9 ms·

I slept through three tornado sirens last night. It was pretty wild. The first one, I thought it was a test. (We have tests every month on the 1st.) But it wasn

I slept through three tornado sirens last night. It was pretty wild. The first one, I thought it was a test. (We have tests every month on the 1st.) But it wasn't until a few minutes in that I realized it was for real. Then apparently I just... went to sleep? That wasn't the smartest decision I've ever made. It went off a couple more times. One strange thing was the realization that I had no idea where to turn for information. The fall of TV means that in a situation like that, there isn't any "tune to your local TV station" type broadcast. All you get is a tornado siren. I imagine if nuclear armageddon ever happens, it'll be similar. Though at least with that, there'll be some information channel to turn to.

oatz 5y ago
You can use your phone as an FM/AM radio receiver. Tune to your local station.
- driverdan 5y ago
  I downvoted you because very few phones have AM and/or FM receivers. I've never owned a phone with one. None of the most popular phones have had them.
- hereforphone 5y ago
  I assume you're talking about streaming the station over the Internet
  - hutzlibu 5y ago
    No he or she is not, a radio receiver is not such a high tech after all and I think all of my mobile phones had or have that feature build in, even though I never used it (in some you would have to have earphones plugged in as a antenna)
    - thepasswordis 5y ago
      Do you live in the American Midwest?
    - deleted 5y ago
      [deleted]
    - mmcgaha 5y ago
      I haven't had a phone with built in radio, but back in the late 0s I had an ipod with a built in FM radio, and it was the coolest radio I ever had. You could pause and rewind it like a tivo. I assume the radio on a smart phone would be about the same.
- readflaggedcomm 5y ago
  Not all, not even most from the listings I looked at a few years ago. Only one of the three old Android phones I have supports it, and it's one without a recognizable brand (the other two are Samsung and LG).
- themark 5y ago
  Can you do this on an iPhone? The first time I was in a Tesla, my initial thought was why can’t my phone tune into FM Radio.
  - jazzyjackson 5y ago
    wow TIL Teslas don’t come standard with a radio, who do they think they are, Lotus? ;-)
    - speedgoose 5y ago
      I'm not sure it's what he said. Mine has a radio.
      - jazzyjackson 5y ago
        wow look at this guy, got the upgraded entertainment package with AM/FM radio! (I kid, seems to be something that changes with the model year)
        speedgoose 5y ago
        It has a DAB radio too! https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_Audio_Broadcasting https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_Audio_Broadcasting
  - kevin_thibedeau 5y ago
    First step is to plug in headphones to serve as an antenna. Then you're all set.
- BeetleB 5y ago
  Not true for all phones. I know I checked with at least one of my older phones (a Samsung Galaxy) and it could not do radio. Edit: Checked: My current phone doesn't support radio as well.
xwdv 5y ago
Interesting that your reaction was to just go to sleep. Do you feel you have nothing left to lose in life?
- sillysaurusx 5y ago
  I'm really not sure. It surprised me. I was just comfy. It was also a question of probabilities; very few people die in an event like this, so the odds seemed in my favor. But of course, https://xkcd.com/795/ https://xkcd.com/795/ points out that fallacy. EDIT: Their question was fair. I feel bad that they're downvoted; please be nice.
rossnordby 5y ago
One day, fully alert and sober at something like 5 PM with no excuses, during a thunderstorm, I heard tornado sirens go off. I thought to myself, "sheesh they are only supposed to run tests at noon once a month, and not during sto- oh"
- mjevans 5y ago
  That is also my response to fire alarms so sensitive that they'll start to chirp when I can't even recognize the smell of a neighbor 50+ ft away smoking outside. It'd be really nice if no one smoked and if these alarms reserved the shrill noises for real emergencies and user initiated tests only.
  - bob778 5y ago
    FYI, fire alarms are designed to become more sensitive as they age/die so if yours is picking up false positives, it’s a good indicator you need to replace it. That, or it really is poor ventilation.
    - dogsgobork 5y ago
      I hadn't really thought about it, but that makes a ton of sense. Smoke detectors typically use an alpha-emitter, smoke absorbs alpha particles, so a failure to detect is what triggers the alarm. The cost for a false-negative is much higher than a false-positive, so that's what the detector should default to.
      - dghughes 5y ago
        I have a Nest smoke alarm and it was bad for going off due to the vapours from showers, boiling water when cooking. But to the credit of Nest/Google/Alphabet they replaced it free of charge. It was just an off-the-cuff comment I made on Twitter and Nest said send it back. They sent a new one, a new model, and when it arrived I sent back the older model. The new model is much better essentially zero false positives due to water vapour.
  - 5y ago
bluefirebrand 5y ago
Isn't this what emergency alerts are for on our phones?
- fortran77 5y ago
  No. There's for some parental custody battle 200 miles away. I disabled mine because I can't afford to have an audible alarm go off randomly in my line of work.
  - dylan604 5y ago
    Thinking of what jobs this would be a thing...all of them. Turn your damn ringers off at work people!!!
    - fortran77 5y ago
      Even with ringer off, the ‘Amber Alerts” ring. I’ve had it ruin recording sessions.
      - dylan604 5y ago
        Amber alerts are not really that frequent. Jane 2 cubicles over that has that cute ring tone, or Jim next to you with the clicks whose got text notifications turned to 11 are the problem.
- AdrianB1 5y ago
  I know many people that turned it off because the authorities abused the system too much.
  - MisterBastahrd 5y ago
    Yes, I especially loved it months ago when I was getting Amber alerts for a child abduction that took place in San Antonio (I'm in Dallas). I was totally ready to jump out of bed at 3am and look for a silver Impala that couldn't have even gotten to my location for another 5 hours.
jazzyjackson 5y ago
if you live in tornado alley you ought to have an emergency radio, it at least gives you something to listen to while the power’s out https://www.amazon.com/Raynic-Emergency-Portable-Flashlight-Cellphone/dp/B07TXL4XJP/ref=mp_s_a_1_4 https://www.amazon.com/Raynic-Emergency-Portable-Flashlight-...
- StevePerkins 5y ago
  There's something surreal about this being an Amazon link, for a customer in St. Louis.
