It's been 7 months since I've moved to Tuscaloosa and until Easter Sunday, I thought I was fully adjusted. Little did I know, severe weather and the threat of tornadoes would confuse me, scare me, and all around put me on edge.

Severe weather isn't something that's new to me being from Florida. We deal with hurricanes multiple times per year and I've been through my share of bad hurricanes. Since I've been in Alabama, we've had some potential severe weather but nothing like this Easter Sunday. The week leading into Easter Sunday, I started to see the concern grow over the potential severe weather here in Alabama. When the concern grew, I began really studying what I should do to protect myself and family during a tornado.  I found the nearest 4 shelters, packed bags of clothes and snacks, and made sure I watched the radars and checked the station's app.

Having a newborn to care for and being on the second floor of our building made me even more stressed! I made sure we packed a huge baby bag with pampers, bibs, clothes, blankets and everything we'd need for a week. Who knew how long we'd be away from our place after the weather passes. The fear of the unknown is really stressful. I think that is the biggest difference with hurricane and tornado weather. Back in Florida, we have time to prepare and SEE the hurricane coming. In Alabama, there is no 3hrs+ warning or preparation.

I'm thankful for people like Mary K of WTUG, who's been helping me prepare and served as my personal meteorologist during the sever weather. I'm also thankful for the weather updates on our station app! My wife told me early this morning "The app really helped me stay calm" because there were constant updates last night while I was running around nervous ready to leave our place lol.

 

If you have any tips on how to stay calm during severe wether, I'd love to hear them! Especially for a tornado rookie like myself.

 

 

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