Learning from Experience
This is national severe weather awareness week, a time when folks on radio and TV, particularly those who focus on weather, do their best to tell you about the distinctions between watches and warnings, why when you hear there is a tornado headed your way you should not go stand on the front porch and watch, how you should have a family emergency plan, check your weather radio and apps, etc.
And most of you will nod solemnly and promise to do better than you have in the past…but you probably won’t do any of it. Sort of like how we all get “computer backup religion” when one of our devices goes down, and we swear we’ll do better in the future…but we don’t.
Hopefully, things will be different in Iowa. Those who were in the path of the August derecho know how potent storms can be…and how important having a plan can help you be safe, and recover more quickly. Those of us who were outside the path only by the grace of God should have learned those lessons due to the pictures we saw, and the stories we heard.
But we’re always too busy, or we think it can’t happen to us. So we don’t bother. And that’s a mistake.
Ask folks in Marshalltown, or Parkersburg…areas along the Cedar River devastated by flooding…you get the idea.
We seem to be better about winter weather…having our emergency kits in our cars with food, water, blankets, etc. And that’s all stuff that generally is forecast well in advance. Interesting that for those emergencies that don’t have a lot of lead time, like severe storms…we typically have no plan.
The awareness week is about over, but still plenty of time for you to prepare. Or you can be a bad example to those in the future. Choice is yours.News/Talk 1540 KXEL · Iowa Politics — Thu. Mar. 25, 2021