  - fouc 5y ago
    Given the distance to warehouse, perhaps they could've ordered the radio after the first siren, and received it by the second siren. Guaranteed next-siren delivery.
- cableshaft 5y ago
  Yeah definitely. Especially one with the NOAA weather alert stations like this one. You can just tune in to that and get regular updates about the weather situation. If you happen to lose yours, like I did (It's in the basement somewhere, but I should probably just buy another one at this point), as long as your internet is still up and running you can stream from a laptop, which I've done a few times: https://www.weatherusa.net/radio https://www.weatherusa.net/radio
- AlbertCory 5y ago
  They're also windup, so even if your power's out for 10 days, they'll still work.
- splitstud 5y ago
  These are great devices, especially the better models. Radio including weather band, flashlight and phone charger, plug in a lamp or water kettle. Must have on the gulf coast.
boomboomsubban 5y ago
>The fall of TV means that in a situation like that, there isn't any "tune to your local TV station" type broadcast. All you get is a tornado siren. You didn't get a phone alert about it happening? I thought those were mandatory for these kinds of events, I think they even overrule some of the DND rules on your phone. I had something similar happen this summer, and I can't remember if I woke up from the alert and went back to sleep or woke up to a missed alert, but I definitely got more information on my phone without ever asking for it.
- sillysaurusx 5y ago
  Hmm. I guess I should've checked my phone. Thanks for the tip!
- tylermac1 5y ago
  I definitely get the Amber-alert-style phone alert for Tornado warnings in my area.
  - Kye 5y ago
    I had to turn these off because they went off 5 times a day for large parts of the year, often at night. We get a lot of weird spot storms in northeast Georgia from the Gulf that seem to confuse warning systems. It was a choice between dying of stress and poor sleep for sure or maybe dying from a tornado.
    - throwawayboise 5y ago
      Yeah I have all that alerting stuff disabled on my phone too. Way too many false alarms.
- sneak 5y ago
  > You didn't get a phone alert about it happening? I thought those were mandatory for these kinds of events, I think they even overrule some of the DND rules on your phone. I turned those off at the system level because the local authorities would abuse them to announce allegations of kidnapping, or license plate numbers of people who supposedly shot at cops and other such things that are not a threat to my life or safety (and thus not my business). Apple, fortunately, in iOS 15 broke out the categories so you can turn off the "we want you to pay attention to this" crap from the police separately from the "here is critical information about something that might kill you". Having them on the same category/priority before was massively irresponsible on the part of the police. I'm glad people with enough sense to understand alert fatigue eventually prevailed.
sakopov 5y ago
I lived in Midwest for over 20 years. There were times when I'd be sipping coffee while sitting outside a coffee shop underneath giant funnel clouds above. Tornado alerts are common but touchdowns are so rare that you just kind of not pay attention anymore. With that said, it seems like when they do occur they are increasingly more damaging and closer to densely populated areas. Two years ago there was one just a few miles outside of Kansas City downtown. I remember hearing the next days in the news that it was nothing short of a miracle that it didn't move toward downtown and instead went off into the rural parts of the city.
- CamperBob2 5y ago
  Interesting. I lived in the Midwest for nearly 20 years as well. Tornado watches were common, warnings much less so... and if anyone saw a funnel cloud, it was time to panic, duck, and cover right freaking now.
  - syshum 5y ago
    years ago they would only call a warning when they had a confirmed visual on a touch down, I am not sure when they made the change but for at least the last few years (and probably longer) I have noticed them calling more and more warning based on radar signature alone
    - goseeastarwar 5y ago
      I'd venture a guess that's due to better radar and better spotting intelligence. When you can't physically see tornadoes when they're rain-wrapped, but have high confidence that they're there, you're putting lives at risk by not activating the sirens.
    - cbfrench 5y ago
      In part because the radar tech has advanced so much. Based on reflectivity, velocity, and correlation coefficient alone, they are able to make a pretty sound guess about whether or not a supercell or QLCS is capable of producing a tornado. There’s no reason why you would want to wait for visual confirmation of the radar output when it could mean the difference (potentially) between giving people in the path a long or a short lead time on the warning.
athenot 5y ago
Twitter is a great source of information; when there's a tornado warning I keep a close eye on #gawx (substitute first 2 letters for your own state). That ends up producing a feed of info from meteorologists and amateur spotters with a mix of official reports, amateur info, photos, radar pics, etc. Often any photo or video will have comments from TV stations asking for permission to rebroadcast.
- timc3 5y ago
  For me twitter is a terrible source of information because there is just too much noise. I rarely read anything on Twitter anymore
  - deleted 5y ago
    [deleted]
  - bcrosby95 5y ago
    There's people who do this as a job/hobby. I don't mean following some random people. We live in SoCal and follow VCScanner, he has up to date info about fires, and is the whole reason we were already leaving our city when the firefighters were driving in to let people know to evacuate.
qbasic_forever 5y ago
TV is still a thing--get a small antenna to pick up your local stations. Growing up in tornado alley we always had a local TV news station on during severe weather. They cut out of regular broadcasting and usually have a live play by play with the weatherman showing radar and locations of known funnel clouds, etc. If you're going to live there make a plan for future severe weather like this--it's nothing you want to sleep through.
dylan604 5y ago
