Midwesterners in the United States are bracing themselves for tornado season as spring approaches. People in Tornado Alley ranging from Kansas and Oklahoma through Texas, Missouri, Iowa, Nebraska, Illinois, Indiana and Ohio are starting to evaluate their safe room and emergency plans for what to do if a tornado strikes. Children are being drilled in the schools on where to go when a tornado warning is issued by the National Weather Service, or a local spotter sounds the alarm, and sirens once meant for air raid alerts during World War II are blare the warning over the countryside.

What is a safe room?

A safe room is one that is capable of withstanding the incredible winds generated by a tornado, which range from 75 miles per hour to over 400 miles per hour, and which can withstand the impact from flying debris traveling at such enormous speeds driven by the tornado's winds.

Valuable guidance is available from FEMA's website to help you plan your tornado safe room, and give you some assurance that your safe room is structurally capable of withstanding high winds and flying debris. Construction plans, location considerations, and tips on how to make your tornado safe room as safe as possible are all to be found on the site. In order to view and/or print the construction plans, you will need to download the Autodesk Viewer which allows you to view Autocad generated drawings.

If you are not inclined or have the skills to build your own safe room, several companies manufacture kits for easy installation prior to a tornado striking, or for inclusion in new home construction. Companies such as Steelco (Plano, TX), Storm Safe Rooms (Tulsa, OK), and Remagen Safe Rooms (Monteagle, TN) all manufacture a variety of safe rooms for installation in existing homes. All three bring the shelter to your home and install it.

The Federal government also offers a set of grants and funding opportunities for homeowners in states with a high incidence of tornado touchdowns, from individual grants from HUD as part of a redevelopment or rehabilitation package, to public shelter funding available to communities.

Planning For Disaster Supplies

Now that you have a safe room built what should it contain?

After a tornado, many essential services will be damaged. Everything from water,to electric service, to your front door may become inaccessible, and having supplies to wait out you being discovered in your safe room are essential to survive the aftermath of a tornado.

Your local backpacking store is a great place to start when assembling the supplies for your safe room, or getting ideas on what you&'ll need following a tornado or other disaster. These stores carry supplies meant for long-term storage, in a small space, and your survival. A book on preparing for an extended backpacking trip will also give you many valuable tips on survival gear you should consider for your safe room.

Water Is Essential

One of the main items you should have available is water. After a tornado, it is possible the drinking water supply has become contaminated; or, the pumps moving water throughout your community are shut down because the power has been cut for an extended length of time and the backup generators have run out of fuel. You should plan for three days of drinking water for each person in your household, 1 gallon per person per day. You should store the water in food-grade plastic containers. Bulk containers can be found in camping supply stores.

Food Supplies

After a tornado, refrigerated foods may have a chance to go bad and rot while the power is out ; or you may not be able to find your refrigerator, or even your kitchen. Freeze-dried foods, canned meat products, canned soups, and high-calorie, low-volume snack foods like nuts and peanut butter should be stored in your safe room. You also need to take stock of who lives in your household, and any particular food needs they may have, such as a supply of low- or no-sugar foods if someone is diabetic, baby formula, etc.

Also, you will be in a highly-stressful situation, and comfort foods, like cookies, lollipops, etc. are a good idea to take off a little of the tension. Freeze-dried coffee and teabags are also an easy addition to your food supply.

First Aid Supplies

The chaos following a tornado will put enormous stress on emergency services to handle the injured people within a community. It will be up to you to administer emergency first aid, and it is your responsibility to have the proper supplies on hand to help either a family member in distress, a neighbor, or a total stranger
injured during the tornado.

FEMA and the American Red Cross both offer a shopping list of the emergency medical supplies you should have on hand. It is also a good idea to purchase a Red Cross First Aid Manual, or even take one of their courses, so you are prepared to deal with the day-to-day situations that arise, as well as those following a tornado.

Again, look at your household. Do any of the members of your household take medications on a daily basis? If so, you need to include a week's supply of their medications, since the local pharmacy could be one of the buildings damaged, or destroyed, during a tornado.

Clothing and Bedding

You should have at least one change of clothing and a jacket available for every member of your household stored in the safe room, as well as blankets, sleeping bags, etc. Include disposable rain ponchos in your kit, since water could come
dripping through the seams of your safe room. Store clothing and bedding in sealed plastic bags to keep them dry.

Sanitation Supplies

You could be trapped in a confined space for several days, and you will need a way to handle the human waste that is inevitable. Toilet paper, feminine hygiene products, liquid soap, plastic bags, and a bucket with a lid that seals airtight
are important to have available. Keep a supply of household bleach and a disinfectant on hand for cleaning any soiled surfaces.

Miscellaneous Supplies

A whistle can be a lifesaver if you are trapped under debris. You should have a whistle for every member of your family stored in your safe room. You can blow a whistle, audible through several feet of rubble, for hours, while shouting will wear out your voice within minutes.

Odds are, your lights will go out following a tornado, and it could be several days before overhead power lines are repaired. Batteries, a radio, and flashlights should be stored in the safe room; or, even better, there are combination radio-flashlight units which are cranked by hand, never needing replacement batteries. Even the
bravest person does not enjoy being trapped, in the dark, for hours or even days.

Candles are also a good item to keep in the safe room, or a metal hurricane lamp. Not only will they give off light for an extended period, they also generate heat which could mean the difference between life and death if the temperature has suddenly dropped following a tornado, a common occurrence.

You may want to consider storing a tent in your safe room, capable of being opened within its confines. Again, if water is seeping through the seams, this could keep you dry enough to stave off hypothermia.

Again, refer to that backpacking manual. There are a variety of other supplies you may want to add to your safe room.

Preparedness Is The Key To Tornado Survival

There are plenty of steps you need to take in advance of tornado season. By planning ahead, you vastly improve your chances of survival by taking shelter immediately when the alarm sounds and by having a safe place to ride out the storm with the supplies you and your family will need. And don't forget to prepare for your pets in a time of disaster.