Nocturnal Tornadoes: Understanding the nighttime threat
Nocturnal tornadoes are dangerous and deadlier because, most of the time, people are asleep and don’t know they are coming. Learn how to prepare and stay safe.
>>Learn more about AccuWeather For Business
When tornadoes are in the forecast, especially at night, your business needs to be ready. Nocturnal tornadoes are even more dangerous and deadlier because, most of the time, people are asleep and don’t know they are coming.
Why are nocturnal tornadoes so dangerous?
When AccuWeather’s meteorologists warn that nocturnal tornadoes are in the forecast, it could have devastating consequences for your business and your employees if not prepared. Nocturnal tornadoes are even more dangerous and deadlier because they happen under cover of darkness, and people often don’t know they are coming or can’t see them. It also makes it harder to receive warnings, assess the danger and take protective action.
A study by Northern Illinois University through the American Meteorological Society found that the most dangerous time for tornadoes is from midnight to 6 a.m. - when the storms are 2.5 times more likely to kill. The study found that while only 27% of tornadoes happen at night, 39% of tornadoes fatalities happen during that time.
-
Fewer people are in sturdy office buildings
During this time, there are fewer people working inside sturdy office buildings. Employees could be in danger if there isn’t a designated shelter area. Businesses should have an emergency weather plan and work with AccuWeather For Business when a tornado threatens their office, warehouse, or facility.
• Outdoor warning sirens are challenging to hear indoors, so it is essential to have a notification system in place
Public warning sirens are used in many places to warn people of tornadoes; however, some smaller communities may not have them. If you are working indoors, you may need help to hear them. That is why it is critical to have a dependable notification system like AccuWeather’s SkyGuardâ Warnings. This is especially vital at night. These warnings can alert your emergency safety manager to a tornado and even let you know when it isn’t a threat to your facility, preventing false alarms and unnecessary shutdowns.
-
Tornadoes are harder to see in the dark
When tornadoes happen at night, they are difficult to see. Most tornadoes are on the ground for less than a mile and not more than a few minutes, but your facility and your people could still be a target. Businesses should deliver weather safety training, sheltering, and evacuation training to all of their employees. Make sure all employees know where to shelter, when they should seek shelter, and when they can leave the shelter. Businesses should also train on how to evacuate customers from buildings like restaurants, bars, and hotels. The first couple of moments of a tornado warning can be hectic. Knowing these things ahead of time can help save lives.
What can you do to prepare?
There are several actions your business can take to be prepared for nocturnal tornadoes to minimize the risk of damage and keep your people, property, and assets safe.
-
Create an emergency plan
Develop an emergency weather plan and designate an employee manager to execute the plan when tornadoes threaten your facility. The plan should include designating areas to shelter in place, effective communication plans, how and when to shut down the facility, securing equipment, and when to return to work. Ensure you have procedures when the building has fewer employees, especially at night.
-
Participate in a tabletop exercise
Participate in a tabletop exercise to test your business processes, whether shutting down equipment, getting people to shelter, or getting critical information out to employees. A couple of hours doing exercise could save lives, especially when response time is crucial with nocturnal tornadoes.
-
Do a business impact assessment
Complete a business impact assessment for critical systems that a weather event could disrupt. It’s a chance to examine your plans and identify what is vital. It will also let you put parameters in place. For example, determine which outdoor assets could be in danger of a lightning strike or what wind speed thresholds for elevated platforms. When you can minimize operational impact, you can recover quicker and reduce downtime. AccuWeather For Business can help you through this process.
Better informed, Better protected, Better prepared
Be proactive with AccuWeather SkyGuard Warnings backed by Superior Accuracy, which will deliver site-specific alerts and warnings well before severe weather hits, giving you more much-needed time to prepare.
Benefits of SkyGuard Warnings:
• Proactive, site-specific warnings sent well before severe weather impacts occur
• Live, one-on-one, or group consultation provided by our weather experts 24x7x365
• Reviewed Tornado Notifications alert you when a tornado isn't threatening your assets
• Alerts are delivered in a format that aligns with your organizational emergency management plan, including push notifications from the SkyGuard mobile app
• All-clear notifications are sent when a threat is over, minimizing weather-related downtime
On average, when tornadoes are in the forecast, businesses receive 16 minutes of advance notice compared to an average of 8 minutes from other sources. Want to learn more about how we can help you? Demo SkyGuard today so your business will be better informed, better protected, and better prepared.
