PurpleJedi said:

Timmy84 said:

The Metro DC and central Virginia areas got tornado warnings RIGHT NOW. I think there's a tornado warning west of Central NC.

Yeah and western NC got a tornado watch until 2 am, I think. The east of NC is safe for now until tomorrow...just in case. No one is saying we're gonna have one coming here yet. Our radar is saying our area will get strong storms tomorrow.

Timmy84 said:

PurpleJedi said:

Yeah and western NC got a tornado watch until 2 am, I think. The east of NC is safe for now until tomorrow...just in case. No one is saying we're gonna have one coming here yet. Our radar is saying our area will get strong storms tomorrow.

You guys got me watching the Weather Channel now.

Stay safe everyone!

PurpleJedi said:

Timmy84 said:

Yeah and western NC got a tornado watch until 2 am, I think. The east of NC is safe for now until tomorrow...just in case. No one is saying we're gonna have one coming here yet. Our radar is saying our area will get strong storms tomorrow.

You guys got me watching the Weather Channel now.

Stay safe everyone!

Oddly enough on News 14 (our local channel here in NC), the weather forecaster was just calm (as he always is even when we had that tornado on April 16). He said there's low possibility the storm will be as deadly when it comes here. We might get showers and thunderstorms with FEW isolated tornadoes coming through our area in the first half of the day, meaning tomorrow morning through early afternoon, and then to the eastern portion by later afternoon, early evening.

Okay this is a dumb question but it popped in my head and I can't shake it. How does one prepare for tornado? I know that here if you live in a house you should have a shed in your yard as far away from structures and lines as possible where you keep your emergency supplies, I don't see that working in the event of a tornado.

Hoping this clears up soon and everyone makes through safely.

morningsong said:

Okay this is a dumb question but it popped in my head and I can't shake it. How does one prepare for tornado? I know that here if you live in a house you should have a shed in your yard as far away from structures and lines as possible where you keep your emergency supplies, I don't see that working in the event of a tornado.

Hoping this clears up soon and everyone makes through safely.

Y'all didn't have tornado drills in school? We used to have several of them every year....as well as real ones.

People always say the safest place to be is in a basement. However, here in the South which is tornado alley, nobody has basements, which is kinda ass backwards if you ask me. But then again, the South has always been ass backwards. Hospitals have basements though and a lot of the office buildings in the downtown areas.

Since we don't have basements, the place to be is in a central location of the house with no windows such as a hallway or a small bathroom with no windows. Then you are supposed to get on the floor and crouch down with your hands above your head. A lot of people bring their mattresses out into the hallway and get underneath them. If you have more than one level, you should go to the ground level.

Be careful, y'all.

vainandy said:

morningsong said:

Okay this is a dumb question but it popped in my head and I can't shake it. How does one prepare for tornado? I know that here if you live in a house you should have a shed in your yard as far away from structures and lines as possible where you keep your emergency supplies, I don't see that working in the event of a tornado.

Hoping this clears up soon and everyone makes through safely.

Y'all didn't have tornado drills in school? We used to have several of them every year....as well as real ones.

People always say the safest place to be is in a basement. However, here in the South which is tornado alley, nobody has basements, which is kinda ass backwards if you ask me. But then again, the South has always been ass backwards. Hospitals have basements though and a lot of the office buildings in the downtown areas.

Since we don't have basements, the place to be is in a central location of the house with no windows such as a hallway or a small bathroom with no windows. Then you are supposed to get on the floor and crouch down with your hands above your head. A lot of people bring their mattresses out into the hallway and get underneath them. If you have more than one level, you should go to the ground level.

I'm not an anthropologist or a real estate developer, but I think one of the main reasons a lot of residential buildings in the South don't have basements is because most of them are built on what used to be swamps and marshland, and they would be prone to flooding due to drainiage issues. Not only would they have the usual high amount of heavy thunderstorms due to storm fronts and Gulf moisture, but they are subject to tropical storms/hurricanes too. I'm sure that if a lot of areas in the South had a deep tunnel drainage project like they do in Chicago, they would build more houses with basement foundations. I know that in the Great Plains states, they not only have basements, but they usually have a separate storm cellar built on larger lot properties that works a lot like the old nuclear fallout shelters that were built in the 1950's.

Ideally, when a tornado is about to strike, the best place to be is a storm cellar or basement, but if your house doesn't have one or you're in an apartment dwelling, the best place to be is a small interior room in the middle of your house away from windows and outside exit doors (the smaller the room the better).

[Edited 4/27/11 17:50pm]

Very sad news. One of the CBS affiliates in Alabama has reported that at least 39 people have died in Alabama as a result of these tornadoes, and another 11 people have died in Mississippi.

728huey said:

Very sad news. One of the CBS affiliates in Alabama has reported that at least 39 people have died in Alabama as a result of these tornadoes, and another 11 people have died in Mississippi.

Alabama

paintedlady said:

Alabama

Yeah, very sad.

We've been getting tornado warnings here in Northern California. That's RARE. In the 10 years I've lived in California, there's never been a hurrican or tornado warning until recently

Heard this morning that the official death toll is at 173 dead.