>The fall of TV You mean in your daily in-take of media? Local TV stations are required to broadcast weather. It's actually part of their licensing. So if you're not in the habit of turning on the local station because of crappy programming (like me), then you should at least be willing to find a local station during weather. Even if regular programming is on, they will break in when requested by the NWS. Local radio will as well, but I can't remember the last time I heard Clearcom or whatever the othe station owner is do this. I just don't listen to radio. Also, most local stations will also be running live webcasts to FB/YT/etc. They do this in order to avoid interrupting programming until it is urgent enough to do so. I'm in North Texas, and during severe weather season, I have a web browser permantely tuned to the radar. If it's getting bad, I'll find a local station. > I imagine if nuclear armageddon ever happens, it'll be similar If you're in Hawaii, you'll get a text.
- hncurious 5y ago
  > If you're in Hawaii, you'll get a text. Or even a missile alert! This must have been terrifying: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2018_Hawaii_false_missile_alert https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2018_Hawaii_false_missile_aler...
- SECProto 5y ago
  > So if you're not in the habit of turning on the local station because of crappy programming (like me), then you should at least be willing to find a local station during weather. How would I even go about doing that? The only display devices I have are monitors. Even for radio, I would have to go to my car to listen.
  - qbasic_forever 5y ago
    Part of living in an area prone to certain disasters is being prepared to deal with them. Get a small weather radio.
    - techdragon 5y ago
      But I would have to listen to its crap all the time waiting for the rare signal I actually want from it. Edit: having continued reading more comments and googling what the fuck a “weather radio” is… I’m now deeply annoyed at the fact I have no equivalent living in Australia. I could look at a global weather service like Navtex but I’m actually not interested in the weather, i just want a way to get emergency broadcast warnings without relying on my phone. The system in Australia doesn’t use cell broadcast it uses a shitty alternative, they are tendering for a replacement that does use cell broadcast but who knows when that will actually be running. Since I have zero trust in the current system I’d like a way to get critical emergency notices without having to develop a habit of paranoid checking emergency websites or building my own fragile alert system using their RSS feeds or something like that.
heavyset_go 5y ago
> One strange thing was the realization that I had no idea where to turn for information. The fall of TV means that in a situation like that, there isn't any "tune to your local TV station" type broadcast Get a DTV antenna for your TV and you'll get your free local broadcasts. > I imagine if nuclear armageddon ever happens, it'll be similar In that case, I think any of us would be lucky to get a warning at all.
emptybottle 5y ago
The most straightforward thing you can do is pick up a cheap TV antenna and a basic battery powered radio. Over the air TV is actually really good now. The switch to digital brought full HD over the air. And local FM/AM radio will broadcast info in an emergency. Can get a weather radio too if you want to.
- deleted 5y ago
  [deleted]
lettergram 5y ago
My wife and I were evaluating last night what to do. We saw the warnings, but they happen so often we just went back to bed after looking outside. Woke up to part of our siding was ripped off from the storms (not uncommon). We kind of figured it would happen, but the storms were hours long and 99.9% of the time nothing happens.
thomasfedb 5y ago
One of the many reasons I love the ABC (our national broadcaster in Australia) is that everybody knows that they will have the info you need in an emergency - on TV, radio, online, and social media, round the clock.
- IntelMiner 5y ago
  At least until Murdoch and Fairfax get their wish and the ABC is dismantled Then we'll be able to hear about it in between commercials for gambling and MasterChef
- techdragon 5y ago
  Unfortunately I have to listen to them to find out. Our emergency alert system is basically garbage. If there was any kind of sudden emergency like a tornado (this becoming a real threat in Sydney and Perth it’s not common but i hear the phrase “mini-tornado” way too frequently over the last few years) Then our systems are completely inadequate for promptly alerting the population at risk. It’s scraping by for bushfires and other big long lasting dangers, but it’s utterly inadequate for “urgent emergencies”.
harha 5y ago
When I was studying in the states fire alarm tests (or someone cooking triggering them) were so frequent that I would have never expected to be informed of a real fire this way. Monthly test alarms are so wrong.
pmorici 5y ago
Buy WX “weather alert” radio Midland makes a bunch of models some that even run off batteries. Basically it is several radio stations run By NOAA to send out local wether and warnings. They are like 20 bucks and most also do AM FM as well.
mannykannot 5y ago
Do you think you would have reacted differently during tornado season? (I'm not sure when that is, but I am pretty sure December isn't in it, or at least was not before the storms of 2011.) I think it is also worth pointing out that merely having sirens, and the information network capable (for the most part) of setting them off when and only when there is a significant risk, is well within about 90% of being as good as one should reasonably expect: if that is the most information you can get in the moment, how, rationally, should you respond, if not by seeking cover? On the other hand, it is quickly counter-productive to set off the sirens for every mildly elevated risk, as it conditions everyone to be skeptical. Unfortunately, current social dynamics, which blame and punish anyone who makes a decision to not raise the alarm prior to something bad subsequently happening, is guaranteed to bring about this skepticism.
- throwawayboise 5y ago
  I didn't pay it much mind, exactly because it wasn't very warm out. Once tree branches started flying around and banging on the roof, I did go downstairs for a few minutes.
mjrpes 5y ago
Following radar maps can give you a hint of what's to come. Check out this doppler map of Mayfield right before it got hit: https://weather.us/radar-us/kentucky/radar-and-lightning/KHPX_20211211-030541z.html https://weather.us/radar-us/kentucky/radar-and-lightning/KHP... Notice it was right in line with a cell at the "extreme/hail" end of the spectrum.
tzs 5y ago
