Question about tornadoes (Hendersonville, Gallatin, Lebanon: home, tornado, live in)
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This was our first experience and we're both shaken up. We've only lived near White House for 4 months and this is all new to us. We figured there are 3 options: if there is enough notice get in car and drive far away, buy a storm/tornado shelter for about $6,000, or move which we can't afford to do because we just spent all our money moving here from up north.
People we talk to say just go to bed and you'll get used to it. With all the people that died up here in and near Sumner County, how can I get used to it. My husband didn't retire to die in a storm. We are at our wits end as what we should do. I don't like the cold up north, but all I worried about was shovelling the snow, now I worry about if my life will be taken by a tornado. I wish my realtor didn't paint such a pretty picture of the area of how not to worry about them because I shouldn't have listened to her.
Being a TN Native, I don't remember many tornado warnings when I was young, however, we returned to TN after a few years in Florida and after evacuating/going to shelters during hurricanes and tolerating tornadoes, I'd have to say I prefer being able to track a hurricane for days than to the many nights I've spent awake half the night watching the news during tornado watches or worse, warnings. You never know when or if they will drop out of the sky and skip over your house or hit it it seems. The ones I've braced for follow the same path most of the time coming from Memphis, through Dickson and then then sweeping off to the northeast, brushing us (like last night) or damaging our house like in April, 1998.
Your question about the schools...I remember that day in 1998 and the schools had just let out. My oldest child had driven home, but the two younger ones rode the bus. The school bus got out in the storm and then was ordered to turn around and take the kids back to the school to hunker down in the hallway. My daughter was at home alone when the golfball size hail beat our house like shot-gun blasts knocking holes through the side and back of our house siding with hundreds of holes. It broke windows and dinged the cars. My daughter was terrified of the storm but more concerned about where her siblings were. The school did the right thing to get them off the bus and into a large building. Even with all that, I still choose to stay in what I feel IS "tornado alley". The beauty and pleasure of the sunny and beautiful days here far outweigh the days we deal with tornadoes and bad weather.
PLEASE remember to pray for the people that have lost so much in the storm last night all over the South. I know that two Gallatin (in Sumner County) police officers lost their homes, and one Gallatin officer lost his dad and his brother is critically injured. The Castalian Springs area is rural and the town of Gallatin is still reeling from the tornado that did caused so much death and destruction on April 7, 2006.
Someone else said you have weather issues wherever you are....that is so true. Live where you choose, and be happy....as we all were reminded last night, Life can change or be over in an instant.
My husband didn't retire to die in a storm. We are at our wits end as what we should do.
Hey Barb, I am sorry that you guys are so upset. After talking to people who are from here and the others on this board, I don't think this is an all the time occurance. Hopefully us newbies will get a little more used to it.
Tornados still freak me out too. I am used to earth "tremors" in San Diego, hurricanes in coastal Georgia, freezing weather and ice storms up north, so hopefully this will be just another thing soon. My friend I have known since we were 12 was evacuated in October due to the wildfires in San Diego. Normally their weather is pretty nice!! So anywhere you go you will have potential for something crummy weather wise. I hope that you can get some peace about it and not make you regret being here.
I definately think the weather alert radio is an awesome idea. I will be getting one of those soon. At least you will have an alert that it is coming towards you.
To whoever has one, can you tell me if the alarm go off it is very close to where you are or would it be going off for every tornado in the entire Nashville area? I would prefer it go off only within a small circle around where I live so we don't get non-chalant about it.
Also, is there a certain brand/features that we should look for?
To whoever has one, can you tell me if the alarm go off it is very close to where you are or would it be going off for every tornado in the entire Nashville area? I would prefer it go off only within a small circle around where I live so we don't get non-chalant about it.
Also, is there a certain brand/features that we should look for?
You definitely want to get one where you set it to go off only when there's a warning issued for your county. It's called SAME: Specific Area Message Encoding.
I have a Midland SAME unit and it's a good choice. I'm sure there are others that are just as good however.
We just moved here the 1st week of Jan. from Alabama and we lived in the tornado alley. In Nov. 2002 we had some that lost their lives. It missed our house by about 3 miles. We had a storm pit built in the deepest part of our basement with concrete blocks and cement poured inside them and also a concrete top with steel reinforcements. My first experience with a tornado was in April 1974 and it missed us that time by two houses. It sounded just like they say...a freight train. I will never forget it and they do scare me. Our house here doesn't have a basement but after last night we are planning to look into an in ground storm shelter. We live in Franklin and I was watching the weather on Channel 4 and had my laptop so I could have a map of TN counties. I am not familiar with what counties are next to us and what direction they are from us. Anyway, it was a pretty restless night for me. I thank God for watching over us and my heart breaks for those less fortunate.
This was our first experience and we're both shaken up. We've only lived near White House for 4 months and this is all new to us. We figured there are 3 options: if there is enough notice get in car and drive far away, buy a storm/tornado shelter for about $6,000, or move which we can't afford to do because we just spent all our money moving here from up north.
People we talk to say just go to bed and you'll get used to it. With all the people that died up here in and near Sumner County, how can I get used to it. My husband didn't retire to die in a storm. We are at our wits end as what we should do. I don't like the cold up north, but all I worried about was shovelling the snow, now I worry about if my life will be taken by a tornado. I wish my realtor didn't paint such a pretty picture of the area of how not to worry about them because I shouldn't have listened to her.
Barb, this is not a usual occurance here. They said they have had nothing like this in years. I have only here a year and a half, but was at college in Clarksville, TN for 4 years and watching the Dopler on TV, I have never seen it so bad. My area was not touched at all.
The only Tornado I ever experienced occured was where I lived in NJ. It was an F2/ It's Official: Sunday Storm In New Jersey Was a Tornado - New York Times so they do occur up north. With this crazy weather it can happen anywhere. I have never seen such highs and lows all over the country.
Diane G
Barb, this is not a usual occurance here. They said they have had nothing like this in years. I have only here a year and a half, but was at college in Clarksville, TN for 4 years and watching the Dopler on TV, I have never seen it so bad. My area was not touched at all.
The only Tornado I ever experienced occured was where I lived in NJ. It was an F2/ It's Official: Sunday Storm In New Jersey Was a Tornado - New York Times so they do occur up north. With this crazy weather it can happen anywhere. I have never seen such highs and lows all over the country.
Diane G
The news media is reporting that in terms of deaths, this was the worse series of tornadoes in Tennessee in 75 years.
Hi All.
My heart goes out everyone affected by the tornadoes in the U.S.A.
My uncle lives just out of Sevierville TN on Douglas Lake, havent been able to contact him since we heard of the disaster here in Australia, just a bit conserned!
Just wondering if anyone has heard any reports from across that way as to how bad they were hit?
Thanks, and all the best, from Australia
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