5/17/2023 0 Comments Saferoom survived f5![]() Past experience, such as the 1979 Wichita Falls tornado, teaches us that this is potentially catastrophic. What should they do? Flee the path? This potentially puts large numbers of people into vehicles ahead of the tornado. As a result, even the pessimist would recognize that most people need to heed advice appropriate for their situations.Ĭonsider the person who has no underground option readily at hand. Even if one believes that EF5 damage guarantees death, only a small part of the damage associated with tornadoes with peak damage of EF5 actually is EF5. ![]() Of greater importance is the safety message and response it brings. Violent tornadoes are very dangerous, but they do not bring certain death. 1% may seem like a very small death rate, but it is orders of magnitude larger than the ordinary probability of dying in day to day activity. In the tornado, the Briarwood Elementary School was rated EF5 and there were no fatalities there. They don’t differentiate between the F4 and F5 in the paper, but it is exceedingly unlikely that all of the people in F5 homes died. After the tornado that hit Moore, Oklahoma, survey work indicated that 1% of people who were in houses that were rated F4 or F5 were killed, as reported by Hammer and Schmidlin. As a factual statement, claiming that EF5 tornadoes can’t be survived above ground is wrong. This advice is wrong and providing it is irresponsible at best, and dangerous at worst. Some broadcast meteorologists have offered the advice that “if you don’t get underground, you won’t survive.” Sometimes, it’s couched in terms of “this tornado is so severe, the usual advice doesn’t work” or “you can’t survive an EF5 above ground.” The message suggests that even in-residence shelters built to the design specifications of the Texas Tech wind engineering groups and the FEMA standards won’t survive. Many in the tornado safety community are concerned about an inappropriate message that seems to have become very popular recently, but that differs significantly from the basic safety idea. Occasionally, someone strays from this basic messaging, potentially causing problems. Obviously, having a purpose-built shelter is ideal, but not everyone has one. The words may differ (lowest floor, interior room, bathroom or closet), but the core idea remains the same. For the most part, the partnership between the National Weather Service, the media, and emergency management personnel emphasizes this same message. Although there are special situations that require additional information, if someone in the path of a tornado follows this advice, their chances of survival dramatically increase. ![]() Brooks are his own and do not necessarily represent the views of NSSL or NOAA or the US Government.Īt the heart of it, this single sentence summarizes most of tornado safety advice. A thoughtful and useful contribution to the national discussion prompted by the most recent Moore tornado. Harold Brooks, a Senior Scientist in the Forecast Research and Development Division at NOAA’s National Severe Storms Laboratory in Norman, Oklahoma, and an AMS Fellow. ![]()
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