As far as I know we don't have tornado sirens here (Western Washington across Puget Sound from Seattle), but we got a tornado warning here a month ago and officials issued some kind of alert by smart phone. It was amazingly loud on my iPhone. I don't think I've ever been so tired that I would have been able to sleep through it if it had happened when I was asleep. Tornadoes are rare here--before that one the last had been in 2018, and the last before that was 1991, and I don't think there are any on record before that in this county. I Googled for something like "active tornado warnings" and found this site: https://www.tornadohq.com/ https://www.tornadohq.com/ The warning for my area was on the list on the front page, had a link to show the full alert from the National Weather Service, and had a link to show a map of the boundary of the area covered by the warning. I had no plan for what to do. There is a place in my house where I can stand and have walls or closed doors between me and all windows to provide some shelter from flying debris, so that was one idea. The other idea was to hop in my car and drive to a place nearby that is up on top of a hill and has roads in perpendicular directions and good visibility. From there the hope would be to be able to see if it was coming my way, and then flee by whichever road is most perpendicular to the direction it was moving.
- JonathonW 5y ago
  If you're at home, get to a basement or an interior room; it's not a bad idea to bring along some blankets or pillows as well to protect yourself from flying debris. Don't get in your car and go drive. You can't outrun a tornado, and you don't want to be outdoors in one. If you're already outside or in your car driving when a warning's issued for your area, the best course of action is to find the closest sturdy building to shelter in (a gas station, grocery store, whatever); if that's not possible, either get down in your car and cover your head, or abandon your car and shelter in a low-lying area. See: https://www.weather.gov/safety/tornado-during https://www.weather.gov/safety/tornado-during
tigerInATurvy 5y ago
Get a weather radio if you don't have one. For about 20-40 bucks, you can get one with rechargeable batteries and a charging cradle. Follow the instructions to set it for your regional station. It will wake up and sound the alert for any warnings in your area. Plus you can actively listen to it for the latest storm news. As long as you still have power & internet, your local tv station will usually stream during weather emergencies. I've done this on more than one stormy day. Sat comfortably on the couch watching one stream on the iPad while another played on the television. Wondering if this was going to be the day when it finally hit. On your phone, get RadarScope. It's highly worth the 5 or 10 dollars. It's a detailed radar app. Has many different radar products. Can see the usual storm views with warnings outlined. the relative velocity to see the spin. correlation coefficient to determine if there's a debris ball. Etc. Shows the estimated tracking path for storm cells. For the many storms in my area, this has been invaluable. Probably the most important resource is NOAA's local prediction pages and the Storm Prediction Center (SPC). During storm seasons, the SPC's Convective Outlook is worth checking at least once a day to see if anything's likely in the near future. Plus the mesoscale discussions are useful on the storm day to see how the forecasters think the events will play out. For local reporting by locals, Twitter is surprisingly useful. Look for a hashtag that contains the two letter abbreviation for your state plus the letters "wx". I follow #kswx for Kansas storms.
- dave78 5y ago
  Seconding the recommendation for a weather radio. If you get a good one, you can program it with your SAME code (basically a region code) and also select which types of alerts you want it to sound for. I have one next to my bed since we're on the upper level of a 2-story house with it set to only alert on severe thunderstorm warnings and tornado warnings. This gives me confidence that I will be alerted if there's an issue and still have time to make it to the basement. This is the radio I have, and though I have a few small complaints overall I'm very happy with it: https://www.amazon.com/Sangean-CL-100-Certified-Table-Top-Stations/dp/B003QHXZM4 https://www.amazon.com/Sangean-CL-100-Certified-Table-Top-St... As a side note, having lived my whole life in the Midwest I've always dealt with tornados and know how they work, and it's shocking how little a lot of other people here seem to know. I guess if you don't have a few tornado watches/warnings a year then you just don't ever learn about them. The amount of ridiculous takes in these comments is really something - you don't find out about tornados before you go to work so you can stay home, or have time when there's a tornado warning to get in your car and go for a drive or anything like that. If you're lucky you have 5-10 minutes notice, but it's common to get only 30 seconds or so of warning. People who live in the Midwest know that when you hear a tornado warning (around here they sound the civil defense sirens, but also weather radio and phone alerts), you go to your place of shelter immediately.
nimbius 5y ago
EAS is still broadcast over the air on the VHF spectrum and includes NOAA weather updates which your taxes pay for. Buy a weather radio, because the TV alerts are literally just EAS receivers interrupting programming. EAS transmission sites are built to withstand tornadoes and even casual offensive military strikes. TV stations aren't. You may also consider getting into amateur radio too.
zippergz 5y ago
I know this doesn't directly help you in STL, but Tennessee has a pretty incredible volunteer crew who update us on Twitter and also go live on YouTube when things get bad. There may be something similar in your area. We find them to be invaluable for keeping us up to date, more effectively than TV news ever did. https://twitter.com/nashseverewx https://twitter.com/nashseverewx Sample of last night's coverage: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dfdgKfoV538 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dfdgKfoV538
barcadad 5y ago
This is all so dumb that it feels like it must be a troll. You don’t need a TV to watch your local TV news. They have this newfangled thing called a website and they are also on twitter. Or try your local newspaper’s website, which will obviously cover live weather events. Sigh.
edoceo 5y ago
You can also get a hand-crank emergency radio - does AM, FM and some other weird (NWS) bands. Once you know the emergency stations just write them on the radio with Sharpie. Like these https://www.bobvila.com/articles/best-hand-crank-radio/ https://www.bobvila.com/articles/best-hand-crank-radio/
kolinko 5y ago
In situations like these I tune into a local radio stations online. Most of them do streaming. Also, you can google quickly what siren signals mean. There are specific patterns for various disasters and tests. And finally - if it’s in the middle of night, for sure it’s something serious.

