Severe Weather Preparedness Week: Here's what you should do in the event of a tornado

INDIANAPOLIS — Indiana has been a part of most of the significant tornado outbreaks in the country, averaging around 23 tornadoes a year.

Although the last couple of years have been relatively quiet, you should always be prepared for the possibility of severe weather.

Here are a few statistics on tornadoes in Indiana:

• It once had 37 in a day on June, 2 1990.
• It had 44 in a month in June of 1990.
• It had 72 in a year in 2011.

Two deadly outbreaks account for 70% of all tornado fatalities in the Hoosier state since 1950.

The Palm Sunday Tornadoes on April 11, 1965, were the deadliest. 137 Hoosiers were killed and more than 1,700 were injured.

On April 3 and 4, 1974, the Super Outbreak of Tornadoes produced 148 tornadoes that swept across 13 states including Indiana. In all, 21 tornadoes ripped across 38 Indiana counties.

When a Tornado Warning is issued, seek shelter in the basement of your home. If you don’t have a basement, seek shelter in an interior hallway or bathroom with no windows. Put as many walls between you and the outside of your home as possible.

If you live in a mobile home, you must have a plan to move to a sturdier shelter. This may be a building within your community or a house close enough to seek shelter.

If you live in an apartment on an upper floor, seek shelter on the lowest level. You should get to know a first-floor resident and make arrangements for severe weather or find another safe place on or below ground level..

The best safety plan is of no value if you don’t know the storm is coming.

Make sure you are aware of approaching severe weather with our Storm Shield app. It’s free and serves as a weather radio for your phone.