Severe Weather Awareness Week Drill to Focus on Tornado Safety in Stearns County

(KNSI) — Don’t be alarmed when you hear the sirens on Thursday because it’s only a drill.

The theme for Severe Weather Awareness Week on Thursday is tornadoes. Tornado warnings are issued when radar indicates tornadoes or a spotter witnesses one.

Two mock tornado warnings will be issued today, and the outdoor warning sirens will sound twice, with the first at 1:45 p.m. and the second at 6:45 p.m.

Stearns County and St. Cloud Emergency Manager Erin Hughes explains the reason for doing it twice is “to give people the opportunity to practice what they do during emergency situations like severe weather. If they were at home or at school. If they were out in the community. It gives us a chance to really think about where we might be and what we might do in a variety of different scenarios.”

Hughes told KNSI News it’s especially important to practice in Stearns County. “We are one of the top five counties in the state of Minnesota for tornadic activity. The National Weather Service started recording in the early 50s. And we are one of the highest areas for rate of recurrence for tornadoes.”

Some tips from Hughes include, if you’re at home, avoid windows. Get to the basement and under some sturdy protection, such as a heavy table or workbench, or cover yourself with a mattress or sleeping bag. If no basement is available, go to the lowest floor, a small center room like a bathroom or closet, under a stairwell, or in an interior hallway with no windows.

For those who live in apartments on an upper floor, get to the lowest level of the building immediately like an underground parking garage or a neighbor’s first-floor apartment. Then move to the most interior area possible, again, away from windows.

Mobile home residents need to get out. Even if the home is tied down, high winds can toss semi trucks, so a mobile home is no match.

When out and about, do not stay in the car. Find a sturdy building to seek shelter. As a last resort, lie down in a ditch and cover your head.

To become a weather spotter, take a Skywarn class.

For more on what to do in a tornado, click here.

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