SEVERE WEATHER IS LIKELY AGAIN THIS SUNDAY INTO EARLY MONDAY… Another round of strong to severe thunderstorms will be possible on Sunday, April 19 into the early morning hours of Monday, April 20 as a mesoscale convective system moves across our region with the potential to cause a few tornadoes and damaging wind gusts. We had such a great response to our call for folks doing the #SafePlaceSelfie during the severe weather event last weekend that I want to vehemently encourage you to send them in during the round of severe weather this weekend. We had SO many excellent photos of kids across the region doing the right thing, having those severe weather helmets and makeshift helmets ON and ready for tornadoes. We’ll need the tornado helmets ready again this weekend, particularly Sunday evening into early Monday morning.
SAFE PLACE SELFIE… Note that it is critical that you actually get sheltered in a tornado safe place THEN take a safe place selfie to send in if a tornado warning becomes required for your specific location. That obviously should go without saying: Please do not worry about the selfie until you’ve made sure you, your folks, your pet(s), and your property are safe. Once you’re safe, your folks are safe, your pets are safe, and your property is safe, THEN we would encourage you to send in a safe place selfie when or if a tornado warning becomes required for your area. We will be watching the comments on Facebook Live for safe place selfies this weekend!
SEVERE WEATHER TIMING – SUNDAY… This is quite similar to last week, but this is now applicable for Sunday, April 19 to Monday, April 20. 2PM on Sunday to 2AM on Monday looks to be the timeframe when strong to severe storms will be MOST likely to happen across south Alabama and northwest Florida. 5PM to 10PM Sunday will be the core risk time.
I’m copying in the text from my post from last week concerning the 9 points we all need to know about severe weather safety. All of this remains great information.
1) WARNINGS… Most importantly, PLEASE HAVE A WAY TO RECEIVE WEATHER WARNINGS ON SUNDAY INTO MONDAY. If you don’t have a way to get the warnings, the rest of these points are moot. You have to KNOW when something is happening in your area! No matter where you are in Alabama, northwest Florida, or Mississippi, you’re included in a severe weather risk zone on Sunday. NOAA Weather Radios are great but they do generally need batteries (AA, AAA, etc.), The SAF-T-Net (free) and Weather Radio (more advanced, one time charge) apps are also wonderful. Also, my company, RedZone Weather, has an app (free download at redzoneweather.com/app) that you can watch our live streaming video and audio coverage if tornado warnings happen in southwest Alabama or northwest Florida (coverage commitments available here: redzoneweather.com/coverage)
2) WHY HELMETS WORK SO WELL… Emerging research continues to show that wearing a helmet during a tornado that strikes your location greatly increases your chance of survival. Why? Because majority of fatal injuries that happen due to tornadoes happen because of blunt force trauma to the head/skull region. Thus, if we can mitigate this hazard in any way, we should. That’s where helmets and cooking pots come into the equation. Anything is better than nothing in this case. This means if you can grab a football, baseball, softball, bicycle, motorcycle, ballistics, or welding helmet and put it on, it will highly likely help you survive a tornado impact. Note this helmet deal isn’t just for children. It applies to everyone, no matter if you’re 8, 28, or 88 years old. Everyone needs a severe weather helmet. I cannot recommend them to you enough!
3) PHONES/TABLETS… Charge your cell phones and iPads and other electronic devices NOW. Don’t wait. Power may be out in some areas of Alabama, northwest Florida, and Mississippi on Sunday. If you’ve been on the fence about purchasing one of the fantastic small battery backups (pictured) that can power your phone or iPad, I highly recommend getting one the next time you go to the store or visit Amazon. In my experience, I’m a fan of the Anker batteries. You’ll need a charging cable to go with it.
4) WHISTLES/AIRHORNS/IDs… You need something like a whistle, air horn, or something else that can emit a loud noise to let first responders know if you’ve been affected by a tornado and you’re trapped under debris. It’s important to also have your ID on your person during tornado warnings. If you need medical help and you’re unconscious, first responders need to know who you are.
