Tornado sheltering: Challenges and solutions including public storm shelters
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.5055/jem.0850Keywords:
emergency management, tornado, disaster planning, disaster response, weatherAbstract
Tornadoes are a considerable threat across the United States, occurring in many regions of the country on a frequent basis throughout the year. Finding a safe place to go during a tornado can be a challenge for many individuals, and, in some situations, there is no safe place available. Increasing the number of tornado shelters and establishing them in regions where they are not currently present can greatly improve the safety of local residents and visitors, especially for those who are unable to afford retrofitting a shelter into their own home or business. Research is lacking regarding the use of such public shelters. To better understand tornado sheltering behavior, an online survey was conducted with about 1,450 people. The survey examined current tornado sheltering behavior in locations with and without public shelters available, as well as hypothetical behavior if the respondent’s location acquired a public shelter. A majority of respondents in the Deep South and Great Plains reported living in a county or community with a public shelter. While a majority of respondents have never used a public tornado shelter, the majority of those surveyed mentioned that they would utilize such shelters, at least during extreme threats. Actual use is also higher among mobile home residents. Consistent wayfinding and policies (such as pet accommodation) should also be implemented to ensure their use and promotion, and mobile applications should identify their locations.
References
Coleman TA, Dixon PG: An objective analysis of tornado risk in the United States. Wea Forecasting. 2014; 29(2): 366-376.
Wind Science and Engineering Center: A recommendation for an enhanced Fujita scale. 2004. Available at https://www.spc.noaa.gov/faq/tornado/ef-ttu.pdf. Accessed January 29, 2024.
Simmons KM, Sutter D: Fatality prediction for the 2011 tornado season based on historical extreme weather data. Nat Hazard Rev. 2014; 15(3): 04014005.
Hayes JL: Service assessment: The historic tornadoes of April 2011. 2011. Available at https://www.weather.gov/media/publications/assessments/historic_tornadoes.pdf. Accessed January 29, 2024.
Maximus LP: NWS Central Region Service Assessment: Joplin, Missouri, Tornado. 2011. Available at https://www.weather.gov/media/publications/assessments/Joplin_tornado.pdf. Accessed January 29, 2024.
Simmons KM, Sutter D: The 2011 tornadoes and the future of weather research. Bull Am Meteor Soc. 2012; 93: 959-961.
Strader SM, Ash K, Wagner E, et al.: Mobile home resident evacuation vulnerability and emergency medical service access during tornado events in the Southeast United States. Int J Disaster Risk Reduct. 2019; 38: 101210.
Gelino BW, Reed DD: Temporal discounting of tornado shelter-seeking intentions among standard and impact-based weather alerts: A crowdsourced experiment. J Exp Psych Appl. 2020; 26(1): 16-25.
Merrell D, Simmons KM, Sutter D: Taking shelter: Estimate the safety benefits of tornado safe rooms. Wea Forecasting. 2002; 17(3): 619-625.
Erikson E: Miss. family saved from tornado by ‘grace of god’ and a storm shelter. WDAM, Hattiesburg, MS. 2020. Available at https://www.wdam.com/2020/04/15/miss-family-saved-tornado-bygrace-god-storm-shelter. Accessed January 23, 2024.
Sutter D, Simmons KM: Tornado fatalities and mobile homes in the United States. Nat Hazards. 2010; 53: 125-137.
Liu BF, Egnoto M, Lim JR: How mobile home residents understand and respond to tornado warnings. Wea Clim Soc. 2019; 11: 521-534.
Stefkovich J, Marshall TP, De Block J, et al.: Damage survey of the Tuscaloosa-Birmingham tornado on 27 April 2011. In 26th Conference on Severe Local Storms, Nashville, TN. Preprints, 2012: 6. Available at https://ams.confex.com/ams/26SLS/webprogram/Paper211667.html. Accessed February 27, 2024.
Maston JB, Senkbeil JC: Implications of the 2011 Tuscaloosa EF4 tornado for shelter and refuge decisions. Nat Hazards. 2014; 74: 1021-1041.
Ash KD, Egnoto MJ, Strader SM, et al.: Structural forces: Perception and vulnerability factors for tornado sheltering within mobile and manufactured housing in Alabama and Mississippi. Wea Clim Soc. 2020; 12: 453-472.
Wong S, Shaheen S, Walker J: Understanding evacuee behavior: A case study of Hurricane Irma. 2018. Available at https://escholarship.org/uc/item/9370z127#main. Accessed January 30, 2024.
Collins J, Ersing R, Polen A, et al.: The effects of social connections on evacuation decision making during Hurricane Irma. Wea Clim Soc. 2018; 10(3): 459-469.
Nowlin MC, Wehde W: Social capital and hurricane warning response. Int J Disaster Risk Reduct. 2021; 65: 102536.
