How do those in tornado alley live with this?

katachtig

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For some reason, the Denver area is going into its third day of tornado warnings all over the place. Fortunately, there hasn't been the same amount damage as there was Sunday, but it is definitely unnerving to find out that tornadoes were spotted in the area.

Meanwhile, I'm at work, totally oblivious to it all until I come home and see the news.
 

lil maggie

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Yep, I'm living in 'tornado alley' also. Right this minute, I'm watching the storm tracker with updates every 10 minutes. We have some severe weather coming our way in a little while and under a tornado warning until 1am.
All around us for the past couple weeks we've had a tornado not too far from us. Yikes, I just heard some ear popping thunder! I hope it blows over quick!
 

strange_wings

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I don't really worry about it, honestly.

I wonder how people can tolerate living in cities. How can one live somewhere with a high crime rate or knowing that someone just a couple houses down was robbed? Somewhere that walking down the street downtown at 1am would get you assaulted or worse. Yet, millions of people choose to live this way.
 

carolina

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Funny you asked... I took a nap this afternoon only to wake up with the sirens, and no lights at my place... I had no idea of what was going on, and had no internet, or tv... The storm was bad, but not that much - it was a tornado warning, and severe thunderstorm, but apparently I slept through the worst part.
It's kind of scary to wake up with the sirens, but I also know that my building dates from the 1940s, so...... chances are it's going to be safe for a while

I don't think about it too much...
 

strange_wings

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Originally Posted by carolinalima

I took a nap this afternoon only to wake up with the sirens, and no lights at my place... I had no idea of what was going on, and had no internet, or tv...
Get yourself a weather radio - they have battery backup in case the power goes out. Every time there's a thread about severe weather this time of year this is always repeated but only some take that advice!

And hang onto the receipt. I had one stop working a week after we got it for no reason.
 

trillcat

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Originally Posted by strange_wings

Get yourself a weather radio - they have battery backup in case the power goes out. Every time there's a thread about severe weather this time of year this is always repeated but only some take that advice!

And hang onto the receipt. I had one stop working a week after we got it for no reason.
There are also radios that you can get that are charged by turning a crank, Lights too. We had them at a hotel I used to work at in case of power failures, safer than candels, especially because we had to leave the front desk to check on people, and you should NEVER leave a candle un-attended!
Also be sure to keep an emergency kit if you live in a storm prone area. Basic first aid supplies, water, canned food for people, extra pet food for the critters, TP. Laugh at that last one if you will, but if your power is down for days and all the stores are closed, well, not so much fun!
 

libby74

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I've lived in 'tornado alley' my whole life and never really worried about it. I do find, however, the older I get the more I pay attention when the tornado warnings come on the radio or tv.
The closest a tornado has ever come to my home happened in 1945, the day President Roosevelt died. A tornado hit a Catholic church 8 blocks from here and destroyed it. There were unconfirmed reports of a 'mini tornado' skipping around 5 blocks from here a couple of years ago.
There's nothing you can do about it, so why worry? I'd rather live in tornado alley than in hurricane country. I don't understand how anyone can live in an area that has the potential to be hit by a hurricane several times a year.
 

lil maggie

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I've always lived in tornado alley too. Maybe you have to have been through a severe tornado to worry when there is a weather report of a tornado watch or warning? I've been through an F4 tornado when I was younger that did extensive damage to our house. It's really scary and dangerous! Our neighbors house literally blew apart and there wasn't a wall left standing. Even back then we all knew to go to the basement but it was cold, pitch dark and all you could hear was a giant train noise overhead with ripping and banging sounds. It was deafening!
I know there isn't much you can do about it but it still worries me because when you hear a siren sometimes you don't have a lot of time to hide much less look for all the animals and take them to safety. I think that's what worries me the most. They tend to hide just like we do and it's hard to find them. Then they freak out because you're nervous and I'm sure they sense it.
 

strange_wings

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Originally Posted by lil maggie

I know there isn't much you can do about it but it still worries me because when you hear a siren sometimes you don't have a lot of time to hide much less look for all the animals and take them to safety. I think that's what worries me the most. They tend to hide just like we do and it's hard to find them. Then they freak out because you're nervous and I'm sure they sense it.
That's why when you hear you're in a tornado warning or that there is a storm heading your way that can potentially spawn them unexpectedly you start preparing.

Again, everyone who lives in areas that gets severe weather, please see about getting a weather radio. Grocery stores, hardware stores, Walmart, etc all sell them this time of year.
A hand crank radio is only useful after the fact. If the severe weather is heading your way and you're asleep or otherwise preoccupied you need something that alerts you on it's own. Hail and straight line wind warnings are nice to have, too.
 

trillcat

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Originally Posted by strange_wings

That's why when you hear you're in a tornado warning or that there is a storm heading your way that can potentially spawn them unexpectedly you start preparing.

