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Tornado Tips....
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OKEECHOBEE TORNADOES
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The wind speeds in most tornadoes are
at or below design speeds in typical Okeechobee building codes. In other words,
a house built to code will stand up to the majority of Okeechobee tornadoes.
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Nevertheless, tornadoes are unpredictable
and some of them can be quite dangerous. A person in the vicinity of a tornado
should seek shelter immediately.
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WHAT IS A TORNADO?
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Most tornadoes seem to begin when warm,
humid air along the ground is pushed up rapidly by cooler air and develops
into a spinning vortex or funnel. Tornadoes happen year round. In Okeechobee
they are most frequent in April, May, and June. Florida is number three in
the United States for number of tornadoes, fortunately, these tornadoes tend
to be less severe than those in the Midwest. Current data indicate that around
85 percent of all reported tornadoes have wind speeds of 112 mph or less.
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WHAT CAN YOU DO?
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If you live in a tornado-prone area or
a mobile home find out in advance where you can take shelter. The shelter
may be a local community building, or your own underground storm cellar or
in-residence shelter. Because of the lack of sufficient notice and the brief
live of a tornado in Okeechobee, County Emergency Management Shelters are
not opened, unless, a tornado has touched down and caused damage that requires
citizens to seek shelter in the aftermath. Tornadoes can form and move quickly,
so if you do not have time to get to a community shelter and do not have your
own, keep in mind that:
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Cars are vulnerable,
A strong tornado can pick up a car, and trying to outrun the storm
is not a gamble worth taking. Stay out or get out of your vehicle.
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Mobile homes
are vulnerable, including those with tie-downs. Mobile homes
have a large surface area relative to their weight, making them good candidates
for overturning. They tend to have light frames and thin skins that are vulnerable
to wind pressures and wind-blown projectiles. Don't try to ride out a tornado
in a mobile home
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In open countryside, take shelter in
a ditch or canal or lie flat on the ground upwind of your parked car or mobile
home, with your hands covering the back of your head and neck. If an overpass
or concrete viaduct is available, take shelter behind the concrete pilings. |
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In office or apartment buildings and shopping centers,
go to the lowest floor. Roofs are more likely to sustain damage. Take shelter
in small interior rooms, such as rest rooms, closets and utility rooms, or
in interior corridors. Stay away from windows. |
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In schools, move into interior hallways
or small interior rooms on the lowest level. Avoid auditoriums, gymnasiums
and other large rooms with long freespan roofs, as well as corridors with
exposed entrances. Avoid glass display cases, glassed-in stairwells and doorways. |
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NATIONAL WEATHER
SERVICE ALERTS
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Listen for National Weather Service alerts.
A tornado or severe thunderstorm watch means that conditions are favorable
for one or the other. A tornado or sever thunderstorm warning means that one
or the other is imminent or has already been spotted by sight or radar in
the vicinity. Tornadoes occasionally develop in areas where a severe thunderstorm
watch or warning is in effect.
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Have a NOAA Weather
Radio, with tone alert.
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