How to find a tornado shelter near you

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- A new tornado shelter map is helping aid community safety by helping people locate their nearest shelter.

Meteorologist Tommy House sat down with Craig Ceecee, Ph.D., who is the founder of Find Your Tornado Shelter LLC, to learn more.

Read an edited version of the conversation below or use the video player above to listen.

Meteorologist Tommy House: We want to talk about the website you’ve created. It has a map of different tornado shelters across the country. What inspired you to do this?

Craig Ceecee: It actually started a few years ago when I was in a tornado shelter here in Starkville, Mississippi, during the 'Easter 2020 tornado outbreak', which was also during the peak of the pandemic. I realized, what can we do to protect ourselves from tornadoes during the pandemic? From there, the idea expanded into a broader project on tornado shelters in general. I worked on my dissertation for my Ph.D. on this, and one of the questions in my survey was whether people would use tornado shelter maps and mobile apps. The answer was, most people would.

So, about three years ago, I began working on it, initially for educational purposes, but it eventually became more of a commercial venture. It started gaining media attention, especially around two years ago, with the Rolling Fork tornado in Mississippi, along with several other tornado outbreaks that spring. It began to get national attention and became the main voice for tornado shelters.

One of my goals is to move it to a more secure platform once enough revenue and resources become available. Right now, it’s hosted on a 'Google Map', which has some issues, but it’s still very useful. This past weekend, it received extensive use and media mentions, and the discussion about tornado shelters in Mississippi, Alabama, and Arkansas was unprecedented. Many shelters even had to deal with overflow.

House: How has your background as a meteorologist helped you not only come up with this idea but also in finding the resources needed for it?

Ceecee: It helped me because I already had a solid understanding of tornadoes and severe weather. But also, just knowing the destructive power of tornadoes and how much more we need to do to protect people from them played a big role in motivating me. Additionally, having that knowledge of how tornadoes form, where they’re likely to occur, and the best ways to protect people was important.

This information helped in creating a resource like this and getting the word out. Meteorologists often have a strong connection to their community, and this can be really useful when spreading the word about the need for tornado shelters.

House: What’s one key piece of advice you’d give to someone looking for a tornado shelter during severe weather?

Ceecee: My first word of advice is to research in advance. You don’t want to be scrambling around when a tornado is coming. Although sometimes it’s impossible, especially if you’re driving through an unfamiliar area and a tornado warning comes in. But if at all possible, know in advance whether it’s a day or just a few hours ahead. And if you're going to a shelter, make sure you have enough time.

That’s the most important thing. You don’t want to be driving with a tornado bearing down on you. Make sure you know where you’re going and the shelter’s open because they may not always be available during every event, depending on the situation.