Things get messed up on occasion at almost every level of almost every occupation.  As an example I posted a Round Table question in Fire Engineering Magazine a month or two ago.  Due to extensive and I must add quite insightful and interesting coverage of Hurricane Sandy in the June and July issues,  it kind of got lost. I think it was a great opportunity for those that “do”, to help those that “don’t” (but should).  And in an occupation that prides itself on brother and sisterhood, isn’t that the idea – helping each other.

To make a kind-of short story shorter, the question (it’s really not a question) was “if your department has a Tornado policy/procedure please post a link to it” so those departments that don’t have one don’t have to reinvent the wheel. I would be very surprised if most procedures manuals are not on line in today’s world.  If your department has a policy but it is not on-line, condense it into a few bullets.

I did get one comment on Round Table and it was from a firefighter on a department with no policy, looking for a place to start.  

In the event of a Tornado Warning, what should on-duty firefighters do?  Pull rigs outside on the approach?  Leave them inside? Where do the firefighters go?

If there is a touch down, what is your policy?  Do you go out and do a quick district survey?  Do you take other runs or survey first?  If it did touch down what contingencies do you have for moving down tree/lumber and debris from streets?  Are bull dozers and endloaders available to quickly clear main streets?

I hope I have given you something to think about and I would appreciate it if you could post what you do in your community so those that do not have a policy ion place can create one. .  No one is immune from tornados, hurricanes or other natural disaster. 

If you want to go to the Round Table link, here it is: http://www.fireengineering.com/articles/2013/07/roundtable-fire-department-response-to-tornadoes.html