For those of you that travel through, "Tornado Alley", or vacation in the Midwest, in the late Spring/early Summer, what would be the 3 most important questions you would like to have answered, on tornadic weather, in order to enjoy safe travel through these areas?


Thanks very much for your thoughts,
Ron

Ron, Not sure I understand the question. Do you mean "How do you recognize a storm with tornadic potential" or "What do you do if you spot one" or "Difference between warning and watch"?

I wouldn't worry too much about them. Even if you should find yourself in a warning, the odds of it coming anywhere near you are slim, but of course it's wise to know what to do "just in case". You do develop a 6th sense about them after living in a tornado prone area for a while. More often than not I can tell if we are in a warning without even turning on the radio...but that doesn't help you much, I know!

What, more specifically, are the questions you'd like answered?

I live in the midwest/tornado alley and have never seen one(even though I've tried). However, that does not mean they do not occur. Anyway, here's a fact or two for those you playing along at home.
1. Florida has the most tornados of any state
2. Texas is number two

David...that's a surprising statistic! We live in FL now, but lived in TX for many years, and the annual frequency in TX seemed far greater than in this area. Trying to think of an explanation for that, my best guess is the number of tornadoes spawned by hurricanes has raised the total # in FL above TX, and that they are counting water spouts as well.

I have seen two water spouts here, one while we were safely on land, but the other while out in the Gulf, and like you, have never seen a tornado. Came very close to one however, the first year we lived in Dallas. Arrived at a shopping center in hail so heavy I couldn't hear my car radio (and possible warnings) then got into the center and found no people and all stores locked! Seeing people in the back of one of the stores, I knocked on their locked door and was admitted by a very concerned employee, who ushered me to the small back dressing room area where all the other customers sat in the hallway. Seems there was a funnel cloud in the air directly over the shopping center and everyone had taken shelter. Warning sirens had gone off and all, but the noise of the hail hitting my car had drowned out any source of warning I had. Too close for comfort!!

I can't remember where I saw the statistics, but I think I recall that Kansas has more tornadoes per square mile than any other state...

I've lived in Texas all my life (almost 30 yrs), and I've never been directly hit by a tornado. The closest I came was when hubby and I were living out in West Texas (San Angelo) in 1996 and had all the windows in our apartment blown out by hail from a freak storm that did spawn a tornado.

For people who travel to Texas during May and June, my advice is to pay attention to the weather forecasts, and (more importantly) watch the sky. If the sky suddenly gets black and ugly, ask an authority figure about the weather conditions and/or find a safe place to take cover. Police are wonderful, and they are very good about keeping on top of the weather conditions!

Still, despite the weather, May is IMNO the BEST month to visit Texas. The wildflowers are so pretty along the roadways, and it's not hot yet, either. Don't let the possibility of bad weather scare you away!

I live in the Midwest and we get our fair share of tornados. Local radio and tv stations provide the best information. Most tv stations have doppler radar that can track the strong storm cells. I also have a portable weather radio I carry with me when I travel. Tornados usually occur at the backside of severe thunderstorms that oftentimes have hail. If you encounter one while driving get out of your car and lie in a ditch or get under a overpass, do not attempt to outrun a tornado.

As for the number in Florida, I have been in 2 tornados in the Miami area which were the result of severe thunderstorms, not waterspouts. IMO, the SE is rapidly becoming another tornado alley. Alabama, Georgia and Florida seems to get their fair share lately.

In trying to find state tornado statistics I came across some info that was worth passing along. Prime was the misconception that getting under an overpass was a good plan!! (And I'd heard that too and think I've passed that along as well). It's a misconception mentioned in several of the sites I checked. This site has more specific details on the reasons behind this if you are interested: http://www.tornadoproject.com/. I was in Dallas this spring when the tornado hit downtown Ft. Worth. My son was trying to get home from work in the Las Colinas area and the roads were jammed because of the # of people stopped under the overpasses there, fearful that the tornado that had hit Ft Worth, then Arlington, was headed that way too. It's a popular misconception that many of us believe, obviously!!

Christie, the shopping center I mentioned in my earlier note where I encountered my one tornado was Northpark. Imagine walking in there early afternoon and seeing NOT ONE soul in the mall. It was freaky!

The next bit of info makes a lot of sense when you think about it. Texas is #1 in number of tornadoes, but they say that is so primarily because the state is so large. Here's the ranking by state and # from 1950 to 1994. 1. TX with 5490 2. OK with 2300 3. KS with 2110 4. FL with 2009 5. NE with 1673,

I still stand by statistic (not sure where the one above comes from) as mine is based on a per yr. basis.

David, Here's the web site for the tornado statistics. http://www.spc.noaa.gov/archive/tornadoes/st-trank.html