Surviving Tornado Alley
Friday, May 14, 2010 at 4:00PM | Amber Battle, Marketing Analyst 
When I was nine, the small Iowa town where I went to elementary school was practically leveled by an F4 tornado. I remember that afternoon, seeing the green sky and hearing the sirens from my home two miles away. We quickly made our way down into our dank, “cave” cellar for shelter—and I remember the uneasiness of not knowing what would happen. We were fine, and luckily, no one (especially my school friends) in that other town died. However, there were several injuries and the devastation was widespread. The majority of the homes and businesses, as well as my school, were completely destroyed.
To this day, whenever severe weather strikes, that uneasiness comes back. Even though I wasn’t an actual victim of a tornado, I’ve seen what can happen. So, when the sky turns dark, I stay glued to weather alerts on TV, with key necessities, and my pets, in one accessible location—just in case I need to grab them before running to the basement. Some people may think I’m paranoid, but I prefer to say that I’m just being prepared!
CarterEnergy is located in, and does business with, the states that make up part of the area coined as “Tornado Alley”. Recently, there were several tornadoes that affected people of Oklahoma. I remember hearing a story about one local convenience store that was heralded with helping save the lives of its customers by giving them shelter—which got me to thinking about how our own customers could become better prepared for severe weather.
There is a lot of great safety information online about tornados, and one of the most thorough and interesting sites I found was The Online Tornado FAQ from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). While these facts are mostly for the general public, I have found 10 additional ways that businesses can be better prepared, should an ugly funnel cloud (or other severe weather) come their way:
- Review your company insurance plan to ensure that tornado or other severe weather coverage is included so that you can re-coop your losses, should your business be hit. Make sure that coverage protects employees and customers who could be injured on your property, as well.
- Prepare a list of critical phone numbers to have in one place, including insurance agents, employees, key vendors/suppliers, etc. Include phone, fax and email information, as not all tools may be available at a certain time.
- Understand the difference between a tornado watch and a tornado warning, including the environmental conditions that apply. Make sure that you and your employees are able to recognize your community’s tornado warning signal— and take cover as soon as you hear it.
- Conduct tornado training and periodic drills so that employees know what to do. Consider designating a safety coordinator to be in charge each shift, in case of bad weather. Your local chapter of the Red Cross can also help facilitate training.
- Purchase a NOAA weather radio with a warning alarm and battery backup to receive timely updates.
- Identify safe areas where you, your employees and your customers can go to remain safe. The best places are small interior rooms or hallways located on lower levels, away from windows. They could also include rooms constructed with reinforced concrete, brick or block.
- Use UL-listed surge protectors and battery back-up systems to protect your sensitive equipment and help prevent a computer crash.
- Determine which records are vital to the life of your business and make sure that you have that information backed up onto disk and safely stored at an off-site location.
- Keep a disposable camera on hand to help document any damage that may have occurred.
- Prepare an emergency kit with flashlights and extra batteries, a first aid kit, tools, a cell phone and food and water for employees and customers to use during a period of confinement at your business.
While everyday business can keep you busy and focused on things other than the weather, taking the time to think about some of these tips now may help keep you safe at a time when quick reaction times and an emergency plan might be the difference between life and death. So go ahead and be a little paranoid; it might just pay off!
Reader Comments (1)
This story reminded me of the Flood of 1993 during which CarterEnergy's (Carter Companies at the time) Riverside office was 5 feet under water with everything covered in red diesel dye. I remember thinking how it was so surreal that my company, and many other businesses and families in the area, were going thru such complete devastation, while just a few miles away, many people were completely untouched and perhaps even oblivious to the trauma going on so near by.
In this case, our preparation prior to the waters moving in, definitely helped minimize the loss, but it was still devastating all the same.