The Wisconsin National Weather Service and Emergency Management are encouraging everyone to take some time to go through their severe weather safety plans, during Tornado and Severe Weather Awareness week.
Meteorologists say here in Wisconsin, we average more than 20 tornadoes a year and last year, we had more than 30.
"Northeast Wisconsin is susceptible to severe weather, everywhere in the Fox Valley and throughout the region, so we want to prepare now before we get into severe weather season," said National Weather Service of Green Bay Meteorologist, Jeff Last.
That's part of why officials say it's so important people keep an eye on severe weather conditions and use multiple resources to get information. They say to listen to a weather radio, set up alerts through a smart phone app from places like the Federal Emergency Management Agency or watch your local news for weather updates, if it is safe to do so.
Whatever you do, don't wait until the last minute to be aware.
"Those outdoor warning sirens are like 'Oh man, it's time to seek shelter and find out what's going on,' so it's your last resource," said Lisa Van Schyndel, Emergency Management Director of Outagamie County.
Wisconsin Emergency Management also suggests practicing tornado safety tips at home ahead of the storm like, staying away from windows, moving to a basement or the innermost part of your home and putting as many walls as possible between you and the storm,
"It's too late to think about what to do in severe weather when a warning is issued. make sure that you practice your plan during severe weather awareness week and throughout the spring," said Last.
There are two statewide tornado drills scheduled for people to participate in on Thursday April, 12. For more information on how to prepare for the storm, you can visit the National Weather Service website.
