Heed the warning

[J Tyler]

With large tornadoes, even being in a basement does not guarante survival. In Greensburg, a full size truck was thrown into a house, and it then fell thru the floor landing on the sheltering man who was in his basement. He was killed. Another woman was killed when a highway gurder came thru the floor of the house and into the basement where she was, killing her.

People are told to go to the center of their home, but when a tornado wipes the foundation....

As mentioned, then you have people who are at work, and can't leave every time a warning is issued.

 

[rdale]

1. Not building houses with basements anymore- or what we called cellars. Every house had one at one time

Every house? Or you mean "a lot of houses in Ohio"? Because I'm quite sure basements were not in 100% of houses in Alabama at any time in this country's history...

We need to use a combination of Siren and Voice everywhere- like what they do in Arab, Alabama. "TORNADO APPROACHING YOUR AREA- TAKE COVER!!" repeated in between sirens would leave no one confused about what is going on.

I haven't heard a report of a person who heard the tornado siren but was confused on what to do. I'd love to see the research into that, so please link up something.

4. Presentation is everything. If your station meteorologist is interrupted every 15 minutes for a Taco Bell commercial in the middle of an outbreak- fewer people are going to take it seriously.

What stations broke away from the outbreak for commercials?

 

[Matt Tottle]

With large tornadoes, even being in a basement does not guarante survival. In Greensburg, a full size truck was thrown into a house, and it then fell thru the floor landing on the sheltering man who was in his basement. He was killed. Another woman was killed when a highway gurder came thru the floor of the house and into the basement where she was, killing her.

We're not talking about guaranteeing survival against freak occurrences that blow the curve. A whole hell of a lot more people have survived tornadoes in their basement/underground shelter than have been killed in them. We're talking about having SOMEWHERE to go. If those people who have basements choose to fortify a section of it into a bona fide safe-room, that's great and it will give them a better chance of surviving the unlucky lottery of a girder impalement. But when you live in a trailer, you are a sitting duck no matter how you slice it, and there should be bunkers for the residents to go. It's not like you could even dig your own in a trailer park to cover your own ass. So I stand by what I said, I don't see any issue with mandating shelters in trailer parks.

People are told to go to the center of their home, but when a tornado wipes the foundation....

That's because the center is usually where the pipes are, and the pipes give a bit more structural strength - namely in an older home where the pipes will be steel and cast iron vs plastic. Ever notice in destruction scenes the walls usually left standing the highest are the bathroom walls?

As mentioned, then you have people who are at work, and can't leave every time a warning is issued.

Of course you can't. That would impact productivity. However, it is the employer's responsibility to have a disaster plan in force. If a tornado wipes out a manufacturing plant and kills 200 people inside because the warnings were ignored or 'they didn't know it was coming', that blame lies solely on the employer for negligence. When a warning is issued, there should be people designated to go outside or to the windows to watch the situation, and if a tornado develops, they can sound the alarm to take action.

 

[Joshua Nall]

That is an absurd comparison. Saying you are against mandating tornado shelters in trailer parks is exactly the same as saying you are against mandated smoke alarms, fire exits, and fire escapes in apartment buildings, stores, movie theaters, and nightclubs. Why shouldn't people be able to escape a dangerous situation just because they can't afford to live in a house with a basement? Being inside a trailer home is the most dangerous place you can be in a tornado - more dangerous than laying down outside in a ditch. So how is that different than living in a 4th floor apartment and there's a fire on the 3rd floor? If you lived in the trailer park, you'd be just as appreciative of the mandated tornado shelter as the person on the 4th floor is of his mandated fire escape.

Don't get me wrong, I am a card carrying NRA member and I hate government intrusion into people's lives. I hate the 'nanny state' regulations that keep coming out to protect stupid people from themselves. But you have to acknowledge that SOME regulations ARE necessary to protect people from circumstances beyond their control. Among those that are necessary are building codes, fire safety regulations, occupational safety, etc. I don't see any problem with mandating new trailer parks have a community shelter or requiring any park seeking to expand to build one.

