Wind Safety:

Keep a distance from high profile vehicles such as trucks, buses and vehicles towing trailers. One strong gust of wind can be enough to flip one of these trailers onto its side. If you are driving and aren't near a sturdy building, hold the steering wheel with both hands and slow down. If no shelter is available avoid trees, power lines, and the side of the road. Keep in mind that power lines that are laying on the ground may be live. Do not go near them! Try to find a place that will block blowing or falling debris. Take shelter in your car if you are not near a sturdy building. If possible, drive to a nearby sturdy building. Otherwise, move your car to a location where it is less likely to be hit by falling trees or powerlines.

NWS Wind Safety: During an Event

• Take shelter in your car if you are not near a sturdy building. If possible, drive to a nearby sturdy building. Otherwise, move your car to a location where it is less likely to be hit by falling trees or powerlines.
• If no shelter is available avoid trees, power lines, and the side of the road. Keep in mind that power lines that are laying on the ground may be live. Do not go near them! Try to find a place that will block blowing or falling debris.
• If you are driving and aren't near a sturdy building, hold the steering wheel with both hands and slow down.
• Keep a distance from high profile vehicles such as trucks, buses and vehicles towing trailers. One strong gust of wind can be enough to flip one of these trailers onto its side.
• Immediately go inside a sturdy building during a high wind warning or severe thunderstorm warning and move to an interior room or basement.
• If you are in a mobile home, move to a sturdy building before the winds pick up or the storm system reaches your location.
• Listen to the local news or NOAA Weather Radio for updates.
• Take shelter in your car if you are not near a sturdy building. If possible, drive to a nearby sturdy building. Otherwise, move your car to a location where it is less likely to be hit by falling trees or powerlines.
• If no shelter is available avoid trees, power lines, and the side of the road. Keep in mind that power lines that are laying on the ground may be live. Do not go near them! Try to find a place that will block blowing or falling debris.
• If you are driving and aren't near a sturdy building, hold the steering wheel with both hands and slow down.
• Keep a distance from high profile vehicles such as trucks, buses and vehicles towing trailers. One strong gust of wind can be enough to flip one of these trailers onto its side.

Before a High Wind Event:

• Trim tree branches away from your house and powerlines.
• Secure loose gutters and shutters.
• Identify an interior room of your house, such as a basement or interior bathroom, that you can take shelter in during high wind warnings.
• If you live in a mobile home, identify a sturdy building you can go to if NWS issues a high wind or severe thunderstorm warning.
• Update your emergency kit and be sure to include enough food and water to last for 3 days for each person in your home.
• Make a list of items outside your home you will need to tie down or put away so that they don't blow away or fly through a window. When NWS issues a high wind or severe thunderstorm watch, immediately secure these items to avoid damage or injury once the wind starts picking up.
• Immediately get off elevated areas such as hills, mountain ridges or peaks
• Never lie flat on the ground
• Never shelter under an isolated tree
• Never use a cliff or rocky overhang for shelter
• Immediately get out and away from ponds, lakes and other bodies of water
• Stay away from objects that conduct electricity (barbed wire fences, power lines, windmills, etc.)
• Last Resort Outdoor Risk Reduction Tips
• Stay off corded phones, computers and other electrical equipment that put you in direct contact with electricity.
• Avoid plumbing, including sinks, baths and faucets.
• Stay away from windows and doors, and stay off porches.
• Do not lie on concrete floors, and do not lean against concrete walls.

Hot Weather Safety:

While you may think that extreme heat is not a problem where you live, heat waves can happen anywhere in the U.S., including Alaska and Hawaii. 

• Drink plenty of water or other non-caffeinated and non-alcoholic beverages.
• Wear loose, lightweight clothing.
• Find a place to cool off. If you don’t have air conditioning at home then spend some time in a public location that does, like a shopping mall or a library.
• Avoid spending time outside during the peak heat of the day (typically 10am – 3pm). If you exercise outdoors, avoid the worst of the heat by going early in the morning. If you work outdoors, check out the heat safety tips for workers from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

Here are some additional steps and information to help you stay safe during a heat wave:

Heat waves have the potential to cover a large area, exposing a high number of people to a hazardous combination of heat and humidity. In fact, heat is typically the leading cause of weather related fatalities each year. High temperatures and humidity are common in numerous locations across the country. However, when temperatures spike and humidity is on the rise in areas of the U.S. that are not accustomed to these conditions, people don’t necessarily understand that they need to take action to stay safe. Twenty years ago this summer, a heat wave struck Chicago, leading to the deaths of nearly 750 people during a single week. The Chicago heat wave of 1995 tragically demonstrated that heat and humidity can be a deadly combination. These factors put a lot of stress on the human body and can lead to serious health conditions such as heat exhaustion, heat stroke, or even death. The more extreme the temperature, the shorter the amount of exposure time needed to fall ill.

Lightning Safety:

While much of the focus during severe weather is on tornadoes, wind and hail, there are actually more deaths caused each year by flooding and lightning, which are also commonly associated with severe weather. If you hear thunder or see lightning, head inside immediately! When Thunder Roars Go Indoors! Heavy rainfall from thunderstorms can quickly cause rivers and streams to overrun their banks and cause street flooding in cities. Remember, if you encounter a flooded roadway, do NOT drive or walk into it. Turn Around!

Lightning and Flood Threats

• NO PLACE outside is safe when thunderstorms are in the area!!
• If you hear thunder, lightning is close enough to strike you.
• When you hear thunder, immediately move to safe shelter: a substantial building with electricity or plumbing or an enclosed, metal-topped vehicle with windows up.
• Stay in safe shelter at least 30 minutes after you hear the last sound of thunder.
• Listen to local news or NOAA Weather Radio for emergency updates. Watch for signs of a storm, like darkening skies, lightning flashes or increasing wind.
• If you can hear thunder, you are close enough to be in danger from lightning. If thunder roars, go indoors! Don't wait for rain. Lightning can strike out of a clear blue sky. Learn more about lightning safety.
• Avoid electrical equipment and corded telephones. Cordless phones, cell phones and other wireless handheld devices are safe to use.
• Keep away from windows.
• If you are driving, try to safely exit the roadway and park. Stay in the vehicle and turn on the emergency flashers until the heavy rain ends.
• If you are outside and cannot reach a safe building, avoid high ground; water; tall, isolated trees; and metal objects such as fences or bleachers. Picnic shelters, dugouts and sheds are NOT safe.

Severe Thunderstorms:

A thunderstorm is considered severe if it produces hail at least 1 inch in diameter or has wind gusts of at least 58 miles per hour. Every thunderstorm produces lightning, which kills more people some years than tornadoes or hurricanes. Heavy rain from thunderstorms can cause flash flooding. High winds can damage homes and blow down trees and utility poles, causing widespread power outages. Every year people are killed or seriously injured because they didn't hear or ignored severe thunderstorms warnings. 

A tornado is a violently rotating column of air extending from the base of a thunderstorm down to the ground. Tornadoes are capable of completely destroying well-made structures, uprooting trees and hurling objects through the air like deadly missiles. Tornadoes can occur at any time of day or night and at any time of the year. Although tornadoes are most common in the Central Plains and southeastern United States, they have been reported in all 50 states.