Franklin tornado yet another reminder to be prepared
By Brian Hilton, Emergency Management Coordinator
Saturday’s tornado in nearby Franklin destroyed much of the town with winds of 136-165 mph. Fortunately, only about a dozen minor injuries were reported, but the dangerous EF-3 twister served as another wake-up call for the Bryan-College Station community.
As if we needed another warning.
Texas leads the nation with an average of 137 tornadoes each year, and more than 60 percent of these storms occur from April to June.
Only three years ago, a tornado battered several neighborhoods along a two-mile path in Bryan, damaging more than 150 homes. In December 2006, a twister moved south to north for five miles across central College Station and did considerable damage along FM2818, Southwest Parkway, and Texas Avenue.
The National Weather Service rated both of those tornadoes as EF-1 on the Enhanced Fujita Scale, with winds estimated at 110 miles per hour. Since 2000, Brazos County has experienced about a dozen EF-0 or EF-1 tornadoes.
While our community has had its share of funnel clouds and tornado scares over the years, we’ve managed to escape any loss of life or catastrophic damage. In fact, straight-line winds and microbursts have caused more property damage here than twisters.
Although strong tornadoes are uncommon in our area, Saturday’s storm in Franklin reminds us that powerful tornadoes can happen here. And as the 2016 Bryan tornado proved, even small twisters have the potential to be violent.
Those storms are vivid reminders of why it’s important to know how to prepare and react to a tornado. These links provide in-depth information about what to do before, during and after a tornado:
National Weather Service videos:
- Get Weather Ready: Before a Tornado
- Get Weather Ready: During a Tornado
- Get Weather Ready: After a Tornado
Stay Informed
Bryan and College Station do not have outdoor tornado sirens. College Station voters defeated a proposition to fund sirens in the 1990 bond election.
When severe weather approaches, pay close attention to local radio and television stations. They do an excellent job of providing pertinent information, including tornado watches and warnings issued by the National Weather Service, but tornadoes can occur even if a watch or warning has not been issued.
In any emergency, always listen to the instructions given by local emergency management officials. If a violent storm approaches the Bryan-College Station area, these are the best ways to monitor events and get timely information:
- Own a NOAA Weather Radio: The radio’s alarm tone will automatically activate when a warning is issued by the NOAA National Weather Service. NOAA Weather Radio is also available as a smartphone app.
- Monitor local television and radio stations: They broadcast Emergency Alert System messages, watches and warnings, and other vital information.
- Brazos County Emergency Notification System: The system notifies citizens of local emergencies that occur day or night on their cell phones and landlines. To register your mobile phone number to receive notifications, go to brazosceoc.org/alerts.
- Code Maroon: To register to receive Texas A&M’s Code Maroon alerts by email or text message, go to codemaroon.tamu.edu.
- Blogs: City of College Station, Community Emergency Operations Center.
- Twitter: City of College Station (@Cityof CS), City of Bryan (@CityofBryan), Texas A&M Code Maroon (@TAMUCodeMaroon).
- Facebook: Brazos County Community Emergency Operations Center, City of College Station, City of Bryan.
- Websites: City of College Station Emergency Management, Brazos County Department of Emergency Management, City of Bryan Emergency Management, Texas A&M Emergency Management, Federal Emergency Management Agency, NOAA Storm Prediction Center, American Red Cross.
Recommended Mobile Apps
Some useful mobile apps are available for smartphones and tablets. Many of these have emergency alert capabilities. Here are some recommended apps that you can find in your favorite app store:
- American Red Cross Tornado App
- FEMA
- NOAA Weather Radio
- NOAA Radar Pro
Just because tornadoes have been rare in our area doesn’t mean we shouldn’t be vigilant and well-prepared. Tornadoes are nature’s most violent storms, and we should always stand ready to handle whatever comes our way.
About the Blogger
Brian Hilton has been the City of College Station’s emergency management coordinator since 2003 when he retired as sergeant first class after 20 years in the United States Army. He also serves on the Homeland Security Advisory Committee for the Brazos Valley Council of Governments. A native of Fort Wayne, Ind., Hilton attended Columbia College in Columbia, Mo.
