Tornado prep advice

[RR Homestead]

Hey all!
As most of you know we are moving to the Midwest. Since we only have earthquakes where we are from tornado's are a new experience for us. I feel like tornado's are probably a completely different thing to prepare for. I've been watching video's online of what people do to prep their shelter and what people keep in them or have at the ready. I'm a bit surprised I haven't seen more video's out there with this topic in mind. Looking for tips, tricks, preps and whatever else y'all got to share as we prepare for our first tornado season. We have a shelter in the basement. It has a fair amount of space to put things. There is a small sink and toilet in it already. If the power goes out I know we will want water for flushing as well as drinking water. But what is best for drinking water storage? Can water in empty jars like I do here when I have space in the canner that needs taken up? I tend to avoid store bought plastic bottles of water. Especially for a more prepping kind of use as it can sit for years before being used if we don't use that item on a regular basis. I will also be prepping the storm shelter for our cats and at some point soon dogs. So i'll want ideas for that as well. How do you get your animals to the shelter in a hurry? How much food do you keep for humans and animals in a shelter? I'm assuming it can be some time before help arrives if you happen to get stuck in the shelter for some reason.
Any advice would be appreciated as I work on what I want to purchase, pack, make etc for the new shelter. In theory we will be moved in tornado season so I'd like to be prepared before hand.
Thanks in advance everyone!

 

[Baymule]

I have watched the news when tornadoes are in the area, in Lindale. The local Tyler station would interrupt regular broadcasting to track tornadoes in real time. We were on satellite TV. We were in a doublewide with no tornado shelter. Watching a tornado drawing nearer and the TV would go out. Do we get in the car and make a run for it? Do we bend over and kiss our a$$ goodbye? What a quandary. We never got hit by a tornado, we never made a run for safety. Eh.

We were in a restaurant in Lindale once when a tornado hit town. The restaurant manager wanted everyone in the kitchen. I'm looking at giant bubbling pots of all kinds of stuff that could make some third degree burns if sloshed all over a person, thinking that was a bad idea. My husband was at the windows, typical redneck style, looking for the tornado. A friend an hour away was on the phone with me, tracking the tornado. The tornado came down and tore up a dollar store, used car lot and went merrily on it's way out of town towards our area. When we started home, we followed the damage. There was a tree leaned over the road that almost scraped the cab of the truck, but we got under it. We didn't know if we would have a home left, but it was unscathed.

I live in what is called locally, tornado alley. Some areas are more prone to tornadoes than others. About 15 miles from me is a swath of dead topped pine trees from a tornado some 9 years ago, That one went through a small town called Alto and tore up some homes and the school. No one was hurt. But it mostly went through the forest. I've lived along the coastal area most of my life in hurricane country. Hurricanes also spawn tornadoes. I think a tornado came down our street in hurricane Ike as trees were toppled, power line poles twisted off and it laid a massive oak tree on our house.

If your new home is in a tornado alley, the locals will know it and can tell you. But they can show up anywhere like unwanted guests. I think Texas leads the nation for tornadoes. You have a basement, a safe place. If a tornado shows up, you may only have time to get yourself in it. Trying to catch cats, whose senses would be going wild at that point, might not be a good idea. Outside dogs would just have to be on their own, an inside dog might join you. Safety for you first. In towns, there are tornado sirens. Out in the country, not so much. The TV might stop regular broadcasting to track tornadoes, but if it is at night, you wouldn't know it. How far is your bedroom from the basement entrance? How fast can you get there? If you sleep in your birthday suit, you might want to put a couple sets of clothing in the basement, along with shoes. Forget trying to grab anything, just get to the basement.

You currently live with earthquakes. Those show up with no warning. You also live in a state famous for it's fires. Fires take everything in it's path. Every area has its dangers. If I were you, I wouldn't stress over a tornado any more than you stress over an earthquake. Make your preparations and stop worrying about it.

 

[Mini Horses]

The aftermath, if you're hit, is the horrible issue. Check your insurance to see if such weather damage is included or excluded. Knowledge for preps.

 

[Baymule]

Good point. You may need a rider on your insurance or a separate policy.

 

[Weldman]

Lets start with the ceiling, roof of this in basement shelter. What is it made of, pictures? Basements are cute an cuddly and all, but without adequate roof of a shelter, it will rip that house apart which if is wood floor that is the roof of the basement, it will take that and suck all the contents out which include you. There is also possibility of it collapsing on you too.

 

[Blue Sky]

The best preparation is being weather aware. Keep a phone and weather radio handy. Watch the predictions like a hawk, they are timed pretty accurately these days. All of your activities will revolve around when and what kind of storms are expected. Keep a garage clear to shelter your vehicles. I’ve seen people lose expensive trucks because the garage was full of whatever. Keep livestock near their shelters and make sure gates etc are open. They should sense the weather and put themselves up, you do not want to be out on the south forty trying to get Bessie to the barn. Pick up lawn furniture, trash cans, kid’s toys- anything that the wind can turn into shrapnel. Loose tin needs to be secured. A less common but extremely dangerous weather phenom is gorilla hail. It often precedes tornadoes and gives little warning. Go to YouTube and search Wylie Tx hailstorm 2016. I was in that one. Consider shutters on your new home. Have sturdy shoes and warmer clothing ready. It is often cold, wet and windy after a system moves through.

 

[Blue Sky]

 

[Weldman]

This program is so great you can track it in real time of where a T cell is going or a mesocyclone before it gets to tornado. I have prevented significant hail damage, dodge tornadoes and shut down projects before we got slammed with weather not in the forecast.
https://apps.microsoft.com/detail/9mw4stn492s0?hl=en-US&gl=US

 

[Blue Sky]

Above wouldn’t let me add text. That’s unsecured tin. Secured tin will fly around too. While the movie Twister was melodramatic in places it made some good points about awareness and shelter. Tornadoes can be scary but they tend to be over quick and the warnings are far more accurate today.

 

[Blue Sky]

This program is so great you can track it in real time of where a T cell is going or a mesocyclone before it gets to tornado. I have prevented significant hail damage, dodge tornadoes and shut down projects before we got slammed with weather not in the forecast.
https://apps.microsoft.com/detail/9mw4stn492s0?hl=en-US&gl=US

I used to lurk on ham radio and listen to the local spotters and follow along on a Mapsco. I grew up in tornado alley before Doppler radar and other tech. We looked at the sky a lot.