5) CLOSED-TOED SHOES… It would pain me so much to hear that someone had been affected by a tornado, survived it, then walked out of a destroyed home, stepped on a live electrical wire and got electrocuted. Wear closed-toed shoes on Sunday! This is an easy thing we can all do with little effort.
6) PEOPLE AND PETS… Don’t forget about the pets when/if you have to take shelter on Sunday. Dogs and cats need to be sheltered too! Also, don’t forget to LET PEOPLE KNOW that we have a substantial severe weather risk across portions of Alabama, Mississippi, and northwest Florida on Sunday. You’d be amazed at how many people I see regularly that don’t have a clue what’s happening in the news and weather world. That’s fine — until it’s not and they become a tornado casualty. Share this point, share someone else’s weather post, I really don’t care what you share as long as you TELL PEOPLE ABOUT THIS RISK.
7) HAVE A PLAN… Know NOW where you’ll be on Sunday. We recommend getting on the lowest floor of a well-constructed, site-built structure (like a sturdy house or business), away from windows and doors, putting as many walls as you possibly can between you and the outside world. You CANNOT be in a vehicle or a mobile home during a tornado warnings! These places become death traps very quickly in tornado situations… Don’t think, “Oh, I’ll try to outrun it.” NO. This could prove to be a fatal mistake. Underground tornado shelters are the best place to be, but many folks don’t have one of those, and that is okay. You don’t have to be underground to survive a tornado.
8) COVERAGE… I provide live streaming video coverage via our RedZone Weather app and on redzoneweather.com during tornado warnings for 12 counties in southwest Alabama and in northwest Florida. Some of you reading this post are NOT in our local area. While I appreciate you reading this, I would suggest finding out NOW who covers tornado warnings in your specific area. redzoneweather.com/coverage outlines our coverage policy extensively. Find a weather source you trust and watch the information on Sunday!
9) MASKS… Everyone on the planet is dealing with our new reality called the coronavirus pandemic. If you are not by yourself on Sunday, we need to think about wearing a mask or a makeshift mask (like a scarf or shirt covering) to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Interestingly enough, I actually don’t think it is a bad idea to wear some type of mask every time we take shelter due to a tornado. Why? Because if a tornado or damaging winds affects the structure you’re in and causes significant damage, you’re going to be dealing with dust and debris in the air. Even a cloth/allergy mask (like the one I am wearing in the photo) is better than nothing.
Lastly, this is April in the Deep South. This is not that unusual. Severe weather risks are a part of our lives in this state and around the Deep South. Two to three to even four weeks of severe weather issues are not at all unusual this time of year. It is primary severe weather season until the end of the month, after all.
TORNADO WARNING POLICY… Any time there is an active tornado warning in effect for southwest Alabama or northwest Florida, we provide uninterrupted, live video coverage on Facebook Live and in the RedZone Weather app. Our detailed coverage commitment is outlined at redzoneweather.com/coverage. We are proud to cover all parts of Escambia (AL), Covington, Monroe, Conecuh, Baldwin, Mobile, Clarke, Washington, Butler, Escambia (FL), Santa Rosa, and Okaloosa counties. If you live in any locale in those counties, be sure to tune into our coverage whenever there is an active tornado warning!
APP ALERTS… Now is the time, long before we get to this severe weather potential, to set up the RedZone Weather app on your smartphone! redzoneweather.com/app is the link where you can download the iOS or Android version of the app. Once you have the app downloaded to your device, be sure to visit the Alerts tab (lower right corner of the app), then tap the large, yellow Alert Settings button to customize the alerts you would like to receive straight from me.
NEXT UPDATE… I’ll have the next full, detailed forecast rundown available in the RedZone Weather app and on Facebook posted by 7:15AM on Friday. See you in the morning!
