Other Weather Hazards

While hurricanes are capable of wreaking severe and widespread damage, there are several other forms of severe weather that you should be aware of and prepared for throughout the year. From severe thunderstorms, tornadoes and floods to extreme heat and cold, there are certain actions to take to keep you and your family safer during severe weather.

There are 1,800 thunderstorms occurring at any moment across the globe. That is 16 million each year. The National Weather Service considers a thunderstorm severe if it produces hail at least ¾-inch in diameter and winds of 58 mph or stronger, or a tornado. Severe thunderstorms are capable of producing severe winds, tornadoes, lightning, flash floods and damaging hail. Did you know:

• Winds in a severe thunderstorm can exceed 100 mph and can cause damage equal to that of a tornado.
• Straight-line winds are responsible for most thunderstorm damage. One type of straight-line winds, the downburst, is a small area or rapidly descending air beneath a thunderstorm.
• Tornadoes can produce wind speeds in excess of 250 mph and cause an average of 70 fatalities and 1,500 injuries each year. The can be one mile wide and stay on the ground more than 50 miles.
• Lightning causes an average of 80 fatalities and 300 injuries each year.
• Hail causes more than $1 billion in crop and property damage each year.
• Flash flooding is the number 1 cause of deaths associated with thunderstorms; more than 140 fatalities each year.

(Source: NOAA, National Weather Service)