After the storms from Saturday night, I was so tired on Sunday that I forgot to write a blog.
Well, okay, I remembered to write one when I was about to snuggle under the covers, but I wasn't about to go downstairs and think of something to write!
The storms were predicted to be life-threatening (Oklahoma is still considered part of tornado alley, though we have been low on them for a few years now--er, I'm not complaining!), and we had been expecting them to start early Saturday evening. They did start in early evening . . . in far Western Oklahoma, but didn't hit Tulsa until around 5 or 6 AM.
Woodward, OK was hit hard: 5 deaths, 31 injuries and 89 homes were destroyed. *silent prayer* We didn't find this out until the news on Sunday.
What kept waking us up was the text alerts on my hubster's phone. Every time a watch turned into a warning, or a new one was issued for a new county, his phone would go off.
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| Minions |
Which is really a good thing, but exhausting. I would hit my REM sleep and then the Despicable Me minions would start giggling.
So I'll leave you with this thought, if you don't have a public warning system, then download a weather app that will alert you with warnings. I'd rather be prepared to spend a sleepless night than caught off-guard.
Here are a few tornado tips:
- Go to the lowest and center part of the house--under the stairs, in a small bathroom, in a laundry room.
- take a blanket or pillows or mattress, if at all possible--to keep the debris from hitting you directly
- have a battery operated radio handy to listen to storm updates
- wear shoes--not flip-flops
Tornadoes are eerily beautiful, but dangerous. Don't mess around when the warnings are sounded.
Later, Peeps!
good advice, Mags.
ReplyDeleteWe had some heavy rain here but that's about it.
Having grown up with tornado warnings, I don't panic anymore. We have a "safe place" inside the house and we do watch the warnings ready to move if necessary. Just last night hubby was talking about building a tornado shelter.
Where we fall short is the battery operated radio. Will fix that today.
I had two tornadic incidences happen to me that makes me always on my toes when the conditions are ripe.
ReplyDelete1) The night before my wedding a tornado took out the church less than 1/4 mile from MY CHURCH. We didn't have any power during the service.
2) I was at the stable when a microburst of wind peeled off the roof less than 6 feet away from me.
I've become very attuned to the weather . . .
Margaret, I remember well your powerless wedding after that hellacious storm! I also remember a tornado during the Tulsa Charity horse show that took out the power (and nearly took out the fairgrounds.) I spent many a sleepless night with the TV on, listening to the weather guys, and with one ear peeled for the tornado sirens. I worried less about myself and more about the horses. I do NOT miss that. At all! When I moved to California, it took a few years before I could sleep restfully through a rainstorm. My body was used to being on high alert during any kind of bad weather.
ReplyDeleteNobody should be without a storm cellar. Some of the warnings for the recent tornadic storms in the midwest included the words, and I quote: "You will not survive if you are not underground."
I've lived through Hurricane Alicia, Don through Hurricane Carla? and a few tornadoes. We have a plan that we put into action. I have my own weatherman so he's always on storm alert.
ReplyDeleteJods--for the most part, I don't freak out with storm, but I am attuned to the barometric pressure and 'weird' vibe those tornadic storms give out.
ReplyDeleteWe've talked about adding on a storm shelter to the house . . .now I need to convince hubster to make it large enough for a wine cellar!
Meg--we have a plan, and two rooms that fit the center of the house area. I don't like getting in there because while we are crammed in the small space, the testosterone-filled human of the family insists upon looking out the freaking glass doors!
ReplyDelete