Tornado Warnings & Hurricane I still remember the exact moment I decided tornado warnings were basically just Midwest background noise. It was late May 2024, I was living in a sketchy little rental outside Tulsa, eating cold pizza and playing Xbox like a responsible adult. Phone starts screaming TORNADO WARNING – not watch, WARNING – with that horrifying upward arrow thing. I literally rolled my eyes, told my roommate “ehhh it’ll miss us,” and kept playing.
Here are some images that capture the vibe pretty well—someone crammed in a bathtub, mattress overhead like a makeshift bunker, with that classic “I’m an idiot and there’s pizza involved” energy during a storm apocalypse.
So yeah… today I’m here to talk about tornado warnings and hurricane alerts you really, seriously, no-joking-around should not ignore.
The Difference Between Watch vs Warning (and Why I Used to Ignore Both)
People mix these up constantly (I definitely did).
- Tornado Watch = ingredients are there, conditions are spicy, keep an eye out
- Tornado Warning = radar has a confirmed tornado or insane rotation headed toward your exact area RIGHT NOW
Same basic logic applies to hurricanes:
- Hurricane Watch = 48 hours out, possible impact, start thinking
- Hurricane Warning = 36 hours or less, hurricane-force winds expected, bad decisions have consequences
Official explanation straight from the pros: → National Weather Service – Watch vs Warning definitions
The Alerts That Actually Matter (My Personal Red Flags List)
These are the ones that still make my stomach drop even when I’m 1,200 miles away from any real danger:
- Particularly Dangerous Situation (PDS) Tornado Warning Tornado Warnings & Hurricane When they drop “PDS” in the text… that’s the weatherman version of screaming. Example: baseball-sized hail + 80+ mph winds + confirmed violent tornado. → Real PDS warning wording example from NWS
- Tornado Emergency This is the nuclear option. Issued maybe once or twice a decade. Means catastrophic, life-threatening, long-track EF4/EF5 is happening right now. If you ever see this… run. Don’t pass go. Don’t grab the Switch.
- Extreme Wind Warning (hurricane/typhoon version) 115+ mph sustained winds expected. Basically “your house is gonna become a kite”
- Particularly Dangerous Situation Storm Surge Warning The one that kills more people than the wind most of the time.
My Dumbest Storm Moment (So You Don’t Repeat It)
During Hurricane Ian’s outer bands (2022, I was visiting family in Florida), the hurricane warning had been out for like 36 hours. Everyone was boarding up. I decided the perfect time to go get one last Publix sub was… right as the feeder bands started kicking.
Rain horizontal. Winds howling. Street signs bending. Tornado Warnings & Hurricane Me: sprinting across the parking lot holding a soggy sub like it’s the last food on earth. A plastic lawn chair almost took me out at 60 mph. I looked like a drowned rat walking back in. My aunt just stared at me and went “Really?” Yeah. Really.
Moral: when they say evacuate or shelter in place under a hurricane warning, maybe don’t go on a sandwich pilgrimage.
Quick Checklist I Actually Use Now (Because I’m Traumatized)
- Phone on loud, no do-not-disturb during watch/warning periods
- Know where my shoes are (ran barefoot to basement once… never again)
- Battery pack charged
- Actual water (not just LaCroix)
- One flashlight that doesn’t suck
- The little NOAA weather radio I used to make fun of… now lives on my nightstand
Wrapping This Chaos Up
Look, I’m still not perfect. I’ll probably still jump at thunder for the rest of my life. But I’ve gone from “ehhh it’ll miss us” to “ok everyone shut up and listen to the nice robot lady on the NOAA radio.”
Please don’t be the idiot version of me in 2024. When the tornado warning or hurricane alert hits, especially if they throw scary words like “emergency” or “PDS” in there… just listen.
Your dignity, your half-eaten pizza, and most importantly your life will thank you.
Stay safe out there, friends. (And maybe keep the bathtub mattress handy just in case.)
What’s the dumbest thing you’ve done during a storm warning? Tell me I’m not alone 😅