Tornados! those beasts! question.. (Huntsville, Decatur: house, to buy, tornado)

[the_huntsville]

Ok, the topic got your attention,

I was reading some tornado threads on this forum, and have come up with some of my own questions....

I moved here five years ago from NJ, and am probably going to buy a home, or build one in hampton cove in August or September.

My question is, when people construct a home, or get a home with an already built shelter that could withstand an F5, what is the most common, and/or economical route?

I have seen companies that build really high end ones, that are literally in your garage, and I have seen people simply dig a hole in the back yard(a big one, and line it with a sealant, then concreate on the wall, and a sturdy hacked together lid, that could withstand the suction if one came overhead.......whatever the case is, I would spend probably up to $15,000 to have one built.



I have seen these:

Storm Shelters and Tornado Shelters by FlatSafe, In-Home Storm and Tornado Shelter <---- This one relaly has my attention......

Safe Room Steel Storm Shelters - Community, Underground, Safe Room, Utility Room, Hillside, Tornado Protection, Storm Protection

Storm Shelters Tornado Shelters Safe Rooms

Storm Shelters, Tornado Shelters, Hurricane Shelters & Safe Rooms


Any recommendations? or ideas?

[sedriskell]

If you're going to get one, I would definitely go for the high end one. You can't put a price on the safety of your family. The thing is, because of the topography of the region, if you're on the eastern side of Monte Sano, you're not very likely to get hit by a tornado, because of the rain shadow effect. You have a much lower chance of getting hit than the area on the western side of the mountain. The eastern side of the mountain, of course, being places like Hampton Cove.

I'm not saying it's impossible for the areas east of the mountain to get hit, cause it is definitely possible, especially during hurricanes. The threat is always present.

Anyways, again, if you're going to get one, get a GOOD one. Like I said you can't put a price on safety.

[HB2HSV]

Originally Posted by sedriskell

The thing is, because of the topography of the region, if you're on the eastern side of Monte Sano, you're not very likely to get hit by a tornado, because of the rain shadow effect. You have a much lower chance of getting hit than the area on the western side of the mountain. The eastern side of the mountain, of course, being places like Hampton Cove.

Please elaborate on this point. I will have a HIGHER chance of getting hit by tornado if I am on the WESTERN side of a mountain?

What if I live on TOP of a mountain?

or BETWEEN mountains?

[mm42]

The number of people who have been injured or killed by a Tornado in their home around here is minuscule, to the point that this is not a risk worth approaching rationally. So since it's all about feeling, get whatever shelter makes you feel the safest.

If you really want to improve your safety, wear a crash helmet and kevlar vest when you ride in a car, and only ride in 5-star crash safety rated cars.

[caution]

just for consideration, as i type this, the NWS issued a tornado warning for an area that included hapton cove -- but just for a big cell that has some rotation going on

if it buys you peace of mind for your family, get a shelter and get a good one, IMHO

we don't have one and probably won't get one unless the boss tells me different (lol) but I did consider the "risk" when picking my area for a home search and just figured (no science involved) that getting on the north east side of the hills, in the rolling hills up toward new market was the least risky for storms. made me feel a lil' better, but that's about it.

[Charles]

That thunderstorm, tornado warning event about a half hour ago was a little scary. First it was just raining really hard then we hear the buzzer on the TV. About five seconds later the tornado sirens go off. The lightning gets totally intense, almost continuous. I look outside and the wind is blowing so hard the rain is totally horizontal. I'm getting a little nervous so we call one of our neighbors who grew up around here. She and her family were in their shelter (they have a phone in it). So I told the kids to get into our tornado room and just before I was going to get in the sirens stop and the winds pretty much stopped. The news had said the areas of concern were Haden and Gurley - our house is almost in a direct line between those two places.

The thing is, all the technology still only gives you maybe a fifteen minute window and a several mile window. When it's dark the only other warning you get is the sound of a train (or so I am told).

[sedriskell]

As caution said, they do issue warnings for areas that don't see many tornadoes, mostly because the warnings are just blanketed on top of the land.

ANYWAYS, what happens when a storm system encounters a mountain is that the air is pushed up. Let's look at HSV for example. When a storm comes across downtown, it hits Monte Sano. When it hits the mountain, the air is forced up which usually causes the stronger portions of the weather to stay on the western side of the mountain (downtown). So, as the air rides over the mountain, it isn't as violent as the air that was on the western side of the mountain, and there is usually less rain involved. Think of the mountain as a dam, it back the storm up and causes it to deposit a lot of water, but of course, some water gets through the spillways and continues to the other side of the dam.

If you live on a mountain, it's hard to say what would happen, tornadoes usually don't like to travel up mountain slopes, but it is still possible. The same goes for between mountains. It really depends on how large the valley is that you live in. If it is small, it's just like living on top of a mountain. However if you live in a large valley, like the entire Tennessee Valley, this can make the weather a lot worse, which is what you see with the FREAKY weather in The Shoals, Decatur, and Huntsville.

If you wanna see a more visual representation of this, look at a satellite view of the Huntsville area, on Google or something. You'll notice that there is more vegetation (where there isn't a city) on the western side of the mountain than there is on the eastern side.

Now, like I said before, tornadoes can occur ANYWHERE. Just because you are in an area that is in a rain shadow doesn't not rule out the possibility of a tornado or severe storm. Ask any Huntsvillian living in or near Hampton Cove, and they'll tell you that they see severe storms all the time.

Either way, if you're looking at investing in a shelter, and you're serious about it, I would buy a good one.

EDIT: By the way, another great example of a rain shadow is the Sierras in California. Look at a satellite view, and you'll notice that there is A LOT of farming and vegetation in the San Juacquin (sp?) Valley (the weatern side of the Sierra) and it is dry and arid on the eastern side of the mountains.

[fromdust]

get a shelter and weather radio.
look at me tell you this, i have neither and im in the middle of tornado allies ally.

[gsp4ever]

Originally Posted by Charles

The thing is, all the technology still only gives you maybe a fifteen minute window and a several mile window. When it's dark the only other warning you get is the sound of a train (or so I am told).

All in all, this area seems to have some pretty good detection equipment. I have been told it is because they have had some really bad tornadic episodes in the past that have ended up with loss of life. Tornados can strike anywhere and I'm not sure what areas of the HSV metro area would be less prone than others. I've heard that there was even a tornado that hit Monte Sano mountain several years back. Hampton Cove/Owens Crossroads seems to frequently be in the "line of fire" for storms as is Madison, areas south of I-565 (like Triana and Redstone Arsenal) Harvest/Monrovia--especially northern areas near Hwy 53 and Meridianville/Hazel Green areas. Now if you really want the bad weather move down to Cullman or over to the Shoals area. They seem to get it all over there.

Charles--I've heard about the train too but fortunately have never heard it Today, I heard screaming winds and driving rain and apparently there was damage reported around the Balch Road/Capshaw Road area which isn't too far from here. Also, last year (during the storm that killed several people) I felt the pressure change and my ears popped as the "tornado" went over the house. That was creepy and hurt, too.

[sedriskell]

There's really no where in the Valley that is "in the line of fire" tornadoes strike randomly and without notice. There are areas that should, topographically, be less prone to them, but it doesn't really make a difference. If you get the right storm, a tornado can hit anywhere.