Tornado preparedness lacking on student minds

On April 27, students at the University of Alabama at Tuscaloosa were beckoned to seek safety by the blaring of tornado sirens – a sound meant to save lives, but to many college students, including those at Georgia College, a mere nuisance.

Tornado sirens howled throughout Georgia, Alabama and Missouri this year, warning of the tornadoes that killed hundreds and left behind splinters of buildings as evidence of their destructive force.

The stories of those who survived and how they did it dispel the commonly held belief by most college students upon witnessing tragedy that “this won’t happen to me.”

Caroline Bendin, a senior at the University of Alabama, was one of those who believed little would ever come of the tornado siren’s warnings on April 27.

“We didn’t think much of (the sirens), because the sirens have gone off before and nothing has happened,” Bendin said.

Not until Bendin and her roommates could actually hear the tornado coming and see the huge funnel cloud with debris flying around did they run for the nearest closet.
These types of last-minute decisions could be a direct result of lack of communication between students and their university leaders; a problem revealed in an unofficial survey of 20 GC students, given by The Colonnade on June 12.

All students surveyed said they could not recall anyone talking to them about the proper safety precautions to take should there be a tornado in Milledgeville.
In fact, 83 percent said that they are confused about what they should do during a tornado.

Pre-nursing sophomores Brittany Borrow and Allison Lones said they were never given a tornado safety plan during the one year they spent in GC’s residence halls.

“We were never told about what to do during tornadoes, just about fire,” Borrow said.

Lones said she remembers hearing one of the tornado warnings that occurred this past spring. But after hearing the siren go off and no further instruction, she stayed in her bed.
Borrow said she does not even know what a tornado siren sounds like.

Justin Gaines, coordinator of emergency preparedness and occupational safety for GC, said the college provides students with emergency warning sirens and email notifications during tornadoes.
He also referenced Connect-ED, an emergency texting system made available to all GC students who sign up for it.

However, knowing a tornado has been sighted in the area is one thing; knowing what to do next is another.
“To be told what to do in an emergency wastes time that may help save one’s life. We must know what to do before the emergency to help our chances of survival,” Gaines said.

Janice Etheridge, former community advisor, said she has dealt with two tornado warnings while on duty in the dorms, but luckily was given thorough emergency response training and knew what to do.
“We’re responsible to make sure we knock on every door, but we can’t make anyone come down if they don’t want to,” Etheridge said.

It is possible that this year’s tornado-related devastation hit close enough to home to change the way students react.

In The Colonnade’s survey, 47 percent of students said they will seek safety in the future during a tornado after this year’s record-high tornado season.
Yet, 21 percent of students also admit they will decide how to react when the moment actually arrives. That is a decision that could prove risky in the midst of Mother Nature’s unpredictably.

Students can access GC’s Emergency Action Plan on the university’s website to educate themselves. Tornado safety is found on page 17.
“It is much like the old adage, ‘you can lead a horse to water but you can’t make it drink,’” Gaines said.

Posted by Olivia Holden on Sep 15 2011. Filed under News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.