How to Stay Safe During Times of Severe Weather

Severe weather season is here. Most people understand the basic safety guidelines of heading to a basement or interior room when a tornado warning is issued or going inside when lightning is in the area. However, there are also a variety of lesser-known tips that can save your life in the event of severe weather. Here is a list of strategies that you can employ when storms strike.

Do Not Rely on Tornado Sirens Indoors

Tornado warning sirens are not engineered to be heard inside. This means that you cannot rely on these sirens to warn you of impending danger when you are in your home. Additionally, these alert systems are not under the jurisdiction of the National Weather Service (NWS). They are instead managed by local emergency services. This means that there is often a slight lag between when the NWS prompts a warning and when the sirens are activated.

Rather than relying on tornado sirens, it is wiser to use your smartphone to receive alerts. Most modern smartphones allow wireless emergency alerts (WEA) to sound when activated by official government agencies. A weather radio from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) can also be used to receive important alerts in a timely manner.

You will need to ensure that your smartphone is fully charged and that the do not disturb feature is not on in order to receive the alerts.