Raker EJ: Natural hazards, disasters, and demographic change: The case of severe tornadoes in the United States, 1980–2010. Demography. 2020; 57(2): 653-674.
Harris C, Jenkins M: Gender differences in risk assessment: Why do women take fewer risks than men? Judgm Decis Mak. 2006; 1(1): 48-63.
McNair S, Okan Y, Hadjichrstidis C, et al.: Age differences in moral judgment: Older adults are more deontological than younger adults. Behav Decis Mak. 2019; 32(1): 47-60.
Schmidlin TW, Hammer BO, Ono Y, et al.: Tornado shelter-seeking behavior and tornado shelter options among mobile home residents in the United States. Nat Hazards. 2009; 48: 191-201.
Sherman-Morris K, Brown ME: Experiences of Smithville, Mississippi, residents with the 27 April 2011 tornado. Natl Wea Dig. 2012; 36: 93-101.
Frates MJ: Demystifying colloquial tornado alley—Delineation of new “tornado alleys” in the United States. In Presentation, 55th Annual Meeting. Association of American Geographers, Nashville TN, April 2010; 10.
Miran SM, Ling C, Rothfusz L: Factors influencing people’s decision-making during three consecutive tornado events. Int J Disaster Risk Reduct. 2018; 28: 150-157.
Silver A, Andrey J: The influence of previous disaster experience and sociodemographics on protective behaviors during two successive tornado events. Wea Clim Soc. 2014; 6(1): 91-103.
Heath SE, Kass PH, Beck AM, et al.: Human and pet-related risk factors for household evacuation failure during a natural disaster. Am J Epidemiol. 2001; 153(7): 659-665.
Dash N, Gladwin H: Evacuation decision making and behavioral responses: Individual and household. Nat Hazards Rev. 2007; 8: 69-77.
Agee E, Larson J, Childs S, et al.: Spatial redistribution of US tornado activity between 1954 and 2013. J Appl Met Climatol. 2016; 55(8): 1681-1697.
Nelson J: Fifty-six years of tornado tracks, by F-scale. 2012. Available at https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7090/7157010997_2a92fa603c_o.jpg. Accessed January 30, 2024.
US Census Bureau: QuickFacts. 2023. Available at https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/US/PST045221. Accessed January 31, 2024.
Auxier B, Anderson M: Social media use in 2021. 2021. Available at https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2021/04/07/social-mediause-in-2021/. Accessed January 31, 2024.
Barthel ME, Grieco E, Shearer E: Older Americans, Black adults and Americans with less education more interested in local news. 2019. Available at https://www.pewresearch.org/journalism/2019/08/14/older-americans-black-adults-and-americans-withless-education-more-interested-in-local-news/. Accessed January 31, 2024.
Liu BF, Seate AA, Iles I, et al.: Tornado warning: Understanding the national weather service’s communication strategies. Public Rel Rev. 2020; 46(2): 101879.
Ashley WS, Strader S: Recipe for disaster: How the dynamic ingredients of risk and exposure are changing the tornado disaster landscape. Bull Am Meteor Soc. 2016; 97: 767-786.
FEMA: Be prepared for a tornado. 2020. Available at https://www.ready.gov/sites/default/files/2020-03/tornado-informationsheet.pdf. Accessed January 31, 2024.
NOAA (National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration): 2011. Available at https://www.noaa.gov/stories/tornadoes-101 Tornadoes101. Accessed January 30, 2024.
Hanson A: Size of home, homeownership and the mortgage interest deduction. Housing Econ. 2012; 21(3): 195-210.
Lim J, Loveridge S, Shupp R, et al.: Double danger in the double wide: Dimensions of poverty, housing quality and tornado impacts. Reg Sci Urban Econ. 2017; 65: 1-15.
Dohmen TJ, Quercia S, Willrodt J, et al.: Willingness to take risk: The role of risk conception and optimism. IZA Discussion Paper No. 11642. 2018. DOI: 10.2139/ssrn.3209739.
Beamish JO, Goss RC, Atiles JH, et al.: Not a trailer anymore: Perceptions of manufactured housing. Housing Policy Debate. 2001; 12: 373-392.
CDC (Centers for Disease Control): COVID data tracker. 2022. Available at https://www.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/index.html. Accessed January 31, 2024.
He X, Hong W, Pan X, et al.: SARS-CoV-2 omicron variant: Characteristics and prevention. MedComm. 2021; 2(4): 838-845.
Meselson M: Droplets and aerosols in the transmission of SARS-CoV-2. N Engl J Med. 2020; 382: 2063-2063.
Croskery CD, Sherman-Morris K, Brown ME: Learning from the COVID-19 pandemic: When public health and tornado threats converge. Wea Clim Soc. 2021; 13(4): 963-973.