PurpleJedi said:

Heard this morning that the official death toll is at 173 dead.

Other reports are saying 194 and counting... I can not even imagine that type of devastation. I am glad they will get the federal funding they desperately need to rebuild.

Edges of this storm system must be sprawling across much of the eastern seaboard and points north. The last 24 hours even way up where I am have been amazingly windy.

Please be careful down there, you guys.

paintedlady said:

PurpleJedi said:

Heard this morning that the official death toll is at 173 dead.

Other reports are saying 194 and counting... I can not even imagine that type of devastation. I am glad they will get the federal funding they desperately need to rebuild.

Oh my God, when I turned on the "Today" show this morning and saw what a massive monster one of those damn tornadoes had turned into once it reached Alabama, it made our bad weather here look like "April Showers" in comparison. Alabama definately got the worst of it.

PurpleJedi said:

Heard this morning that the official death toll is at 173 dead.

And rising.

NMuzakNSoul said:

I pray everyone stays save man. I heard about it.

We truly don't respect mother nature...

How would respecting Mother Nature reduce the number of severe storms and tornadoes?

Timmy84 said:

Damn the tornado is tearing up Birmingham, AL right now.

That's the same one that hit Tuscaloosa, Alabama.

I have family in both.

Been trying to contact, but haven't heard from yet.

But no one's called me with any bad news, so praying they don't.

bboy87 said:

We've been getting tornado warnings here in Northern California. That's RARE. In the 10 years I've lived in California, there's never been a hurrican or tornado warning until recently

Usually less than once a decade.

PurpleJedi said:

Heard this morning that the official death toll is at 173 dead.

SUPRMAN said:

bboy87 said:

We've been getting tornado warnings here in Northern California. That's RARE. In the 10 years I've lived in California, there's never been a hurrican or tornado warning until recently

Usually less than once a decade.

A few years ago I watched The Weather Channel and they mentioned tornado warnings in northern California.

SUPRMAN said:

Timmy84 said:

Damn the tornado is tearing up Birmingham, AL right now.

That's the same one that hit Tuscaloosa, Alabama.

I have family in both.

Been trying to contact, but haven't heard from yet.

But no one's called me with any bad news, so praying they don't.

Yeah that's a MESS. Pray your family's safe too.

Lammastide said:

Edges of this storm system must be sprawling across much of the eastern seaboard and points north. The last 24 hours even way up where I am have been amazingly windy.

Please be careful down there, you guys.

It's official. We've now had at least one tornado in Southwestern Ontario, about 1-1/2 hours from Toronto. Looks like this weather system is a beast.

Lammastide said:

Lammastide said:

Edges of this storm system must be sprawling across much of the eastern seaboard and points north. The last 24 hours even way up where I am have been amazingly windy.

Please be careful down there, you guys.

It's official. We've now had at least one tornado in Southwestern Ontario, about 1-1/2 hours from Toronto. Looks like this weather system is a beast.

vainandy said:

morningsong said:

Okay this is a dumb question but it popped in my head and I can't shake it. How does one prepare for tornado? I know that here if you live in a house you should have a shed in your yard as far away from structures and lines as possible where you keep your emergency supplies, I don't see that working in the event of a tornado.

Hoping this clears up soon and everyone makes through safely.

Y'all didn't have tornado drills in school? We used to have several of them every year....as well as real ones.

People always say the safest place to be is in a basement. However, here in the South which is tornado alley, nobody has basements, which is kinda ass backwards if you ask me. But then again, the South has always been ass backwards. Hospitals have basements though and a lot of the office buildings in the downtown areas.

Since we don't have basements, the place to be is in a central location of the house with no windows such as a hallway or a small bathroom with no windows. Then you are supposed to get on the floor and crouch down with your hands above your head. A lot of people bring their mattresses out into the hallway and get underneath them. If you have more than one level, you should go to the ground level.

Southern Cali, heck I don't even remember earthquake drill. I have a vague memory of nuclear bomb drills but that's another story. I've heard we can get tornadoes but in 40+ years I've never seen one, a dust funnel looking thing maybe but nothing near what's happening where you all are.

Looks like most of NC will be safe from harm. My area definitely. But east of my area, there's still potential for isolated tornadoes. Right now there's like three tornado warnings east of the I-95 corridor of us.

[Edited 4/28/11 13:07pm]

Timmy84 said:

The Metro DC and central Virginia areas got tornado warnings RIGHT NOW. I think there's a tornado warning west of Central NC.

That's why my ass is never leaving NYC. The worst weather we get is the occasional noreaster, but nothing like the shit in the south or midwest.

uPtoWnNY said:

Timmy84 said:

The Metro DC and central Virginia areas got tornado warnings RIGHT NOW. I think there's a tornado warning west of Central NC.

That's why my ass is never leaving NYC. The worst weather we get is the occasional noreaster, but nothing like the shit in the south or midwest.

Right. I feel for those who ACTUALLY moved DOWN SOUTH. You're not safe ANYWHERE. Move to California, you'll get an earthquake, move down south or even upper south, tornado and hurricane center.