Tornadoes seem to be Mother Nature’s favorite go-to natural disaster as of late. And I gotta admit – all of this spontaneous death-twisting is getting on my poor nerves. Ever since I saw Twister in 1996, tornadoes were no longer “cool.” They were death-traps, something I never wanted to be anywhere near or close to again. It’s hard enough getting away from a tornado when you CAN walk, let alone trying to get away unscathed when you use a wheelchair.
For us in Minnesota, we know all too well of the surging tornado activity. We led the nation last year with the most tornado touchdowns, with 104 officially recorded. And June is our most active month for tornadoes. In May 2011, parts 
of North Minneapolis were decimated by a tornado that dropped out of no where, killing 2 people and injuring 29. Even as I write this, I’m looking at a gorgeous yet dangerous sky – in layers of blue, white, and a very dark grey. The sky is becoming unstable, and once again I’m pondering my exit strategy in case the unthinkable happens.
The unthinkable of course is a tornado veering my way, and I have no way out, no way to escape it’s path fast enough before being swept up in a debris-filled cyclone, never heard from again. Tornadoes, I imagine, are not the most wheelchair-friendly. With tornado activity seeming like a weather aspect we may have to hunker down and get used to, wheelchair-users need to re-think what they should do in case a tornado strikes, and train themselves to think smartly and quickly when a tornado siren is sounded (or worse, spotted).
One of the most important things you can do to stay safe is to get as low as you can. If you have a basement and can get into it on your own, go there for your first and safest option. If you don’t have a basement, and I know a lot of people in the south don’t, your next best option is to go to a room on the lowest level of your house, a room that is furthest away from outside walls (sometimes a bathroom). Choose a room with the least amount of windows (keep ‘em closed), and stay in the middle of the room, away from corners, walls and doors.
Make sure you have an emergency preparedness kit ready, and if you can, FEMA also recommends getting under a table and putting your arms and hands over your head. Since not many wheelchair-users can do that, all we can do is the best we can, hope for the best, or even better – recruit someone to help you. Just remember to take tornadoes seriously this year. Tornado safety tips may sound silly, but they will definitely come in handy if you find yourself in the presence of a tornado this summer. They are way worse in-person….this I guarantee!
FEMA Tornado Safety Tips
Photo courtesy of Vincente Villamon
Do you have a plan in place if severe weather strikes?
Tiffiny I hear what your saying. Down here its hurricans they allways say go to a shelter but there not set up for the dissabled, I guess some are but not around here.