The people racing to build shelters outside tornado alley
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The growing threat of tornadoes in eastern states has prompted calls for better preparedness, and in particular the need for more storm shelters. While forecast speed and accuracy have improved considerably in the past decade, the next problem is where people can go once a warning is issued. And this is exposing the complex challenges of creating enough shelters in areas that historically have not had to worry about them – namely, the cost of building certified structures and the need to have them in close proximity.
States east of the central Great Plains are more densely populated and have more tree cover, leading to greater rates of debris impact from tornadoes. Homes in south-eastern states, and especially those along coastal areas, are less likely to have basements, because of flood risk from hurricanes and ground composed of wet clay and limestone that makes it difficult to build into the earth. South-eastern states also have above-average densities of mobile homes, which a 2020 study published by the American Meteorological Society found have a 450% greater risk. Nearly 50% of tornado-related deaths in the US occur in these residences.
With more serious tornadoes moving eastwards, it's becoming harder for residents to follow shelter-in-place guidelines put forth by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (Fema), which specify that mobile-home residents evacuate and shelter in a basement when possible. Efforts to update building codes and construct shelters in newly vulnerable areas have gained momentum, as have incentives for residents and counties to invest in private or community shelters. But these efforts pale in comparison to the need.
There aren't nearly enough known tornado shelters east of the Great Plains, says meteorologist Craig Ceecee, who on his own initiative, has been maintaining a map of public shelters since 2021. "Even the central part of the US has few known shelters. Louisiana, for example, doesn't have any, from my research," he says.
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