oatz 5y ago

You can use your phone as an FM/AM radio receiver. Tune to your local station.

driverdan 5y ago
I downvoted you because very few phones have AM and/or FM receivers. I've never owned a phone with one. None of the most popular phones have had them.
hereforphone 5y ago
I assume you're talking about streaming the station over the Internet
- hutzlibu 5y ago
  No he or she is not, a radio receiver is not such a high tech after all and I think all of my mobile phones had or have that feature build in, even though I never used it (in some you would have to have earphones plugged in as a antenna)
  - thepasswordis 5y ago
    Do you live in the American Midwest?
  - deleted 5y ago
    [deleted]
  - mmcgaha 5y ago
    I haven't had a phone with built in radio, but back in the late 0s I had an ipod with a built in FM radio, and it was the coolest radio I ever had. You could pause and rewind it like a tivo. I assume the radio on a smart phone would be about the same.
readflaggedcomm 5y ago
Not all, not even most from the listings I looked at a few years ago. Only one of the three old Android phones I have supports it, and it's one without a recognizable brand (the other two are Samsung and LG).
themark 5y ago
Can you do this on an iPhone? The first time I was in a Tesla, my initial thought was why can’t my phone tune into FM Radio.
- jazzyjackson 5y ago
  wow TIL Teslas don’t come standard with a radio, who do they think they are, Lotus? ;-)
  - speedgoose 5y ago
    I'm not sure it's what he said. Mine has a radio.
    - jazzyjackson 5y ago
      wow look at this guy, got the upgraded entertainment package with AM/FM radio! (I kid, seems to be something that changes with the model year)
      - speedgoose 5y ago
        It has a DAB radio too! https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_Audio_Broadcasting https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_Audio_Broadcasting
- kevin_thibedeau 5y ago
  First step is to plug in headphones to serve as an antenna. Then you're all set.
BeetleB 5y ago
Not true for all phones. I know I checked with at least one of my older phones (a Samsung Galaxy) and it could not do radio. Edit: Checked: My current phone doesn't support radio as well.

xwdv 5y ago

Interesting that your reaction was to just go to sleep. Do you feel you have nothing left to lose in life?

sillysaurusx 5y ago
I'm really not sure. It surprised me. I was just comfy. It was also a question of probabilities; very few people die in an event like this, so the odds seemed in my favor. But of course, https://xkcd.com/795/ https://xkcd.com/795/ points out that fallacy. EDIT: Their question was fair. I feel bad that they're downvoted; please be nice.

rossnordby 5y ago

One day, fully alert and sober at something like 5 PM with no excuses, during a thunderstorm, I heard tornado sirens go off. I thought to myself, "sheesh they are only supposed to run tests at noon once a month, and not during sto- oh"

mjevans 5y ago
That is also my response to fire alarms so sensitive that they'll start to chirp when I can't even recognize the smell of a neighbor 50+ ft away smoking outside. It'd be really nice if no one smoked and if these alarms reserved the shrill noises for real emergencies and user initiated tests only.
- bob778 5y ago
  FYI, fire alarms are designed to become more sensitive as they age/die so if yours is picking up false positives, it’s a good indicator you need to replace it. That, or it really is poor ventilation.
  - dogsgobork 5y ago
    I hadn't really thought about it, but that makes a ton of sense. Smoke detectors typically use an alpha-emitter, smoke absorbs alpha particles, so a failure to detect is what triggers the alarm. The cost for a false-negative is much higher than a false-positive, so that's what the detector should default to.
    - dghughes 5y ago
      I have a Nest smoke alarm and it was bad for going off due to the vapours from showers, boiling water when cooking. But to the credit of Nest/Google/Alphabet they replaced it free of charge. It was just an off-the-cuff comment I made on Twitter and Nest said send it back. They sent a new one, a new model, and when it arrived I sent back the older model. The new model is much better essentially zero false positives due to water vapour.
- 5y ago

bluefirebrand 5y ago

Isn't this what emergency alerts are for on our phones?

fortran77 5y ago
No. There's for some parental custody battle 200 miles away. I disabled mine because I can't afford to have an audible alarm go off randomly in my line of work.
- dylan604 5y ago
  Thinking of what jobs this would be a thing...all of them. Turn your damn ringers off at work people!!!
  - fortran77 5y ago
    Even with ringer off, the ‘Amber Alerts” ring. I’ve had it ruin recording sessions.
    - dylan604 5y ago
      Amber alerts are not really that frequent. Jane 2 cubicles over that has that cute ring tone, or Jim next to you with the clicks whose got text notifications turned to 11 are the problem.
AdrianB1 5y ago
I know many people that turned it off because the authorities abused the system too much.
- MisterBastahrd 5y ago
  Yes, I especially loved it months ago when I was getting Amber alerts for a child abduction that took place in San Antonio (I'm in Dallas). I was totally ready to jump out of bed at 3am and look for a silver Impala that couldn't have even gotten to my location for another 5 hours.

jazzyjackson 5y ago

if you live in tornado alley you ought to have an emergency radio, it at least gives you something to listen to while the power’s out https://www.amazon.com/Raynic-Emergency-Portable-Flashlight-Cellphone/dp/B07TXL4XJP/ref=mp_s_a_1_4 https://www.amazon.com/Raynic-Emergency-Portable-Flashlight-...