Wodd V, Weisman R: A hole in the weather warning system. Bull Am Meteor Soc. 2003; 84: 187-194.
Fox MH, White GW, Rooney C, et al.: Disaster preparedness and response for persons with mobility impairments. J Disab Pol Stud. 2007; 17(4): 216-222.
Brown S, Archer P, Kruger E, et al.: Tornado-related deaths and injuries in Oklahoma due to the 3 May 1999 tornadoes. Wea Forecasting. 2002; 17(3): 343-353.
Leonard HA, Scammon DL: No pet left behind: Accommodation pets in emergency planning. J Public Policy Mark. 2007; 26(1): 49-53.
Uccellini LW: Service assessment: May 2013 Oklahoma tornadoes and flash flooding. 2014. Available at https://www.weather.gov/media/publications/assessments/13oklahoma_tornadoes.pdf. Accessed February 1, 2024.
NWS (National Weather Service) and WFO (Weather Forecast Office) Mobile: Severe weather awareness: Tornado safety. Available at https://www.weather.gov/mob/severe_tornado. Accessed February 1, 2024.
Simmons KM, Sutter D: Direct estimations of the cost effectiveness of tornado shelters. Risk Anal. 2006; 26(4): 945-954.
Moore TW: On the temporal and spatial characteristics of tornado days in the United States. Atmos Res. 2017; 184: 56-65.
VividMaps: Percent of occupied housing units that are mobile homes by US County. 2024. Available at https://vividmaps.com/percent-of-occupied-housing-units-tha. Accessed February 1, 2024.
WBRC Staff: Parts of Alabama damaged after severe weather hits. Birmingham, AL: WBRC, 2022. Available at https://www.wbrc.com/2022/02/17/parts-west-ala-damaged-after-severe-weather-hits/. Accessed February 1, 2024.
US Census Bureau: Carrollton town, Alabama. 2022. Available at https://www.census.gov/search-results.html?searchType=web&cssp=SERP&q=carrollton%20town,%20Alabama. Accessed February 1, 2024.
Puckett A: Find your nearest storm shelter or safer place. Birmingham, AL: WIAT, 2024. Available at https://www.cbs42.com/weather/severe-weather-preparedness/find-your-nearest-stormshelter-or-safer-place/. Accessed February 1, 2024.
Wetzel A: Alabama officials say there is a need for more lifesaving storm shelters. The Decatur Daily, December 5, 2018. Available at https://www.govtech.com/em/preparedness/Alabamaofficials-say-there-is-a-need-for-more-storm-shelters.html. Accessed February 1, 2024.
Van Dusen R: Alabama officials Smithville pauses for five-year tornado reflection. Monroe Journal. 2016. Available at https://www.djournal.com/monroe/news/smithville-pauses-for-five-year-tornadoreflection/article_d8303b13-4585-5bbc-bf42-962c7cd85310.html. Accessed February 1, 2024.
Wenzel AD, Ford S, Nechushtai E: Report for America, report about communities: Local news capacity and community trust. J Stud. 2020; 21(3): 287-305.
Hornak M: Media consolidation & political polarization: Reviewing the national television ownership rule. 2021. Available at https://fordhamlawreview.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/hornak_november.pdf. Accessed February 2, 2024.
Farmer AK, DeYoung SE, Wachtendorf T: Pets and evacuation: An ongoing challenge in disasters. J Homeland Secur Emerg Manag. 2016; 13(4): 20060051.
Morris MG: Lee county to get more storm shelters. Daily Journal, January 21, 2015. Available at https://www.djournal.com/news/local/lee-county-to-get-more-storm-shelters/article_13f00bb0-6271-57a5-aee0-d2a44e06b911.html. Accessed February 2, 2024.
FEMA: Nearly $7.4 million FEMA grant awarded to Mississippi for school safe rooms in Forrest county. 2018. Available at https://www.fema.gov/press-release/20210318/nearly-74-million-femagrant-awarded-Mississippi-school-safe-rooms-forrest. Accessed February 2, 2024.
Martin M: Computer and internet use in the United States: 2018. 2021. Available at https://www.census.gov/content/dam/Census/library/publications/2021/acs/acs-49.pdf. Accessed February 2, 2024.
Vogels EA: Some digital divides persist between urban, suburban and rural America. 2021. Available at https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2021/08/19/some-digital-divides-persist-betweenrural-urban-and-suburban-america/. Accessed February 2, 2024.
Arnott JM, Atkins NT: Tornadogenesis within quasi-linear convective systems. Part I: Radar and storm damage analysis of the 29 June 1998 derecho. In Preprints, 21st Conference on Severe Local Storms, San Antonio, TX, August 2002: 11.
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright 2007-2023, Weston Medical Publishing, LLC and Journal of Emergency Management. All Rights Reserved
