One of Nature’s most violent and capricious forces is the tornado, a funnel-shaped cloud with wind speeds exceeding 300 miles per hour. Almost always accompanied by hail and heavy rainfall, a tornado destroys everything in its path, which can be up to a mile wide and as long as 50 or 60 miles. These destructive storms are categorized by intensity on the Fujita or “F” scale from F0 to F6; with an F6 being so strong and destructive, that it exists only in theory. Interestingly, a highly respected consulting firm once maintained that the relative strength of a tornado could be ascertained by the number of feathers lost by chickens in its path!

Most tornadoes occur with supercell thunderstorms that are created when warm moist air is forced upward (by the heat of the afternoon sun, a cold front, or other weather disturbance). If the updraft is strong enough and the wind shear is strong enough, a tornado may form. Supercells occur with winds that rotate from south to west and this orientation of the supercell’s rotation causes it to track generally southwest-to-northeast.

On September 20, 2000 a tornado destroyed the automated watering and feeding systems serving twelve barns housing 85,000 hens each at a farm complex in Croton, Ohio. By October 3, an estimated one million laying hens had died slowly from thirst, exposure, and starvation or were reportedly crushed by bulldozers after two weeks of suffering.

April is the worse month for tornadoes in the U.S. On the night of April 3-4, 1974, during the worst tornado outbreak in U.S. history no less than 148 tornadoes tore through 13 states in less than 16 hours. In their wake were 330 people dead and 5,484 injured in a swath covering more than 2,500 miles.

Damages from tornadoes are often counted in the millions of dollars. Entire towns have been wiped off the map. Forests have been turned from magnificent stands of stately trees to tangled masses of twisted splinters in a matter of moments – damage that takes Nature decades to repair.

Preparatory measures

Tornadoes often strike with such suddenness that there is little time for preparation. Human safety is of such a concern that people seek cover immediately, having little or no time to get their livestock to safety. As a result, unlike with most other disasters, preparedness for a tornado focuses not on taking actions beforehand to mitigate damages and losses from a tornado, but on taking action after the event. After a tornado, livestock is usually found to be running loose due to destruction of barns and fences. Be prepared to do any emergency fencing necessary to contain your animals.

Emergency actions

The National Weather Service uses a simplified tornado/severe storm warning system:

TORNADO WATCH: Conditions are favorable for tornadoes. Remain alert for approaching storms.
TORNADO WARNING: A tornado has been sighted or indicated by weather radar. Take cover immediately.
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH: Severe thunderstorms are possible in your area.
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING: Severe thunderstorms are occurring.

Emergency actions are limited, for the most part, to seeking immediate shelter. Once the danger has passed, you will need to tend to your animals. There will probably be fences damaged, destroyed, or just plain missing, therefore your first item of business will be to contain your animals and to treat any injuries. Watch out for fallen power lines and stay out of the damaged area. Listen to the radio for information and instructions.

Next
Module Home
Certification Table of Contents
Browsing Table of Contents