Tornado Readiness (tornadoes, rainfall, storm, towns)

[sirron]

Let me begin by saying that I do not live in 'Tornado Alley'. My question after seeing the most recent death stats on the news is, why don't more people who live there prepare by constructing some sort of bunker or underground safe room?
Is the ground so rocky that basements can't be included in the building of houses? Educate me, please!
The homes I see that are destroyed are not always mobile homes. Many are these huge, well built, two story dwellings.
I know that if I choose to buy a house in a designated flood zone, I have to buy flood insurance, period. Why aren't builders required to include some sort of reinforced, concrete / steel room?
I don't mean to harp or judge. All I'm asking is wouldn't it make sense to employ an ounce of prevention?
Okay, let me have it..........

[Jammie]

Deadly Tornadoes Rip Through Heartland - AOL News

This was horrible and the people who were affected have my sympathies.

Sirron, I believe that a lot of people who live in tornado alley have basements. Often they're caught out in the storm and never make it to them. Unfortunately, basements aren't always going to save you either. There used to often be huge peices of machinery and other things that flew into basements and people were killed by it. As far as re-inforced, steel rooms, I don't think many people have them and I'm not sure why. Maybe it's the cost??

[LadyRobyn]

sirron, Not a very easy question to answer because there are many variables.

My question after seeing the most recent death stats on the news is, why don't more people who live there prepare by constructing some sort of bunker or underground safe room?

What makes you think they didn't have an adequate shelter? There are many different types available, but none (that I know of) are a 100% guarantee that you will survive a Tornado. When you watch the footage on TV of the flattened houses, you can rarely see if there was some type of storm cellar under all of the debris. Some towns are now implementing a "Storm Cellar" location database...you call in and give your address as well as the location of your shelter, so rescuers know where to begin digging first.

Is the ground so rocky that basements can't be included in the building of houses?

No... but then in a Tornadic event there is also the possibility of torrential rainfall and there have been people who DROWNED in their shelters trying to avoid a Tornado. Being underground isn't ALWAYS the best place to be, depending on your location and shelter type.

Many of the newer homes ARE being built with steel reinforced above-ground safe rooms. But it is cost is prohibitive and nearly impossible to retrofit some older less valuable homes. (The cost of the safe room would easily exceed the value of the home itself.)

I don't mean to harp or judge. All I'm asking is wouldn't it make sense to employ an ounce of prevention?

Not only do most residents employ an "ounce of prevention" by having a safe location to go during a bad storm, they also employ some common sense by being AWARE of the coming storm and knowing HOW and WHEN to react.

Many (but not all) people who live in "Tornado Alley" have been here many years, and they can spot trouble coming loooong before the TV stations start squawking about it.

That being said... NOTHING is 100%... You could easily ride out an EF5 in your top of line Storm Shelter, only to step out after the storm right onto a live electrical line. Stuff happens no matter how "Well Prepared" you are.

And since all 50 states have been hit by Tornadoes, I think it is foolish for anyone to sit back and think they are safe... The first Tornado I ever experienced was in California!

[marmac]

A friend of mine is 70 years old and grew up in OK.

He stated when he was a kid , nearly every house had some sort of a "storm cellar".

For the last 50 years, he stated, houses are built without them. His opinion is that was--NOT-- a wise trend.

In Minnesota we also get tornados. Loss of live is rare since nearly every house has a basement. I can't remember --EVER--reading about a person killed while in their basement when a tornado demolished their house.

Coincidence? I doubt it !

[SandyCo]

I remember reading about homes in Jarrell, Texas being completely blown off their foundations by an F-5 tornado in May, 1997. None of the homes had basements, and I seem to recall reading that it was because the water tables were too high. Nothing except a basement could have saved those people in that situation!

[sirron]

Thanks for the answers, everyone. I knew there had to be some things that I was just not taking into consideration, not being from the area.

LadyRobyn, the storm cellar location database sounds like a great idea. Do schools or community centers in general have any type of shelters for large groups of people? That would seem to be a good idea also.

And I agree that good ole common sense is probably your best defense out there. It just saddens me that so many have died already this year, (98 so far), when it could be much less. A fire chief on the news this morning said they had been tracking the tornado in Picher, OK for over twelve miles before it hit.

[Rita Mordio]

Several tornadoes have ripped through the area surrounding me - something that is absolutely NOT NORMAL. Almost nobody around here has a basement at all because we're pretty close to sea depth.

Basically, most houses would have to be built to withstand ocean current if they wanted to have a basement!

It's one of those problems with living near the ocean.... we're built to withstand hurricanes, not tornadoes.

[kaykay]

I live in Texas and it's my understanding that the soil is a bit prohibitive with building basements here. Some people do build storm cellars or "safe rooms." This is not that common, however, simply for the reason that tornadoes, particularly severe ones are actually so rare. It happens, but it's just not that often.

That said, this particular year has been an especially active tornado season...here and all over the country which are prone to them. If things were to continue as they have been this year, I suspect more people would indeed, be building some type of storm shelter.

[Rita Mordio]

Even areas that are not normally prone to tornadoes are getting quite a bit. This could possibly prelude to an extremely active and devastating hurricane season, too...

[DC at the Ridge]

Storm shelters are great, because they can protect you from flying debris. But even a reinforced room/shelter is not 100% protection, if you are in the path of a tornado and your home is hit directly, the reinforced room is gone. The force of a tornado is immense. The idea of community shelters is great for hurricanes, but not for tornadoes. You have moments to prepare for a tornado strike, not hours. Even if you have a storm shelter or basement, you run the risk of being buried by debris. For some places, it just isn't feisible to have a basement, because of the soil or the water table or whatever. Personally, I have reservations about storm shelters. I'm just not terribly keen on small, dark, musty spaces underground, where even if you have an outside news source available, it doesn't tell you what's happening directly over your head, and all you can hear is the roar of the wind and debris banging into the building.