Weather Safe Room

In West Texas, it is advisable to have a weather safe room.  In this day and age, they build these very safe rooms as part of new houses, or retrofit them into older houses. I have an older house, and I have not had a safe room retrofitted into my house.

A storm cellar is optimal.  You can and should register a storm cellar with the local emergency services authority, so they can check on you, especially if debris covers the bulkhead door that prevents egress after the emergency. Storm cellars can have electric service, and even a ventilation access. Some storm cellars are very elaborate, with beds, food, refrigerators, and first aid emergency supplies. Some are basic walls in the ground.

The next best option, if a storm cellar is not available, and you do not have a safe room, is to be on be on the lowest level possible, and to have as many walls as possible between yourself and the outside walls of the building. A small space is more advisable than a large open space.

In my house, the best option is the closet in the master bedroom.  I have an emergency box in the closet, that I try to keep updated:  food for me and the cats, water, a radio the uses battery, crank, and solar power, and other items.  If an emergency occurs, I could easily sweep up my pills and other necessary items from my dresser.  At least they would all be with me.

Many years ago, because we were under a tornado warning, I moved the cat crates into this closet, and moved Haiku and Saki into the closet with me. Since then, I have left the crates in the closet. After that, if there were serious storms, Saki and Haiku would seek out the crates on their own, although Sake would stay under the overhang at the foot of the bed until things got really bad. Even though Sake hated being in a crate, if the weather was scary enough she would seek it out. Haiku did not mind; she would, and still does, often nap in a crate. 

Some time ago, I had one occasion to put Saki, Haiku and Taki in their own crate in the closet due to severe weather. Haiku and Sake did fine. Taki continually tried to claw her way out of the crate.

I have noticed, however, that when the weather gets bad, although Haiku repairs to the closet, Taki lays in the little hall on the East end of my house. This is probably the second best place to be during severe weather in my house.  It is small, but open. There are openings to 3 bedrooms, 1 bathroom, and the living room, so it is not really closed off. There are doors to 3 bedrooms and the bathroom, so that could help. And, where there are walls, the walls of the hall are all inside walls. 

Today, when the storm was at its worse, I was in the computer room, and Taki was in a chair next to me. She woke up, and squeaked her special squeak that indicates distress.  She moved to the hall, and stayed there until well after the storm had moved through. Haiku was in the crate she likes to sleep in, well before the storm blew through. 

I am hopeful, that if I am not home and there is severe weather, my cats will be able to figure out where they need to go for safety.