As if the flooding and high winds associated with hurricanes were not enough, did you know that there are other hurricane by-products that are just as deadly and destructive?  As a matter of fact, twistin’ tornadoes are quite often produced during a hurricane’s reign of terror. Interestingly, they do not usually occur right in the midst of the hurricane where you might expect them, but actually quite a ways away from the eye of the storm itself.  It is hard to gage where they will crop up, and sometimes they dissipate as quickly as they form. In addition to the foregoing, it is important to note that not every hurricane will also spawn a tornado or numerous tornadoes, but every hurricane has the potential to do so.

Quite possibly the most famous hurricane to do so was the 1967 category five Hurricane Beulah which is said to have caused an awe-inspiring 115 tornadoes in the state of Texas. The twisters were visible as gray or black columns of quickly rotating air that seem to be coming down from the clouds.  Debris will usually circle with the air, and some may more as fast as 100 or more miles per hour, while the deadliest ones can reach speeds of 300 miles per hour.

If you find yourself in the midst of a hurricane disaster, you know that the high winds but especially the storm surge are the deadly aspects of the natural disaster you are facing.  Yet the tornadoes these hurricanes may spawn add another component to the danger you will need to be aware of. Since there is no way to tell if and when tornadoes will be spawned, it is probably safest to simply assume that the hurricane you are facing will also spawn tornadoes, and so you will need to be able to not only protect yourself from the flooding and high winds, but also from the twisters.

Similarly, it is imperative to keep in mind that the usual warning signs that precede the advent of a tornado are missing in the case of hurricane induced twisters – in other words, you will most likely not see the greenish tinted clouds, hail, or lightning that those who live in Tornado Alley have come to anticipate as signs of the impending trouble.  In the same way, if a hurricane makes landfall at night, the tornadoes might occur at night as well, which once again goes against everything you will know about tornadoes.

Here are some tips on surviving the tornadoes spawned by the hurricane.

Make sure you have a battery-powered radio in your survival pack so that you will be able to receive warnings and up to date information about the status of the hurricane.

If you live in a manufactured home, mobile home, or even a high rise, evacuate at the first warning and search out the safe buildings in your city.  The first two are not built to endure the storms of a hurricane or even a tornado, and the third will be severely damaged by the winds as well as the tornadoes that come.

If you live in a home that is considered safe, find or outfit a safe room.  This room should not have an exterior door or any windows. In a pinch, a closet will do. Make sure that the room is above the water level, so that any storm surge will not cause you to get flooded in your home during the most crucial time of your taking shelter from the storm.

If you receive the instructions to go to your safe room, be sure to turn off the water, gas, and electricity to your home and immediately go into the room and close the door.  Do not be fooled by prolonged times of silence, since these could be simply the eye of the storm or the time between individual tornadoes.  Stay in your safe room until you are told it is safe to come out again.

Tornado photo by Cheryl Empey

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