Reducing tornado damage

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Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety

4775 E. Fowler Avenue, Tampa, FL 33617

[phone]

DisasterSafety.org

REDUCING 

TORNADO 

DAMAGE

While only a few specialty buildings 

are designed to withstand the direct 

impact of a severe tornado, good 

construction choices can give added 

protection and increase the likelihood that at 

least part of a home will remain standing to 

provide some shelter. Strengthened homes near 

the storm’s edge would have a good chance of 

surviving intact or with minor cosmetic damage.

Even if you live outside “Tornado Alley,” the area 

of the country that runs north from Texas through 

eastern Nebraska and northeast to Indiana, you 

are still vulnerable to tornadoes. Some areas may 

see more of these unpredictable and dangerous 

storms than other states, but the rest of the 

country also gets its share of twisters. 

You don’t have to be blown away when nature 

lets loose. It’s never too early to prepare and you 

can take several basic steps right now to protect 

your family and your home from disaster. 

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101.1

RESIDENTIAL

WORKING OUTSIDE

To reduce the risk of damage from wind-borne 

debris, replace gravel/rock landscaping material with 

shredded bark. Keep trees and shrubbery trimmed. 

Cut weak branches and trees that could fall on your 

house.

WHEN A TORNADO THREATENS

You can improve the odds of your home surviving 

high winds by taking these precautions, but you won’t 

make it tornado-proof. While these measures can’t 

guarantee your safety, you can help your family be 

better protected.

When a tornado approaches, go to the closest 

identified shelter immediately. As previously 

discussed, if you don’t have a storm cellar or in-

residence “safe” room and you don’t have time to get 

to a community shelter, head to the centermost part 

of your basement or home, away from windows and 

preferably under something sturdy like a workbench 

or staircase.

Don’t open your windows. You won’t save the house, 

as once thought and you will put yourself at risk of 

injury from breaking glass. You also may actually make 

things worse by giving wind and rain a greater chance 

of getting inside.

Don’t try to ride out a tornado in a manufactured 

home. Even manufactured homes with tie-downs 

overturn in these storms because they have light 

frames and offer winds a large surface area to push 

against. Their exteriors are also vulnerable to high 

winds and wind-borne debris.

Report any property damage to your insurance agent 

or company representative immediately after a severe 

weather event or other natural disaster and make 

temporary repairs to prevent further damage. For 

information about filing an insurance claim after a 

natural disaster, contact your insurance agent or 

insurance company.

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YOUR HOME

Homes in inland areas of the United States are typically 

held together only with nails, instead of straps 

connecting the roof, walls and foundation. This type 

of construction is commonplace in hurricane-prone 

areas, but should also be considered by anyone who 

wants to increase their property’s protection from 

other severe windstorms. Refer to the International 

Building Code (IBC) and International Residential Code 

(IRC), developed by the International Code Council, for 

specific references to guides for building wind-resistant 

structures.

If you want to get a sense of how well your home is 

built, you can conduct a relatively quick inspection. 

Depending upon what you find, it may be a wise 

investment to add strapping to help tie the house 

together.

a. Look at the connection between your roof system 

(rafters or trusses) and the exterior walls. Pay specific 

attention to whether there are any straps used to 

connect the two. Older homes and those located in 

inland areas are less likely to have straps.

b. If your garage has unfinished interior walls or your 

home has a crawl space, try to determine whether 

the walls and floor system are anchored to the 

foundation. Look for bolts with nuts and washers 

that attach the bottom of the wall to the floor 

slab or foundation. Also check for any additional 

strapping tying the walls or wood-frame floor to the 

foundation.

YOUR SAFETY

The most economical and effective way to provide a 

safe place for riding out a tornado is to have a shelter 

that meets the requirements of the National Storm 

Shelter Association (NSSA) or the International Code 

Council’s Shelter Standard. Sample designs for shelters 

are also available in the guide FEMA 320.

Short of building or installing a tornado shelter, you 

should identify the safest area of your home. This is 

usually a small interior room without windows, such 

as a bathroom, where you can ride out the storm. Be 

sure you can easily access this area when a tornado 

threatens. The more walls between you and the 

outside, the better.

Having time to seek shelter in severe weather 

situations is critical. Using a NOAA all-hazard radio 

that is specifically tuned to pick up warnings for your 

local area is a good option. This will minimize more 

frequent and broader warnings that may or may not 

apply to you.

Become familiar with your community’s severe 

weather warning system and make certain every adult 

and teenager in your family knows what to do when a 

tornado “watch” or “warning” sounds. Learn about your 

workplace’s disaster safety plans and similar measures 

at your children’s schools or day care centers.

Study the local disaster preparedness plan. Decide 

in advance where you will take shelter (a local 

community shelter, your own underground storm 

cellar or in-residence “safe” room) and create a 

family plan. Identify escape routes from your home 

and neighborhood and designate an emergency 

meeting place for your family to reunite if you 

become separated. Also establish a contact person to 

communicate with concerned relatives.

Put together an emergency kit that includes first 

aid supplies, a portable NOAA all-hazard radio, a 

flashlight, fresh batteries, basic tools, work gloves, 

portable lanterns, a signaling device such as an air 

horn, prescription medications, extra car keys, extra 

eyeglasses, cash and important documents such as 

insurance policies.

BUILDING OR REMODELING

CONNECTIONS

The points where the roof and the foundation meet 

the walls of your house are extremely important if 

your home is to resist high winds and the pressures 

they place on the entire structure.

•  If you are building a new home, have the builder 

use straps and wood structural sheathing to tie the 

structure together and anchor it to the foundation. 

These connections are relatively inexpensive when 

used during construction, adding three to four 

percent to the price of a home.

•  If you are remodeling, ask the contractor to install 

straps and anchors that will strengthen the house 

from the roof to the foundation, even if it is only in 

the area that is being remodeled. This should only 

cost a few hundred dollars for a typical 1,500 to 

2,000 square foot house.

GABLES

Brace the end wall of a gable roof properly to resist 

high winds. Check the current model building code 

for high-wind regions for appropriate guidance, or 

consult a qualified engineer or architect.