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What’s the best way to survive a tornado if you’re in a car?
July 9, 2009
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You Asked:
What’s the best way to survive a tornado if you’re in a car? — Ann, New York, N.Y.
Marshall Brain Answered:
This question reminds me a little bit of the famous barometer problem. If we apply barometer logic to your question, here are three thoughts that come to mind:
1) You could survive a tornado in your car by parking your car in an underground parking garage and sitting in the car as the tornado passes.
2) You could survive a tornado in your car by looking at the general direction of the tornado’s travel and then driving the car as quickly as possible in the opposite direction.
3) You could survive a tornado in your car by using a backhoe to dig a car-sized hole and a crane to lower your car into the hole. Then get into the car and have someone cover the hole with a big slab of concrete. After the tornado passes we will hope that person who covered the hole will have the common sense to uncover it.
I will leave it to you to decide which is the best way, or please feel free to suggest other ideas.
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Comments
2 Responses to “What’s the best way to survive a tornado if you’re in a car?”
Russell Senior says: I’ve always heard leave your car and lay in a ditch. I’m curious to know if this has ever been applied successfully.
Surviving a tornado has piqued my interest lately, especially now that I know even a freight train will not survive a tornado.
Number 2 is of course a dangerous game to play. You can’t outrun a tornado… you need to go perpendicular to it, and you never know when it will change directions.
Number 3… haha, very cute.
Please don’t go out of your safe(r) house to sit under an overpass in your car. It funnels the wind and can actually make your injuries worse.
If it were me I’d ditch my car and lay in the nearest ditch… haha.