StevePerkins 5y ago
There's something surreal about this being an Amazon link, for a customer in St. Louis.
- fouc 5y ago
  Given the distance to warehouse, perhaps they could've ordered the radio after the first siren, and received it by the second siren. Guaranteed next-siren delivery.
cableshaft 5y ago
Yeah definitely. Especially one with the NOAA weather alert stations like this one. You can just tune in to that and get regular updates about the weather situation. If you happen to lose yours, like I did (It's in the basement somewhere, but I should probably just buy another one at this point), as long as your internet is still up and running you can stream from a laptop, which I've done a few times: https://www.weatherusa.net/radio https://www.weatherusa.net/radio
AlbertCory 5y ago
They're also windup, so even if your power's out for 10 days, they'll still work.
splitstud 5y ago
These are great devices, especially the better models. Radio including weather band, flashlight and phone charger, plug in a lamp or water kettle. Must have on the gulf coast.

boomboomsubban 5y ago

>The fall of TV means that in a situation like that, there isn't any "tune to your local TV station" type broadcast. All you get is a tornado siren. You didn't get a phone alert about it happening? I thought those were mandatory for these kinds of events, I think they even overrule some of the DND rules on your phone. I had something similar happen this summer, and I can't remember if I woke up from the alert and went back to sleep or woke up to a missed alert, but I definitely got more information on my phone without ever asking for it.

sillysaurusx 5y ago
Hmm. I guess I should've checked my phone. Thanks for the tip!
tylermac1 5y ago
I definitely get the Amber-alert-style phone alert for Tornado warnings in my area.
- Kye 5y ago
  I had to turn these off because they went off 5 times a day for large parts of the year, often at night. We get a lot of weird spot storms in northeast Georgia from the Gulf that seem to confuse warning systems. It was a choice between dying of stress and poor sleep for sure or maybe dying from a tornado.
  - throwawayboise 5y ago
    Yeah I have all that alerting stuff disabled on my phone too. Way too many false alarms.
sneak 5y ago
> You didn't get a phone alert about it happening? I thought those were mandatory for these kinds of events, I think they even overrule some of the DND rules on your phone. I turned those off at the system level because the local authorities would abuse them to announce allegations of kidnapping, or license plate numbers of people who supposedly shot at cops and other such things that are not a threat to my life or safety (and thus not my business). Apple, fortunately, in iOS 15 broke out the categories so you can turn off the "we want you to pay attention to this" crap from the police separately from the "here is critical information about something that might kill you". Having them on the same category/priority before was massively irresponsible on the part of the police. I'm glad people with enough sense to understand alert fatigue eventually prevailed.

sakopov 5y ago

I lived in Midwest for over 20 years. There were times when I'd be sipping coffee while sitting outside a coffee shop underneath giant funnel clouds above. Tornado alerts are common but touchdowns are so rare that you just kind of not pay attention anymore. With that said, it seems like when they do occur they are increasingly more damaging and closer to densely populated areas. Two years ago there was one just a few miles outside of Kansas City downtown. I remember hearing the next days in the news that it was nothing short of a miracle that it didn't move toward downtown and instead went off into the rural parts of the city.

CamperBob2 5y ago
Interesting. I lived in the Midwest for nearly 20 years as well. Tornado watches were common, warnings much less so... and if anyone saw a funnel cloud, it was time to panic, duck, and cover right freaking now.
- syshum 5y ago
  years ago they would only call a warning when they had a confirmed visual on a touch down, I am not sure when they made the change but for at least the last few years (and probably longer) I have noticed them calling more and more warning based on radar signature alone
  - goseeastarwar 5y ago
    I'd venture a guess that's due to better radar and better spotting intelligence. When you can't physically see tornadoes when they're rain-wrapped, but have high confidence that they're there, you're putting lives at risk by not activating the sirens.
  - cbfrench 5y ago
    In part because the radar tech has advanced so much. Based on reflectivity, velocity, and correlation coefficient alone, they are able to make a pretty sound guess about whether or not a supercell or QLCS is capable of producing a tornado. There’s no reason why you would want to wait for visual confirmation of the radar output when it could mean the difference (potentially) between giving people in the path a long or a short lead time on the warning.

athenot 5y ago

Twitter is a great source of information; when there's a tornado warning I keep a close eye on #gawx (substitute first 2 letters for your own state). That ends up producing a feed of info from meteorologists and amateur spotters with a mix of official reports, amateur info, photos, radar pics, etc. Often any photo or video will have comments from TV stations asking for permission to rebroadcast.

timc3 5y ago
For me twitter is a terrible source of information because there is just too much noise. I rarely read anything on Twitter anymore
- deleted 5y ago
  [deleted]
- bcrosby95 5y ago
  There's people who do this as a job/hobby. I don't mean following some random people. We live in SoCal and follow VCScanner, he has up to date info about fires, and is the whole reason we were already leaving our city when the firefighters were driving in to let people know to evacuate.

qbasic_forever 5y ago

TV is still a thing--get a small antenna to pick up your local stations. Growing up in tornado alley we always had a local TV news station on during severe weather. They cut out of regular broadcasting and usually have a live play by play with the weatherman showing radar and locations of known funnel clouds, etc. If you're going to live there make a plan for future severe weather like this--it's nothing you want to sleep through.