I thought it was an ok comparison, fellow card carrying NRA member. The OP was on why so many died, and I was mainly just making the point that a lot of people don't care about the weather, until it's shaking their trailer that is... the same way they don't care about a lot of stuff that can and does cause them harm. And it's not such a bad way to live, maybe better than being paranoid about every little thing. I'm certainly not against trailer parks having storm shelters, and I would not protest if the city or county or whatever government entity wanted to mandate it. I'm saying they wouldn't get used, it would be a waste of money. Just like it's mostly a waste of time telling people to not drink soda pops and eat nutty buddy bars. If there was a park somewhere where the residents decided they wanted one, then they could put up some money that they have saved by not buying beer, and have one built maybe. That would be the way I'd think it should work. By the way, I'm a member of Gun owners of America also and feel they are a little less politically correct. NRA has been endorsing some rotten people lately and its rubbed me the wrong way. Check out GOA sometime.

 

[Matt Tottle]

I'll give you that people don't pay attention to the weather until it's kicking them in the ass.. But when it does, there's a huge difference between being ignorant and not having an alternative. If they have no shelter to run to, where do you think they're going to hide? Exactly where they shouldn't - INSIDE the trailer, because they have no other choice. But you will NEVER have people willingly 'chip in' for that.. And it's got nothing to do with nutty buddy bars and Budweiser. It would be like paying out of pocket to remodel the kitchen in a rental apartment. You are putting your money into something that's not yours, and you will have nothing to show for it when you leave. In a trailer park, you might own the trailer, but you don't own the land it's parked on. You rent it just like an apartment. And why would people open their wallets to build something that the landlord should already be providing in the first place? (I know they'd pay for it in one form or another - increased rent, taxes, etc-, but you know what I mean.)

 

[Jennifer Palmer]

My two cents...

Where I live, people don't tend to take it seriously. We are surrounded by mountains and people still believe that myth, although not as much as they did before 4/27.

However, where I work was hit by a tornado around 8:30 that morning. FINALLY, this time they ushered us to a tornado shelter. On 2/28, when we were slammed by straight line winds, we weren't instructed to go to our "safe place" until one of our windows blew out.

What I'm trying to say, poorly, is that most of the time I will say that people don't take it seriously around here. On 4/27, everyone was talking about severe weather even before we got hit. Normally, I am the only person talking about it. So I think people were prepared and knew it was coming. I think it is a combination of really strong tornadoes and also where these tornadoes struck, i.e. big cities. I personally thank God that this didn't happen at night. I shudder to think of the number of fatalities we would have if that had been the case.

Regardless of warning times, etc., I think sometimes there just isn't a whole lot you can do to prevent fatalities and casualties! In an ideal world, everyone would have a safe room/basement, but even then... sometimes that does not help!

 

[KendraReed]

My two cents...

Where I live, people don't tend to take it seriously. We are surrounded by mountains and people still believe that myth, although not as much as they did before 4/27.

However, where I work was hit by a tornado around 8:30 that morning. FINALLY, this time they ushered us to a tornado shelter. On 2/28, when we were slammed by straight line winds, we weren't instructed to go to our "safe place" until one of our windows blew out.

What I'm trying to say, poorly, is that most of the time I will say that people don't take it seriously around here. On 4/27, everyone was talking about severe weather even before we got hit. Normally, I am the only person talking about it. So I think people were prepared and knew it was coming. I think it is a combination of really strong tornadoes and also where these tornadoes struck, i.e. big cities. I personally thank God that this didn't happen at night. I shudder to think of the number of fatalities we would have if that had been the case.

Regardless of warning times, etc., I think sometimes there just isn't a whole lot you can do to prevent fatalities and casualties! In an ideal world, everyone would have a safe room/basement, but even then... sometimes that does not help!

Jenn, I am just glad you are safe. I was thinking about you!

 

[Jennifer Palmer]

Jenn, I am just glad you are safe. I was thinking about you!

Thank you dear Kendra!!! *hugs*