It’s Time for a Spring Preparedness Check

John Bobel

March 24, 2022

Spring weather can be unpredictable. When severe weather hits unexpectedly, the risk of injury and weather-related death increases, so planning makes sense. Prepare for storms, floods, and tornadoes as if you know in advance they are coming, because in the spring, they very likely will.

Spring is the time of year when many things change—including the weather. Temperatures can swing back and forth between balmy and frigid. Sunny days may be followed by a week of stormy weather. Sometimes extreme weather changes can occur even within the same day. Mark Twain once said, “In the spring I have counted one hundred and thirty-six kinds of weather inside of four and twenty hours.”

Thunderstorms cause most of the severe spring weather. They can bring lightning, tornadoes, and flooding. Whenever warm, moist air collides with cool, dry air, thunderstorms can occur. For much of the world, this happens in spring and summer.

Because spring weather is so unpredictable, you may be unprepared when severe weather hits—particularly if you live in a region that does not often experience thunderstorms, tornadoes, or flooding. And when severe weather hits unexpectedly, the risk of injury and death increases. So planning ahead makes sense; prepare for storms, floods, and tornadoes as if you know in advance they are coming, because in the spring, they very likely will.

Know where to get regular and emergency weather information. Lexington Emergency Management has many ways for you to stay up-to-date with changing weather conditions.

Advance planning for thunderstorms, lightning, tornadoes, and floods requires specific safety precautions. You can follow many of the same steps for all extreme weather events. Keep an emergency kit on hand.

Lexington Emergency Management has reminder lists of what to keep in your emergency kit. What’s important is that you have a kit for yourself, your partner and your family. Help friends and relatives build an emergency kit, too.

Here’s where to find the list on BeReadyLexington.com

Make sure you have an emergency plan. In case your mobile phone service goes down or is slow, you should have a written list of phone numbers, important names and contacts as well as copies of any prescriptions you may need. Copies of other important papers such as legal documents, birth certificates, insurance policies and passports. Here’s the planning rundown.

Often by the time we are aware of an approaching storm, we have little if any time to prepare for it.

Prepare your family members for the possibility of severe weather. Tell them where to seek appropriate shelter as soon as they are aware of an approaching storm. Practice your emergency plan for every type of severe weather. Show family members where the emergency supplies are stored, and make sure they know how to turn off the water, gas, and electricity in your home.

Often by the time we are aware of an approaching storm, we have little if any time to prepare for it. But we do know that when spring arrives, thunderstorms, tornadoes, and floods are real possibilities. So why not take the surprise factor out of severe weather and prepare yourself, your family, and your home? If thunderstorms, tornadoes, and floods do occur, you’ll be ready for them.