dylan604 5y ago

>The fall of TV You mean in your daily in-take of media? Local TV stations are required to broadcast weather. It's actually part of their licensing. So if you're not in the habit of turning on the local station because of crappy programming (like me), then you should at least be willing to find a local station during weather. Even if regular programming is on, they will break in when requested by the NWS. Local radio will as well, but I can't remember the last time I heard Clearcom or whatever the othe station owner is do this. I just don't listen to radio. Also, most local stations will also be running live webcasts to FB/YT/etc. They do this in order to avoid interrupting programming until it is urgent enough to do so. I'm in North Texas, and during severe weather season, I have a web browser permantely tuned to the radar. If it's getting bad, I'll find a local station. > I imagine if nuclear armageddon ever happens, it'll be similar If you're in Hawaii, you'll get a text.

hncurious 5y ago
> If you're in Hawaii, you'll get a text. Or even a missile alert! This must have been terrifying: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2018_Hawaii_false_missile_alert https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2018_Hawaii_false_missile_aler...
SECProto 5y ago
> So if you're not in the habit of turning on the local station because of crappy programming (like me), then you should at least be willing to find a local station during weather. How would I even go about doing that? The only display devices I have are monitors. Even for radio, I would have to go to my car to listen.
- qbasic_forever 5y ago
  Part of living in an area prone to certain disasters is being prepared to deal with them. Get a small weather radio.
  - techdragon 5y ago
    But I would have to listen to its crap all the time waiting for the rare signal I actually want from it. Edit: having continued reading more comments and googling what the fuck a “weather radio” is… I’m now deeply annoyed at the fact I have no equivalent living in Australia. I could look at a global weather service like Navtex but I’m actually not interested in the weather, i just want a way to get emergency broadcast warnings without relying on my phone. The system in Australia doesn’t use cell broadcast it uses a shitty alternative, they are tendering for a replacement that does use cell broadcast but who knows when that will actually be running. Since I have zero trust in the current system I’d like a way to get critical emergency notices without having to develop a habit of paranoid checking emergency websites or building my own fragile alert system using their RSS feeds or something like that.

heavyset_go 5y ago

> One strange thing was the realization that I had no idea where to turn for information. The fall of TV means that in a situation like that, there isn't any "tune to your local TV station" type broadcast Get a DTV antenna for your TV and you'll get your free local broadcasts. > I imagine if nuclear armageddon ever happens, it'll be similar In that case, I think any of us would be lucky to get a warning at all.

emptybottle 5y ago

The most straightforward thing you can do is pick up a cheap TV antenna and a basic battery powered radio. Over the air TV is actually really good now. The switch to digital brought full HD over the air. And local FM/AM radio will broadcast info in an emergency. Can get a weather radio too if you want to.

deleted 5y ago
[deleted]

lettergram 5y ago

My wife and I were evaluating last night what to do. We saw the warnings, but they happen so often we just went back to bed after looking outside. Woke up to part of our siding was ripped off from the storms (not uncommon). We kind of figured it would happen, but the storms were hours long and 99.9% of the time nothing happens.

thomasfedb 5y ago

One of the many reasons I love the ABC (our national broadcaster in Australia) is that everybody knows that they will have the info you need in an emergency - on TV, radio, online, and social media, round the clock.

IntelMiner 5y ago
At least until Murdoch and Fairfax get their wish and the ABC is dismantled Then we'll be able to hear about it in between commercials for gambling and MasterChef
techdragon 5y ago
Unfortunately I have to listen to them to find out. Our emergency alert system is basically garbage. If there was any kind of sudden emergency like a tornado (this becoming a real threat in Sydney and Perth it’s not common but i hear the phrase “mini-tornado” way too frequently over the last few years) Then our systems are completely inadequate for promptly alerting the population at risk. It’s scraping by for bushfires and other big long lasting dangers, but it’s utterly inadequate for “urgent emergencies”.

harha 5y ago

When I was studying in the states fire alarm tests (or someone cooking triggering them) were so frequent that I would have never expected to be informed of a real fire this way. Monthly test alarms are so wrong.

pmorici 5y ago

Buy WX “weather alert” radio Midland makes a bunch of models some that even run off batteries. Basically it is several radio stations run By NOAA to send out local wether and warnings. They are like 20 bucks and most also do AM FM as well.

mannykannot 5y ago

Do you think you would have reacted differently during tornado season? (I'm not sure when that is, but I am pretty sure December isn't in it, or at least was not before the storms of 2011.) I think it is also worth pointing out that merely having sirens, and the information network capable (for the most part) of setting them off when and only when there is a significant risk, is well within about 90% of being as good as one should reasonably expect: if that is the most information you can get in the moment, how, rationally, should you respond, if not by seeking cover? On the other hand, it is quickly counter-productive to set off the sirens for every mildly elevated risk, as it conditions everyone to be skeptical. Unfortunately, current social dynamics, which blame and punish anyone who makes a decision to not raise the alarm prior to something bad subsequently happening, is guaranteed to bring about this skepticism.

throwawayboise 5y ago
I didn't pay it much mind, exactly because it wasn't very warm out. Once tree branches started flying around and banging on the roof, I did go downstairs for a few minutes.

mjrpes 5y ago

Following radar maps can give you a hint of what's to come. Check out this doppler map of Mayfield right before it got hit: https://weather.us/radar-us/kentucky/radar-and-lightning/KHPX_20211211-030541z.html https://weather.us/radar-us/kentucky/radar-and-lightning/KHP... Notice it was right in line with a cell at the "extreme/hail" end of the spectrum.

