Super Tuesday Tornado Assessment Released...

[beaudodson]

I didn't see this posted...

Super Tuesday Outbreak - Assessment

 

[Chip Redmond]

Thanks for that! After witnessing and assessing the damage I was hoping they would release something like that.

Chip

 

[Will Tinder]

Not to dig up another debate, but by the wording on page 12, it sounds like there's going to be some guidance issued on the future use of "Tornado Emergency?"

 

[Simon Timm]

They indeed is very useful. I have searching for quite awhile for a report of this outbreak.

 

[Bryce Stone]

Here's something that made me curious:

The safe school plan called for no one to be allowed to leave the school. Athletic directors, sheriff deputies, and state troopers manned the exits while attendees were directed in an orderly fashion into hallways, locker rooms, stairwells, and showers.

Can they legally do this? That is to say, if I was attending a function at this school and I wanted to leave, then could they arrest me for demanding and/or attempting to leave? BTW, the report says that 21 minutes elapsed from the time the tornado warning was issued until the tornado hit the school.

Just curious if anybody knows the answer to this question. I must admit that the thought of riding out a tornado in any building frightens me a bit. Given the choice, I'd rather be free to leave and decide on my own what to do, expecially considering the knowledge and experience I have regarding severe weather. I'm afraid I'd not take too kindly to being told I couldn't leave.

Of course I understand that it's a safety issue. There were no fatalities at this school, and had they let all those drivers out onto the roadways then it seems likely that the outcome would have been different. I think they did the right thing.

My specific question is in the legality of it. Can a person really be forced to stay in one location when a tornado is approaching? If so, I'll have to watch where I go during days which have severe weather potential. I'm not saying I'm special, but I am saying that being forced to sit still in one place knowing a tornado is coming towards me is not something I'd be too interested in.

 

[Tyler Burg]

Thanks for posting this, a very interesting read indeed!

Especially about the time from when the watch was issued to when the first severe wx/tornado/tornado fatality was reported. i'd say its a pretty good warning, but the main problem must be time of warning-to report.

Also interesing is the map of "tornado alley" not what most often think of when refering to the region with the most tornadoes, but this map shows the most tornado fatalities, which is much different, because of structure of homes (heck even homes in OK don't have basements!) anyway thanks again for posting that, very interesting read.

 

[Stuart Wilson]

Here's something that made me curious:



Can they legally do this? That is to say, if I was attending a function at this school and I wanted to leave, then could they arrest me for demanding and/or attempting to leave? BTW, the report says that 21 minutes elapsed from the time the tornado warning was issued until the tornado hit the school.

Just curious if anybody knows the answer to this question. I must admit that the thought of riding out a tornado in any building frightens me a bit. Given the choice, I'd rather be free to leave and decide on my own what to do, expecially considering the knowledge and experience I have regarding severe weather. I'm afraid I'd not take too kindly to being told I couldn't leave.

Of course I understand that it's a safety issue. There were no fatalities at this school, and had they let all those drivers out onto the roadways then it seems likely that the outcome would have been different. I think they did the right thing.

My specific question is in the legality of it. Can a person really be forced to stay in one location when a tornado is approaching? If so, I'll have to watch where I go during days which have severe weather potential. I'm not saying I'm special, but I am saying that being forced to sit still in one place knowing a tornado is coming towards me is not something I'd be too interested in.

Interesting dilemna. I'm not a lawyer nor American so can't really comment on the legality or otherwise though logic suggests that in 'The land of the free' you probably couldn't be forced to stay unless some form of marshall law had been declared (though this condition may exist as a result of specific tornado warnings and local laws).

I am minded to think that it really is a question of civic duty. In this case you have agreed that the actions were correct and could probably be responsible for saving lives. Imagine if you had been there and whilst kicking up a fuss had scared adults or children (parents?) to such an extent that they decided to leave (because you're a chaser and they may have some faith in your judgment) - what if some of those people were hurt or killed whilst the school was damaged but all inside survived?
Sometimes we all have to do things we don't agree with or don't like for all sorts of reasons. In this case the school authorities had clearly done a risk assessment and made a plan for just that event. This plan has, in hindsight, been vindicated and you certainly would not have have more data to go on than the local authorities.

Of course if you wanted to sneak out without kicking off or making a fuss, if you believed your plan was superior and your fear was not clouding your judgement that would be your choice. In this case the school had 21 minutes notice, you'd normally be lucky to get more than 3 minutes - not really enough no matter how experienced you are.

 

[J West]

Interesting read. It strikes me as bizarre that a lot of people don't believe NWS warnings and require "other" verification before deciding whether or not to act. Apparently they don't believe the people/agency who are paid to inform them, so they'd rather wait for their favorite TV station on-air talent to tell them the same thing. On top of that, even then some people decide not to act. That blows my mind.

Ron White said it all: "You can't fix stupid"