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Video: College Station responds to Hurricane Harvey
Our prayers remain with those affected by Harvey, as well as those in the path of Irma. While College Station was spared harsh effects from the recent storms, we still say thanks to our employees who worked around the clock here and in other jurisdictions.
— Public Communications Office
Prepare for possible impacts of Hurricane Harvey
The City of College Station, The City of Bryan, Wixon Valley, Kurten, Brazos County, and Texas A&M are closely monitoring the progression of Hurricane Harvey. We are in direct communication with the National Weather Service and the State Operations Center concerning this storm and its potential impacts to the Brazos Valley.
UPDATES: Brazos Community Emergency Operations Center Blog
While the impacts across the state and along the coast may vary, locally we are expecting heavy rains and flooding conditions beginning late Friday with the potential to continue through the weekend and into early next week.
We urge residents to prepare by taking these actions:
- Make a disaster supply kit, to include a flashlight, batteries, cash, first aid supplies, medications, food, and water. For a list of what to include in your disaster kit, visit gov/build-a-kit.
- Bring in or have a shelter in place for outside animals.
- Drive only if necessary and avoid flooded roads and washed out bridges. Remember to turn around, don’t drown. For information about road closures visit drivetexas.org (TxDOT roads) and brazoscountytx.gov.
- Bring anything inside that could be picked up by high winds.
- Secure your garbage and recycling containers.
- Check with neighbors and family members and make sure they are aware of your safety plans.
- Make a family emergency communication plan.
- Monitor local weather conditions.
As we monitor this storm, we will continue to release information as it becomes available.
— Nathan Dennis, Brazos County Sheriff’s Office
Turn Around, Don’t Drown
The National Weather Service and the Texas Department of Public Safety, Texas Division of Emergency Management urge you to learn the dangers of driving into flooded roadways. Drivers often underestimate the power of flood waters. When water is running across a road, drivers should always turn around and choose a different route.
- Six inches of water can cause tires to lose traction and begin to slide.
- Twelve inches of water can float many cars. Two feet of rushing water will carry off pick-up trucks, SUVs, and most other vehicles.
- Water across a road may hide a missing segment of roadbed or a missing bridge.
- In flash floods, waters rise so rapidly they may be far deeper by the time you are halfway across, trapping you in your vehicle.
- Flash floods are especially treacherous at night when it is hard to see how deep waters may be or how fast water is rising.
- Floodwater weakens roadbeds. Drivers should proceed cautiously after waters have receded, since the road may collapse under the weight of the vehicle.
Lives can be saved if Texas drivers follow this one rule: when there’s water on the road, turn around, don’t drown.
— Brian Hilton, College Station Emergency Management Coordinator
Last May’s tornado showed we should be vigilant
By Brian Hilton, Emergency Management Coordinator
Last May, a tornado battered several neighborhoods along a two-mile path in Bryan, damaging more than 150 homes. No major injuries were reported, but the dangerous storm served as a wake-up call for the Bryan-College Station community.
Our area has had its share of funnel clouds and tornado scares over the years, but we’ve managed to escape any loss of life or catastrophic damage. In fact, straight line winds and microbursts have caused more property damage here than twisters.
Although strong tornadoes are uncommon in our area, that doesn’t mean a deadly tornado couldn’t happen. And as last May’s storm proved, even small twisters have the potential to be violent.
The National Weather Service rated the Bryan tornado as an EF-1 on the Enhanced Fujita Scale, with winds estimated at 110 miles per hour. Since 2000, Brazos County has experienced at least 10 small tornadoes, with four rated EF-1 (wind speeds of 86-110 mph) and the rest EF-0 (under 85 mph).
In December 2006, an EF-1 tornado moved south to north for five miles across central College Station and did considerable damage to an apartment complex on FM2818 and several businesses along Southwest Parkway and Texas Avenue. Three people suffered injuries.
An outbreak of a dozen or more tornadoes in the Houston Area in November 1992 — which included an EF-4 in Channelview — shows that we are not immune. Texas leads the nation with an average of 137 tornadoes each year.
More than 60 percent of these storms occur from April to June.
Our near misses and the devastation we saw in Louisiana earlier this month are vivid reminders of why it’s important to know how to prepare and react to a tornado.
