#tornado outbreak

Update about my area, no tornadoes but we did have a strong to severe thunderstorm. My town did sound off the sirens due to some rotation in the storm. Luckily, no tornado spawned from it 😊

But if you’re in the states that are being hit severely right now with tornado outbreaks, flash flooding, & other severe storms currently (like me), PLEASE stay safe and know your emergency procedures. Check on your friends and family. Be prepared. Candles, flashlights, leashes/crates for animals, WATER, batteries, make sure your phones are charged, etc. if you need to evacuate please wear closed toe shoes, long sleeves and pants, write your personal information on your arm with a sharpie. Know where your emergency shelters are.

Night tornadoes are the deadliest. You can’t see them. So please have different ways of getting warnings. If there is a tornado in your area, stay away from windows. Go to the basement or storm cellar. If you have neither of those, go to a hallway, bathroom or closet. If you’re in an apartment building NOT on the first floor, get to the first floor. Your neighbors should be helpful and let you in. If not, you can either kick down their door, go to a stairwell or breezeway, or go back to your apartment and seek shelter in the bathroom. Never ever try to out run or out drive a tornado. You will not survive.

PLEASE STAY SAFE EVERYONE.

So, my question is:

Reblog for sample size!

A. The destructive capabilities of storms like that because I KNOW a lot of y'all haven't seen severe weather especially not super bad tornados in tornado season.

B. The infrastructure down here - which isn't built to handle storms and wind and flooding, that's why Hurricane Helene was so devastating down here in the south. Things aren't built to handle cyclones (especially not tropical ones that still have the eyewall formed). Most semi-affordable housing comes down to mobile homes and the like.

And C. Topography maps. Every time a hurricane or a big storm of any kind hits the south I see people like "oh why didn't you leave? You're so selfish!" And victim-blaming stuff. 1. There's not always shelters. 2. People can't always get to shelters in time. 3. Shelters never allow pets. People don't want to leave part of their goddamn families behind. 4. Hotels fill up quick in the event of a natural disaster like this. 5. Leaving costs money that NOT EVERYONE HAS. ESPECIALLY DOWN HERE. And 6. At least in the Appalachian region where I'm from? Just leaving isn't an option. Roads go around and around and around mountains. You have to drive a lot to actually make some distance. And then you're on relatively unmaintained roads that might not have good railings and are huge flood risks.

Stop being assholes to people affected by natural disasters. I've seen this bullshit for years and I'm so fucking tired of it. Especially after Hurricane Helene which people are STILL TRYING TO RECOVER FROM. MANY PLACES IN EAST TENNESSEE, GEORGIA, AND WESTERN NORTH/SOUTH CAROLINA ARE NOT REBUILT. People are STILL displaced.

Get a fucking grip. I'm tired of seeing bad things happen in/around my hometown and my friend's hometown and seeing people dogpile innocent people when they're already suffering. Even if people are affected by natural disasters, you have to understand how stressful such scenarios are. Hell, tornados can obliterate one side of a street and leave the other untouched. Apparently warning systems and tornado sirens weren't going off right yesterday.

On this date in 1999, the largest tornado outbreak in Oklahoma, USA took place. At least 70 tornadoes occurred in the Sooner state. The photo above shows what can happen to vehicles in these kind of winds. Although this was in the path of the F-5 Bridge Creek/Moore/Oklahoma City event, winds well under 150 mph can destroy a large heavy duty pickup truck like the one you see here.