Again, everyone who lives in areas that gets severe weather, please see about getting a weather radio. Grocery stores, hardware stores, Walmart, etc all sell them this time of year.
A hand crank radio is only useful after the fact. If the severe weather is heading your way and you're asleep or otherwise preoccupied you need something that alerts you on it's own. Hail and straight line wind warnings are nice to have, too.
My folks have one that sounds an alert when there are warnings issued. It would have been nice of them to tell me this when I started staying there, being jolted awake at 3am wondering what is the world was going on was not fun! (did what it was suppsed to do though!)
 

strange_wings

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Originally Posted by Trillcat

My folks have one that sounds an alert when there are warnings issued. It would have been nice of them to tell me this when I started staying there, being jolted awake at 3am wondering what is the world was going on was not fun! (did what it was suppsed to do though!)
Yes, that's a weather radio. They all do that unless you turn the volume/alerts off. I'm glad your parents have one.

I'm curious if some people are completely unfamiliar with them and thinking it's similar to a regular radio? With these you have to actually program in the codes for the county stations near you and all it will receive is weather alerts.
 

kittymonsters

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I'm glad you posted this, having just moved to NE Denver 3 months ago I must say I was becoming a bit concerned. I grew up in the midwest so know tornadoes, I just didn't think metro Denver had them.

I have had the sirens going off twice in the past two weeks. I actually saw the funnel forming that went on to hit Southlands.

Last night's 10pm news was amazing, I can't believe the hail. It was like a midwest ice storm with all the cars in the ditch. I am so glad I was not driving in that.

Today we just got done with Round 1 for the day and it looks like Round 2 is brewing. The first line is now out past Elizabeth and looks to be forming a bow echo indicative of nasty straightline winds.

Just goes to show, always have a plan, even when we think this type of severe weather doesn't happen in our own area.

Stay safe everyone.
 

carolina

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Last night and this morning there was the worst thunder storm I have ever been through... Again we had no energy until about noon, so I didn't even know we were under tornado warning until just now, when I spoke to my neighbor. I guess I do need to have a weather radio.
We don't have a shelter in my building, but there is a hallway that is completely closed with doors, and away from windows, etc. I did move the carriers to there, and will make sure to keep a flashlight and radio there as well.
Question: when do we move the kitties into the carriers? Whenever we have a tornado warning, or we wait to hear the sirens?
Can the kitties share a larger crate?
 

mrblanche

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Those were hellacious, weren't they? I got out of town just before the ones hit last night, and I got back to our distribution center just in time for the ones at 4 a.m. I was just starting my post-trip inspection when it came down in buckets. I just sat in the truck and watched it. Lightning everywere, winds shaking the truck, and all the lights off at the warehouse.

I lived in Denver up until 1966, and tornadoes are rare but not impossible. I HAVE seen the hail piled up in drifts by the flash floods down the streets.

I've just checked the radar, and it looks like I'm going to have to deal with them again tonight on my way to San Antonio.
 

carolina

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Originally Posted by mrblanche

Those were hellacious, weren't they? I got out of town just before the ones hit last night, and I got back to our distribution center just in time for the ones at 4 a.m. I was just starting my post-trip inspection when it came down in buckets. I just sat in the truck and watched it. Lightning everywere, winds shaking the truck, and all the lights off at the warehouse.

I lived in Denver up until 1966, and tornadoes are rare but not impossible. I HAVE seen the hail piled up in drifts by the flash floods down the streets.
I am telling you, I thought the world was coming down! I have never heard louder thunders that the ones last night/this morning. That "little" rain was 8"!!! And apparently it's not over yet... More could be coming tonight - I hope not as bad as last night!
 

mrblanche

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This area of Texas has about 12 inches of rain in June, July, and August. What they don't tell you is that we usually get it in two storms of 6 inches each, lasting about two hours.

The heaviest I've ever hear of was 14 inches in 1/2 hour, in Palmer Lake, CO. That caused the 1965 flood in Denver.
 
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katachtig

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Hail has always been a big problem. Colorado has one of the highest amount of insurance claims for hail.

Tornadoes so close to Denver are not as frequent. But then there has been more development out east so before a tornado landed in an empty field; now it might hit a housing development.

The last few days have been cool so what I'm understanding, this causes problems in the unstable air in the upper atmosphere near the mountains. I'm hoping it warms up so we get out of this pattern.
 

strange_wings

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Originally Posted by carolinalima

Question: when do we move the kitties into the carriers? Whenever we have a tornado warning, or we wait to hear the sirens?
Can the kitties share a larger crate?
I generally wait till I hear that there is rotation a few miles away, depending on wind direction, or until sirens. I have put Tomas and Sho in carriers before when just in a warning due to how it looked outside - green sky, clouds moving strangely, that odd feeling in the air, and the cows in the neighboring pasture flipping out.

As for carrier sharing, it depends on kitties. Tomas and Sho have and are fine with it. I wouldn't put anyone in with Sherman... As with most things, treats help to get them in and making sure they're not afraid of their carriers, too. Sho hates bad storms and will already hide or cling to me, so pulling him off me and stuffing him in the carrier isn't difficult.
 
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