Via Paul Douglas' On Weather blog, where he considers the question re what to do if you are in your car when a tornado approaches:
Dr. Greg Forbes from The Weather Channel takes a look at a growing debate: is it safer for commuters to ride out a tornado in their cars (with all the built-in safety equipment) or go into a nearby ditch: "About two weeks ago I came back to work after a rare day off and found a letter on my desk from the American Red Cross. It indicated that their organization was changing some of their tornado safety rules. Some of those changes are at odds with safety rules advocated by the National Weather Service (NWS), and that has created a controversy! ... Part of the basis for the change in American Red Cross policy was studies by researcher Tom Schmidlin, who found that a relatively small percentage of vehicles are overturned, tossed, and demolished in tornadoes. The NWS recommends that if you are being overtaken in your car by a tornado, then you should get out of the car and into a nearby building or ditch. The new American Red Cross recommendation is that if no building is available, stay in the car - get out of the car and into a ditch only as a last resort. Crouch down with your seat belt on and your head below the windshield level...
The closest I have come to being IN a tornado was while I lived in Salt Lake City, Utah, of all places. There, cars were moved from there spots, dented, and windows had clean holes where small projectiles must have been going at very high speed. However, compared to the surrounding area where shards of plexiglass were embedded in the trees, walls, and lawns and entire vehicles had moved around (but not rolled over), I had decided that low and inside the car would be a pretty good place to ride out a tornado because even after the funnel has passed, the hail begins and it very well could kill you in a ditch...
ReplyDeleteSo I support the 'stay low in your car' idea... Provided no large body of water is nearby, nothing flamable is around the car, and nothing larger is nearby that might fall and flatten the car.
I took one of Tom Schmidlin's weather classes at KSU. In fact, I passed him riding his bike just the other day.
ReplyDeleteHe told us how the National Weather Service was VERY upset at his research results. Which is funny, because the only reason they would have to be upset is that it contradicted what they have said for years... But it would keep people safer. Nature of the machine, I guess.