These links provide in-depth information about what to do before, during and after a tornado:
National Weather Service videos:
- Get Weather Ready: Before a Tornado
- Get Weather Ready: During a Tornado
- Get Weather Ready: After a Tornado
Stay Informed
Bryan and College Station do not have outdoor tornado sirens. College Station voters defeated a proposition to fund sirens in the 1990 bond election.
When severe weather approaches, pay close attention to local radio and television stations. They do an excellent job of providing pertinent information, including tornado watches and warnings issued by the National Weather Service, but tornadoes can occur even if a watch or warning has not been issued.
In any emergency, always listen to the instructions given by local emergency management officials. If a violent storm approaches the Bryan-College Station area, these are the best ways to monitor events and get timely information:
- Own a NOAA Weather Radio: The radio’s alarm tone will automatically activate when a warning is issued by the NOAA National Weather Service. Click here for more information. NOAA Weather Radio is also available as a smartphone app.
- Monitor local television and radio stations: They broadcast Emergency Alert System messages, watches and warnings, and other vital information.
- Brazos County Emergency Notification System: The system notifies citizens of local emergencies that occur day or night on their cell phones and landlines. Click here to register your mobile phone number to receive the notifications.
- Code Maroon: Click here to receive Texas A&M’s Code Maroon alerts by email or text message.
- Twitter: City of College Station (@Cityof CS), City of Bryan (@CityofBryan), Texas A&M Code Maroon (@TAMUCodeMaroon).
- Facebook: Brazos County Community Emergency Operations Center, City of College Station, City of Bryan.
- Websites: City of College Station Emergency Management, Brazos County Department of Emergency Management, City of Bryan Emergency Management, Texas A&M Emergency Management, Federal Emergency Management Agency, NOAA Storm Prediction Center, American Red Cross.
Recommended Mobile Apps
Some useful mobile apps are available for smartphones and tablets. Many of these have emergency alert capabilities. Here are some recommended apps that you can find in your favorite app store:
- American Red Cross Tornado App (free)
- FEMA (free)
- NOAA Weather Radio ($3.99)
- NOAA Radar Pro ($1.99)
- iMap Weather Radio (free and paid versions)
- MyWarn ($9.99)
Just because tornadoes have been rare in our area doesn’t mean we shouldn’t be vigilant and well-prepared. Tornadoes are nature’s most violent storms, and we should always stand ready to handle whatever comes our way.
About the Author
Brian Hilton has been the City of College Station’s emergency management coordinator since 2003 when he retired as sergeant first class after 20 years in the United States Army. He also serves on the Homeland Security Advisory Committee for the Brazos Valley Council of Governments. A native of Fort Wayne, Ind., Hilton attended Columbia College in Columbia, Mo.
Photo Copyright: solarseven/123RF Stock Photo
If you found value in this blog post, please share it with your social network and friends!
National Preparedness Month: Preparing for disaster is everyone’s job
By Brian Hilton, College Station Emergency Management Coordinator
All sectors of society – businesses, civic groups, industry associations, neighborhood associations and individual citizens – should plan ahead for natural and man-made disasters. Knowing what to do during an emergency is an important part of being prepared and may make all the difference when seconds count.
In the first few hours or days following a disaster, essential services may not be available and people must be ready to act on their own. With September being National Preparedness Month, it’s the perfect time to review the emergency plans for your family or business.
With the theme “Be Disaster Aware, Take Action to Prepare,” National Preparedness Month establishes four universal building blocks of preparedness. Click each of these for useful tips from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA):
Preparation makes a difference
Tornado preparation is important – even in BCS
The Bryan-College Station area has had its share of funnel clouds and tornado scares over the years, but we’ve managed to escape any loss of life or catastrophic damage. In fact, straight line winds and microbursts have caused more property damage here than twisters.
Although strong tornadoes are uncommon in our area, that doesn’t mean a deadly tornado couldn’t happen. And even small tornadoes have the potential to be violent.
Since 2000, Brazos County has experienced nine small tornadoes, with three rated F1 (wind speeds of 73-122 mph) on the Fujita scale and the rest F0 (under 73 mph). In December 2006, a F1 tornado moved south to north for five miles across central College Station and did considerable damage to an apartment complex on FM2818 and several businesses along Southwest Parkway and Texas Avenue. Three people suffered injuries.
