell, could cause roofs to collapse. Extremely unlikely, but a possibility. And still much better off than Ashford, Enumclaw, and Orting will be.
Most likely we will see a massive earthquake rather than Rainier becoming active.
That would take one HELL of a lot of ash! Roofs are built for heavy loads of snow for starters (though we don't get much). Also the prevailing winds are eastward, not north-northwest.
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