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Tornadoes
Prepare for a tornado before it strikes - information to help you understand the dangers and what you can do before a disaster (information below). Current watches and warnings.
Recovery after a tornado - recognize possible environmental hazards and what you can do to protect your and your family's health, and for commercial buildings and schools (information below).
General (non-emergency) information about tornadoes from the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
Many of the links below go to sites outside EPA. 
Tornadoes can strike with little or no warning. If you live in an area where tornadoes occur, prepare ahead of time.
Other sites
related to preparedness
Tornado hazards
- Federal Emergency Management Agency
Tornado preparedness
- American Red Cross
Make a plan for natural disasters
- Ready.gov
General info: Before a Tornado: How to Plan. Be alert to changing weather conditions. If you are under a tornado WARNING, seek shelter immediately! más en español (from fema.gov)
Drinking water and food
- Make
a kit of supplies. (ready.gov) Keep at least enough drinking
water ready for 3-days per person - and don't forget pets. Protect
your household well.
- Prepare
food supplies for a weather emergency. Get a refrigerator
thermometer so you are sure of safe storage temperatures if
you lose electricity. Freeze extra containers of water ahead of time.
Use ice chests in case power is out for more than four hours. More
about keeping food safe.
- For water and wastewater facilities - Suggested activities to prepare for severe weather conditions. Please note, the linked information is written for hurricane preparedness but much of it will still apply to tornado preparedness activities as well.
Chemical or fertilizer storage - Properly designed or modified storage facilities enhance worker safety, reduce cleanup costs, and minimize risks to health from spills in communities, schools, work places, farmland, and other areas.
Planning For Disaster Debris - Part of community disaster preparation and planning should include proper disposal of disaster debris - which can be large areas and tons of material and substances from buildings, vegetation, and personal property. How a community manages disaster debris depends on the debris generated and the waste management options available. Burying or burning is usually no longer acceptable, except when permission or a waiver has been granted, because of the health and environmental risks from smoke and fire from burning, and potential water and soil contamination from burying debris. More about what communities can do
Other sites
related
to recovery
Recovering from disasters - Federal Emergency Management Agency
Natural disasters - Ready.gov
Recovery after a tornado.
General info: What to do after a tornado. (fema.gov)
ALERT: Generator exhaust is toxic. Always put generators outside well away from doors, windows, and vents. Never use a generator inside homes, garages, crawlspaces, sheds, or similar areas. Carbon monoxide (CO) is deadly, can build up quickly, and linger for hours. READ MORE ABOUT THE DANGERS
Drinking water and food
ALERT
Boil Drinking Water
If your water may not be safe, bring drinking water to a
rolling boil for 1 minute to kill water-borne diseases. More
info.
en español (PDF
320K)
- Boiling water
information To kill all major water-borne bacterial pathogens,
bring water to a rolling boil for 1 minute. Boil 3 minutes at
elevations above a mile (5280 ft, or 1600 meters). Getting
and disinfecting water (fema.gov)
- Make sure older adults have enough water to drink. Older adults may feel thirsty less, and dehydration can be life threatening to an elderly person. More info...
- What to do about water from household wells after a flood . Do not turn on the pump - danger of electric shock. Do not drink or wash with water from the flooded well. More info.
- Keeping food safe during an emergency. Don't test spoiled food by tasting it! (usda.gov)
- For water and wastewater facilities - Suggested activities to help facilities recover from severe weather conditions. (The linked information is written for hurricane recovery but most of it will apply to tornado recovery also.)
Pesticides, chemical and oil spills, and hazardous waste
- Call the National Response Center 1-800-424-8802 (24 hours a day every day). Call 202-267-2675 if you don't have 800 access.
- National Pesticide Information Center: 1-800-858-7378. Pesticide contacts at government agencies
- Industries and businesses that have or encounter spills or discharges in the aftermath should contact the National Response Center immediately. You or your organization may have legal requirements for reporting spills or for taking action, depending on the spill. General information about reporting environmental emergencies
Debris
- What To Do With Disaster Debris - Disasters can generate tons of debris, including building rubble, soil and sediments, green waste (e.g., trees and shrubs), personal property, ash, and charred wood. Typical methods of recycling and solid waste disposal in sanitary landfills often cannot be applied to disaster debris because of the large volume of waste and reluctance to overburden existing disposal capacity. More information...
- Disposing of debris from FEMA.