tzs 5y ago

As far as I know we don't have tornado sirens here (Western Washington across Puget Sound from Seattle), but we got a tornado warning here a month ago and officials issued some kind of alert by smart phone. It was amazingly loud on my iPhone. I don't think I've ever been so tired that I would have been able to sleep through it if it had happened when I was asleep. Tornadoes are rare here--before that one the last had been in 2018, and the last before that was 1991, and I don't think there are any on record before that in this county. I Googled for something like "active tornado warnings" and found this site: https://www.tornadohq.com/ https://www.tornadohq.com/ The warning for my area was on the list on the front page, had a link to show the full alert from the National Weather Service, and had a link to show a map of the boundary of the area covered by the warning. I had no plan for what to do. There is a place in my house where I can stand and have walls or closed doors between me and all windows to provide some shelter from flying debris, so that was one idea. The other idea was to hop in my car and drive to a place nearby that is up on top of a hill and has roads in perpendicular directions and good visibility. From there the hope would be to be able to see if it was coming my way, and then flee by whichever road is most perpendicular to the direction it was moving.

JonathonW 5y ago
If you're at home, get to a basement or an interior room; it's not a bad idea to bring along some blankets or pillows as well to protect yourself from flying debris. Don't get in your car and go drive. You can't outrun a tornado, and you don't want to be outdoors in one. If you're already outside or in your car driving when a warning's issued for your area, the best course of action is to find the closest sturdy building to shelter in (a gas station, grocery store, whatever); if that's not possible, either get down in your car and cover your head, or abandon your car and shelter in a low-lying area. See: https://www.weather.gov/safety/tornado-during https://www.weather.gov/safety/tornado-during

tigerInATurvy 5y ago

Get a weather radio if you don't have one. For about 20-40 bucks, you can get one with rechargeable batteries and a charging cradle. Follow the instructions to set it for your regional station. It will wake up and sound the alert for any warnings in your area. Plus you can actively listen to it for the latest storm news. As long as you still have power & internet, your local tv station will usually stream during weather emergencies. I've done this on more than one stormy day. Sat comfortably on the couch watching one stream on the iPad while another played on the television. Wondering if this was going to be the day when it finally hit. On your phone, get RadarScope. It's highly worth the 5 or 10 dollars. It's a detailed radar app. Has many different radar products. Can see the usual storm views with warnings outlined. the relative velocity to see the spin. correlation coefficient to determine if there's a debris ball. Etc. Shows the estimated tracking path for storm cells. For the many storms in my area, this has been invaluable. Probably the most important resource is NOAA's local prediction pages and the Storm Prediction Center (SPC). During storm seasons, the SPC's Convective Outlook is worth checking at least once a day to see if anything's likely in the near future. Plus the mesoscale discussions are useful on the storm day to see how the forecasters think the events will play out. For local reporting by locals, Twitter is surprisingly useful. Look for a hashtag that contains the two letter abbreviation for your state plus the letters "wx". I follow #kswx for Kansas storms.

dave78 5y ago
Seconding the recommendation for a weather radio. If you get a good one, you can program it with your SAME code (basically a region code) and also select which types of alerts you want it to sound for. I have one next to my bed since we're on the upper level of a 2-story house with it set to only alert on severe thunderstorm warnings and tornado warnings. This gives me confidence that I will be alerted if there's an issue and still have time to make it to the basement. This is the radio I have, and though I have a few small complaints overall I'm very happy with it: https://www.amazon.com/Sangean-CL-100-Certified-Table-Top-Stations/dp/B003QHXZM4 https://www.amazon.com/Sangean-CL-100-Certified-Table-Top-St... As a side note, having lived my whole life in the Midwest I've always dealt with tornados and know how they work, and it's shocking how little a lot of other people here seem to know. I guess if you don't have a few tornado watches/warnings a year then you just don't ever learn about them. The amount of ridiculous takes in these comments is really something - you don't find out about tornados before you go to work so you can stay home, or have time when there's a tornado warning to get in your car and go for a drive or anything like that. If you're lucky you have 5-10 minutes notice, but it's common to get only 30 seconds or so of warning. People who live in the Midwest know that when you hear a tornado warning (around here they sound the civil defense sirens, but also weather radio and phone alerts), you go to your place of shelter immediately.

nimbius 5y ago

EAS is still broadcast over the air on the VHF spectrum and includes NOAA weather updates which your taxes pay for. Buy a weather radio, because the TV alerts are literally just EAS receivers interrupting programming. EAS transmission sites are built to withstand tornadoes and even casual offensive military strikes. TV stations aren't. You may also consider getting into amateur radio too.

zippergz 5y ago

I know this doesn't directly help you in STL, but Tennessee has a pretty incredible volunteer crew who update us on Twitter and also go live on YouTube when things get bad. There may be something similar in your area. We find them to be invaluable for keeping us up to date, more effectively than TV news ever did. https://twitter.com/nashseverewx https://twitter.com/nashseverewx Sample of last night's coverage: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dfdgKfoV538 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dfdgKfoV538

barcadad 5y ago

This is all so dumb that it feels like it must be a troll. You don’t need a TV to watch your local TV news. They have this newfangled thing called a website and they are also on twitter. Or try your local newspaper’s website, which will obviously cover live weather events. Sigh.

edoceo 5y ago

You can also get a hand-crank emergency radio - does AM, FM and some other weird (NWS) bands. Once you know the emergency stations just write them on the radio with Sharpie. Like these https://www.bobvila.com/articles/best-hand-crank-radio/ https://www.bobvila.com/articles/best-hand-crank-radio/

kolinko 5y ago

In situations like these I tune into a local radio stations online. Most of them do streaming. Also, you can google quickly what siren signals mean. There are specific patterns for various disasters and tests. And finally - if it’s in the middle of night, for sure it’s something serious.