Safest Places to Live to Avoid Severe Weather

We all love the good old U.S.A., but one of the downsides of living here is that it's one of the most dangerous countries for severe weather in the world!  No location in the U.S. is completely safe from weather extremes, but there are some locations that are safer than others.

First let's keep in mind all the types of severe weather threats there are. There's ice/snow storms, thunderstorms, tornadoes, floods, tropical cyclones, extreme cold, and extreme heat. When you consider all these threats, it's hard to find a place you can consider truly weather safe, but let's give it a shot.

As a general rule, the farther north you go in the U.S., the safer you'll become.  Yes the threat from extreme cold and ice/snow storms increases, but the colder weather also significantly decreases the threats of excessive heat, thunderstorms, and tornadoes which are far bigger killers than cold weather events.  To avoid the threat of flooding, you want to be far away from a river to avoid traditional flooding and in an area with deep topsoil to avoid flash floods.  To avoid tropical storms and hurricanes, you want to stay away from the coasts.

Considering all the factors above, one particularly safe location is Northern Minnesota.  Thunderstorms are not particularly common, so very few worries about lightning and tornadoes.  It's FAR away from any coastlines so it's essentially immune to tropical cyclones. Heavy rain isn't common and there are no major rivers you have to worry about flooding.  While the threat from extreme cold doesn't get much worse than Northern Minnesota, cold causes the fewest weather related deaths each year.  Snow and ice storms can be a threat as well, but not as great as other locations slightly farther south which typically see greater snowfall. 

So the weather in Northern Minnesota is not likely to kill you, but let's face it, that cold sure is a bummer!  So is there a place with better weather that's even safer?  Yes there is.  May I present, Southern California, the safest place from severe weather in the country!

There's a reason so many people live here...the weather is terrific!  Extreme cold and snow storms?  Forget about it!  While this area would normally be concerned about excessive heat, the Pacific Ocean keeps temperatures moderate even in the summer months.  Rain falls more from showers than thunderstorms which reduces multiple weather threats.  No heavy rain or rivers to worry about flooding.  While this area is on the coast, the cold waters of the Pacific severely limit tropical cyclone activity, making Southern California an exception to the coast rule. 

Yes, Southern California would be far and away the safest place from natural hazards in the country if it weren't for the non-weather threats...wildfires and earthquakes!  Unfortunately, these risks are so great that they start to outweigh all the benefits from the safe weather.  So maybe it's back to Northern Minnesota after all... :(

Where is the Best Place to Take Shelter During a Tornado?

With tornado season heating up, it's important to know where you should and shouldn't take shelter if you find yourself under a tornado warning.

The safest place to be is certainly a basement or separate storm shelter.  While tornadoes can do extreme damage at the surface, they do not have the power to harm things underground.  While some people have died while taking shelter in basements due to debris from above falling in, the survival rate in a basement or storm shelter is by far the highest of any other location.

Unfortunately, basements are rare in many portions of the country.  If you or a neighbor does not have a basement, the next best location to seek shelter is the first story of any permanent building or home.  Roofs are a weak point on buildings, so it's important to put as much distance between you and the roof during a tornado.  Head to the most interior room that doesn't have any windows.  Walk-in closets are a good option and bathrooms are probably the best.  There have been many examples of people riding out tornadoes in their bathtubs.  If you have time, placing blankets or clothes on top of you can give you added protection from flying debris.  Most importantly, protect your head.  Use your hands at least, but a bike helmet is even better.  Yes it looks ridiculous, but you won't feel dumb if it saves your life!

It's important to mention that trailers/mobile homes are NOT a safe location to take shelter during a tornado.  Even weak tornadoes can do significant damage to these structures.  If you're in a mobile home and a tornado warning is issued, get out and head to the nearest permanent building.  Vehicles are also not a safe place to take shelter and should only be used if you have to travel to a permanent building.  Just look at what a tornado did to some parked tractor trailers near Dallas!

Follow these rules and you'll be well on your way to staying safe should you find yourself in the path of a tornado.

How Do Hurricanes Get Their Names?

This week brought news that the name Sandy was being retired as a potential name to be given to future hurricanes.  But what does it mean to "retire" a name?  Well it all starts with the chart below:



This shows the list of potential names that could be used to name tropical cyclones in the Atlantic Ocean for the upcoming years.  These are the only lists of names that are used, each one being used every six years.  For example, the list of names from 2012 will again be used in 2018. 

All the names were chosen by the World Meteorological Organization's hurricane committee.  Each list has an equal number of both male and female names.  You may notice some names you've rarely heard in the United States.  That's because the committee set out to include names that are common not only to English speakers, but Spanish and French speakers as well. 

Once a tropical cyclone reaches tropical storm status (winds of at least 39 mph) it is assigned a name.  The first tropical storm of the season will be assigned the "A" name, the next the "B" name, and so forth.  The names alternate between male and female, so you'll never have two storms of the same gender back to back.  If there are so many storms in one year that all the names on the list are used up, names from the Greek alphabet (Alpha, Beta, Gamma, etc) are used until the end of that year. 

As we all know, some storms end up causing much more devastation than others.  These are the ones that leave deep emotional scars and are still talked about years later.  To avoid insensitivity and confusion, each year the same committee that picked the names meets to decide if any storms from the previous year were significant enough that their name should be retired and replaced with another.  The committee has done this 77 times just in the Atlantic, including names like Andrew, Rita, Camille, and Katrina.  Sandy was the only name retired this year and it will be replaced by Sara beginning in 2018.

How Does Your Car Protect You From Lightning?

While taking shelter in a permanent structure is always the best course of action during a thunderstorm, vehicles are generally regarded as a safe alternative.  Only tornadic winds have the strength to flip a typical vehicle and while cars may be dented, only exceptionally large hail will actually break through the windows.  Most importantly, vehicles are known to be a safe place to avoid being struck by lightning.  But how do vehicles protect us from lightning and do all vehicles protect us equally?

A common belief is that the rubber tires on cars insulate the vehicle from the ground, protecting the occupants should lightning strike.  While rubber is an electric insulator, the amount of voltage carried by a lightning bolt is far too great to be insulated by rubber.  It is not the tires of vehicles, but their metal frames which protect you from lightning.  When lightning strikes a vehicle, the metal frame of the car absorbs the electricity, conducts it around the occupants, and into the ground.  This means that as long as you're not touching anything metal inside your car at the moment of the strike, you will not be harmed.

Since it's the metal frame that protects you, it's important to note that only vehicles with a hard top are a safe refuge during a thunderstorm.  Even though convertibles have metal in them too, metal only conducts electricity; it does not attract it.  If you're inside a convertible, a lightning strike could miss the metal frame, easily burn through the soft top, and strike you inside.

Check out the BBC video below to see what happens when a lightning simulator is used on a car with a person inside.  The results are quite impressive!