The recent outbreak of tornadoes in and around the Omaha metro over the past month has sparked a lightning storm of discussion over safety.
The tornado touchdowns in neighboring Millard on June 8 and in Little Sioux, Iowa, on June 11, caused the deaths of four Boy Scouts and concerned nearby resident. If a tornado were to strike downtown, would the campus be ready to seek shelter?
“We were in an active storm pattern,” said Brian Smith, warning coordination meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Valley, Neb. “For about three weeks so far, we’ve had a very severe weather situation.”
Weather conditions typical of May and June were the cause for the outbreak of severe weather, but those conditions are changing and entering into a more summertime pattern, Smith said. This summertime pattern, though capable of producing severe storms, does not contain the same type of severity or frequency as the past month.
The National Weather Service uses both old and new technologies to track severe storms. They use a national network of DOPPLER Radars that is also used by television stations. In addition, they enlist the help of storm spotters, who are volunteers trained by the National Weather Service to look for signs of a tornado in their community.
Independent from the National Weather Service are storm chasers, people who chase storms and tornadoes for their own interest and sometimes call in updates.
“I’ve seen active years, but the three week period is one of the most active periods for severe weather we’ve ever had,” said Smith, who has been with the National Weather Service for 14 years.
Many students who come from out of town, especially from places where tornadoes are rare or even nonexistent, often do not understand how dangerous the weather can become.
“I didn’t expect it to be as stormy as it is,” said Alysa Bressi, Arts & Sciences junior from Irwin, Pa. “Even though we don’t have tornadoes [in Pennsylvania], we have a lot of microbursts and a lot of wind damage.”
Bressi’s first experience with tornado sirens was when there was a warning issued in Millard and struck at about 2:30 a.m. June 8. She was asleep in Opus Hall when she got a call from a friend and immediately went into the basement.
“I didn’t realize how serious it was at first,” Bressi said.
A transfer student who finished her first semester this spring, Bressi does not recall being told about tornado safety in new student orientation earlier this year. However, she said tornado safety is “kind of self-explanatory.”
Public Safety offers information on its Web site including a comprehensive list of tornado shelters in all buildings on campus and what to do if a tornado watch or warning is issued. There are also signs posted throughout campus in buildings and residence halls.
Students can also sign up for CUAlert, a program offered by Public Safety where those who enroll can receive an e-mail, phone call or a text message when there is an emergency on campus or when a tornado warning is issued.
If a tornado warning has been issued and the civil defense sirens sound, seek shelter immediately in your building’s designated tornado shelter. If you are outside, get to the closest building.