The safest place in a house during a tornado is a basement, storm cellar or safe room. With no basement, go to a small interior room on the lowest floor with no windows, such as a bathroom, closet or center hallway. Crouch low, cover your head and stay away from windows.
The CDC puts it plainly: there is no completely safe place during a tornado, but some places are much safer than others. The National Weather Service (NWS) sums up the goal in four parts: get as many walls between you and the tornado as possible, stay away from windows, get as low as possible (ideally underground or in a safe room), and cover up.
Go to the basement and avoid windows.
Get under something sturdy, like a heavy table or workbench, or cover yourself with a mattress or sleeping bag.
Know where heavy things sit on the floor above, such as a piano or refrigerator, and don't shelter under them. The NWS Storm Prediction Center (SPC) warns they can fall through a weakened floor.
Wear head protection if you have it. SPC says a helmet can improve your chances.
Go to the lowest floor and pick a small center room (a bathroom or closet), the space under a stairwell, or an interior hallway with no windows.
Crouch as low as you can, face down, and cover your head with your hands.
Cover yourself with thick padding like a mattress or blankets, in case the roof and ceiling fail.
A metal bathtub may give partial protection, says SPC. Plastic or fiberglass tubs don't, because flying objects can go right through them.
Apartment or dorm: SPC gives the same advice as a house with no basement. Get to the lowest floor you can reach, into a small windowless room or interior hallway. In a tall building, interior stairwells are usually good places, and you should stay off elevators in case the power goes out.
Mobile or manufactured home: Get out. SPC says even a tied-down mobile home is not as safe as an underground shelter or a sturdy permanent building, and the CDC says not to stay in one during a tornado. Pick a nearby sturdy building ahead of time, such as a church or a relative's house, and know how fast you can get there.
In a car: Vehicles are very risky. If the tornado is far away and traffic is light, SPC says you may be able to drive out of its path at a right angle. If you're caught by extreme wind or flying debris, park out of traffic lanes, keep your seat belt on, and get your head below the windows. If you can safely get noticeably lower than the road, leave the car and lie there, covering your head.
Outdoors: Get into a sturdy building if you can. If not, lie flat and face down on low ground, protect the back of your head with your arms, and get away from trees and cars.
Tornado watch: Tornadoes are possible in and near the watch area. NWS says to review your plan, check your supplies and your safe room, and be ready to act fast. Watches often cover many counties.
Tornado warning: A tornado has been seen or shows up on weather radar. There is imminent danger. Go to an interior room on the lowest floor of a sturdy building now, away from windows.
Tornado emergency: The highest NWS alert, issued when a violent tornado has touched down. Take shelter immediately in the safest place you can reach.
NWS also says to learn how your community sends warnings. Some towns use outdoor sirens, while others depend on TV, radio and phone alerts. A NOAA Weather Radio is a good backup.
An overpass is not a tornado shelter. After the May 3, 1999 Oklahoma outbreak, the NWS office in Norman reported that three people died while sheltering near or under overpasses. Its review explains that climbing up under a bridge moves you higher, where winds are usually stronger, and that the wind shifts direction quickly as a tornado passes. People under a bridge become a stationary target for flying debris and can even be blown out. In its words, safety there is "merely an illusion."
Overpasses cause a second danger: cars parked under them block traffic, trap other drivers in the storm's path and keep emergency vehicles out. SPC says to avoid sheltering under bridges for both reasons. And never leave a sturdy house to drive to an overpass. The NWS review says the standard advice for people in solid buildings works very well.
One more myth: don't open windows to "equalize pressure." SPC says the tornado will blast the windows open for you. Use those seconds to take cover.
Here is an example plan to adapt. It is not an official form.
Our shelter spot: basement, under the workbench (or the downstairs hall closet)
Our backup building: for mobile homes or homes without a safe room, a nearby sturdy building we can reach quickly
Gear kept at the shelter spot: helmets, a mattress or sleeping bags, thick blankets, shoes and a flashlight. SPC says flying debris is the greatest danger, so keep coverings ready to grab in seconds.
Who helps whom: one adult per young child, older adult or person who moves slowly
Pets: bring them if time allows, as NWS advises
Meeting place afterward: a spot everyone knows, plus one out-of-area contact to call or text
Drill dates: SPC suggests a family tornado drill at least once a year
Practice until everyone can reach the shelter spot in a few seconds. The CDC adds that everyone in the house should understand your local warning system. For the rest of your household plan, this family emergency plan checklist covers contacts, meeting places and more.
Call 911 for anyone seriously hurt. SPC says to stay away from downed power lines and puddles with wires in them, watch for broken glass and nails, stay out of badly damaged buildings, and don't use matches or lighters in case of a gas leak. Listen for instructions from emergency crews and local officials.
A metal tub in an interior room may give some protection, according to SPC, but plastic and fiberglass tubs don't. Cover yourself with a mattress or thick blankets either way.
No. SPC calls it an old notion. Stay away from windows and take cover instead.
No. NWS says overpasses offer, at best, questionable shelter, expose you to flying debris and block traffic for everyone else.
To a sturdy permanent building or underground shelter you picked ahead of time. Leave early, because a mobile home is not safe even when tied down.
For warnings, rely on NOAA Weather Radio, local media and your phone's emergency alerts. Family Ready: Emergency Plan is a free iPhone app, with an optional Family Ready Plus subscription, for the planning side: a household plan with sections for contacts, home, dependants and pets, plus an editable kit checklist you can review on a 3, 6 or 12 month schedule. Its free Emergency Card stores who to call first, allergies and medications and opens without internet, but it doesn't contact responders, so call 911 yourself in an emergency.
Get Family Ready free on the App Store