// BEGIN editorial data var i = 0; var tornadoes = new Array(); tornadoes.ID = "tornadoes"; tornadoes.ID_WB = 5060161; tornadoes.sPubDate = "3/29/2007 7:02:22 PM GMT"; tornadoes.navsectionID = "3032127" tornadoes.appFmt = 0; tornadoes.appWidth = 460; tornadoes.appHeader = "fact file|Tornado tips and facts"; tornadoes.appDeck = "Each year, about one thousand tornadoes touch down in the United States. Knowing a little bit about them can save your life.

"; tornadoes.appFooter = "Source: The Tornado Project, Associated Press"; tornadoes.appNavStyle = 4; tornadoes.navCols = 1; tornadoes.bPrintable = 0; tornadoes.appLayout = 1; tornadoes.copyHeight = 250; tornadoes.copyMargin = 9; tornadoes.copyBorder = 0; tornadoes[i++] = new Array("","What causes tornadoes?","","","","", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", ""); tornadoes[i-1].body = "The conditions that produce a tornadic thunderstorm (a storm that produces a tornado) exist when moist, warm air gets trapped beneath a stable layer of cold, dry air by an intervening layer of warm, dry air. This stratified sandwich of air is called an inversion."; tornadoes[i++] = new Array("","Where are tornadoes most common?","","","","", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", ""); tornadoes[i-1].body = "Tornadoes are relatively common in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma, South Dakota, and Texas. They are most likely during the spring and summer."; tornadoes[i++] = new Array("","Tornado 'watch' versus tornado 'warning'","","","","", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", ""); tornadoes[i-1].body = "If a tornado 'watch' is issued for your area, it means conditions are right for a tornado to form. If a tornado warning is issued, it means that a tornado has actually been spotted, or is strongly indicated on radar, and it is time to go to a safe shelter immediately."; tornadoes[i++] = new Array("","What do I need to be prepared?","","","","", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", ""); tornadoes[i-1].body = "First and foremost, be alert for severe weather. Most deaths and injuries happen to people who are unaware and uninformed. Stay aware, and you will stay alive! If you notice dark clouds approaching, tune into a local radio or television station to find out the forecast. If you live in an area likely to experience tornadoes, a NOAA weather radio could be a wise investment."; tornadoes[i++] = new Array("","What should I look for in the clouds?","","","","", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", ""); tornadoes[i-1].body = "— A sickly greenish or greenish black colors to the sky.
- If a watch or warning has been issued, hail could be considered a danger sign (hail can be common in some areas, however, and usually has no tornadic activity along with it).
— A strange quiet that occurs within or shortly after the thunderstorm.
— Clouds moving by very fast, especially in a rotating pattern or converging toward one area of the sky.
— A sound a little like a waterfall or rushing air at first, but turning into a roar as it comes closer. The sound of a tornado has been likened to that of both railroad trains and jets.— An obvious funnel-shaped cloud that is rotating, or debris such as branches or leaves being pulled upwards, even if no funnel cloud is visible.
If you see a tornado and it is not moving to the right or to the left relative to trees or power poles in the distance, it may be moving towards you!"; tornadoes[i++] = new Array("","What are the best places to wait out a storm?","","","","", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", ""); tornadoes[i-1].body = "— In a basement, away from the west and south walls. Hiding under a heavy table or under the stairs will protect the family from crumbling walls, chimneys, and large airborne debris. A family in the April 8th, 1998 tornado in the Birmingham, Alabama area survived because the dining room table they were under protected them from falling debris. Old blankets, quilts and an unused mattress will protect against flying debris, but they should be stored in the shelter area. Make sure you have a plan. Know where to go in the event of a tornado.
— In a small, windowless, first floor, interior room like a closet or bathroom. The bathtub and commode are anchored directly into the ground, and sometimes are the only thing left in place after the tornado. Getting into the bathtub with a couch cushion over you gives you protection on all sides, as well as an extra anchor to the foundation. Plumbing pipes may or may not help hold the walls together, but all the extra framing it takes to put a bathroom together may make a big difference. If there is no downstairs bathroom and the closets are all packed with stuff, a hall may be the best shelter. Put as many walls as you can between yourself and the tornado.
— In a storm shelter."; tornadoes[i++] = new Array("","What if I am outside?","","","","", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", ""); tornadoes[i-1].body = "Try to find shelter immediately. Find a ditch or low-lying area and get as close to the ground as possible. The chances of encountering falling trees, power lines, and lightning is greater than encountering the tornado itself. A culvert in a ditch MAY be a good choice if there is no rain, but if there IS rain, flash flooding may be more dangerous and likely than the tornado."; tornadoes[i++] = new Array("","What if I am in a car?","","","","", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", ""); tornadoes[i-1].body = "If you are in a car, you should leave the car and find shelter. A tornado can blow a car off a road, pick a car up and hurl it, or tumble a car over and over. Many people have been killed in cars while they were trying to outrun the tornado. An underpass may seem like a safe place, but may not be. While videos show people surviving under an underpass, those tornadoes have been weak. No one knows how survivable an underpass is in a strong or violent tornado."; tornadoes[i++] = new Array("","What if I am in a large building?","","","","", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", ""); tornadoes[i-1].body = "Interior rooms and halls are the best locations in large buildings."; tornadoes[i++] = new Array("","What if I live in a mobile home park?","","","","", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", "", ""); tornadoes[i-1].body = "Most tornado deaths occur in cars and mobile homes. If you live in a mobile home park, you should find out from the manager where you should go in the event of a tornado--but don't wait until you really need the information--ask him/her on a nice day! Mobile home parks may have a designated tornado shelter, or a steel reinforced concrete laundry room. If they don't, you need to find another substantial structure that you can reach very quickly. You may have only seconds to get to it."; // END editorial data