Tornado Warning procedures in schools

[Spotter/Chaser]

I am curious what the predominant method of notification of teachers and students in schools when there is a tornado warning. I have seen hallway dismissal bells rung continuously for several minutes; I have seen various alert tones sounded over the public address system in the buildings; and I have seen the principal make a verbal announcement over the public address system, with no other alert signal. I have even seen schools which the administration and teachers simply stay put and wait to hear the community warning sirens before they initiate safety procedures.

What is the most widely used method of warning inside schools?

[JasonC]

I am curious what the predominant method of notification of teachers and students in schools when there is a tornado warning. I have seen hallway dismissal bells rung continuously for several minutes; I have seen various alert tones sounded over the public address system in the buildings; and I have seen the principal make a verbal announcement over the public address system, with no other alert signal. I have even seen schools which the administration and teachers simply stay put and wait to hear the community warning sirens before they initiate safety procedures.

What is the most widely used method of warning inside schools?

The community college I went to for a while would just set off the fire alarms. An incredibly stupid thing to do.

[Spotter/Chaser]

I've actually seen the fire alarm system sounded intermittently, also. That's scary that administrators would be that stupid.

[JasonC]

I've actually seen the fire alarm system sounded intermittently, also. That's scary that administrators would be that stupid.

That would be fine if fire or tornado signals had two different tones. However, it was the same tone. Very unsafe.

[Adam Pollak]

In tornado drills I've had in high school, they used a special tone over the PA system, which seems to be fairly common from videos I have seen online. I never understood why this way done though. Since it is over the PA system, they might as well announce it verbally and forget the silly tones.

[Spotter/Chaser]

I've seen some difference of opinion about it. One opinion is that it should simply be a verbal announcement, so that everyone in the building (including visitors) knows what is happening. The other opinion is that it should be a tone or other signal, to avoid having any potential emotion from the person initiating the safety procedures being heard by the students over the intercom system.

[Jim_Ferer]

The other alternative is to have a prerecorded announcement instructing people what to do. With children the attention signal shouldn't be raucous to keep them as calm as may be.

I attended a seminar once on emergency notification and instruction. (I'm a safety engineer). There were some principles that stuck out:

• Say what's wrong: "We have been informed a tornado is in the area." (people do better when they know what the problem is. Imagination is usually worse than reality.)
• "Our tornado plan is now in effect." (People know that somebody is working on the problem)
• These instructions will be repeated." (Eases anxiety because people have less fear they'll miss something important.)
• Leave your classroom now and sit down against the wall in the hall [or whatever else you should do]. "

People feel better when they know someone is working on the problem, but don't pretend everything is under complete control. People can smell that a mile off. It's enough to know you're on it.

This framework is oriented towards general populations, not children, but the principles are probably the same. If I was writing a plan for this I might add something like "Remember our tornado drill and do the same things we did then," or something like that.

It was a great seminar and I'd love to take it again - this was fifteen years ago at least. Actually, I'd love to go for one of those Disaster Science Management degrees you can get now.

[Justin]

Since it is over the PA system, they might as well announce it verbally and forget the silly tones.

It's just me, but if I heard that tone all of a sudden; I would immediately know that the sh*t is about to hit the fan; where as you loose time with verbally announcing it.
Comes back to the 'every second counts' claim.

[Robert Gift]

Yes. Much better to simply announce the problem, especially when some may be unfamiliar with a tone signal.
How absurd to sound a fire alarm signal which should send people outside into possible harm.
That signal should somehow be made intermittant to differentiate it from a fire alarm.
Still, some students, on their own, may go outside because they mistook the tornado signal as a fire signal.
That is why verbal announcement is better.

[SirenEnthusiast360]

I've been in 3 schools where they had an actual alarm signal for the tornado drill, In elementary school, it was a sound that's similar to the alarm heard when a truck backs up (the beeps) followed by "This is a tornado drill, please go to your designated tornado drill spots" (that was said by the principal) In middle school the system was a bit unusual as the sound didn't come from a PA or Fire Alarm, it came from the phone system. It was a constant ring of the phone. I remember someone mistakingly trying to answer the phone during a tornado drill in middle school. In high school the sound was a european police type alarm.