Tornadoes out west

There's another thread on this matter in another sub forum. You can out run a tornado if it's just you and the Wx but if it's you and a thousand other freaked out motorists such as in a busy metro area, then you're stuck in traffic that's stopped with no way out.

 

Just grab another gear and keep trucking.

But seriously u cant outrun a tornado.

Worst case scenario, u know those drain pipes u see sometimes near a bridge or just off to the shoulder. If your not packing a beer gut, crawl inside and you'll be find. Don't hide under the bridge, the bridge makes the wind blow harder around it

 

Any low spot will work to hide in. Even an open ditch. It is not like the movie where it looked like they were being sucked up a straw.

 

If you see it your fine. It's the one you don't see that will get you.

 

Given that some tornadoes cross the ground at over 65mph (like the one I had alongside I70 in Kansas last fall) outrunning them might not be real practical. Remember they usually travel from the southwest toward the northeast. So, if you see one to the north of you, you might be just dandy. If it's to the south of your position, it's time to make a decision. Pay attention to the weather band when you're in thunderstorms, and note what direction those storms are traveling.

 

If it's straight ahead or diagonally ahead, STOP. (Slight duh huh moment)
It will go on by. Why on earth would you continue moving towards trouble?

"But Six, what if it's coming towards me?"

See @cnsper's response. If you're going to get killed, it will be by flying debris. Normally on just about every highway there is, there's a ditch on either side of the road. Get in the ditch and lie down.

 

Also if the roads only run north and south and east and west (often the case in the plains) and the tornado is moving from SW to NE, then you are actually moving at half the speed your speedometer says you're going, in relation to the tornado's track. So getting out of' it's estimated path is often easier than "outrunning" it, but the key is to knowing where you are in relation to the tornado's estimated track that must also be ascertained and this is not easy in the excitement and scare of the moment.

 

What are the statistics of truck drivers being killed by tornadoes that come out of nowhere?

 

On the other hand, it would be cool to see a flying cow!