Summer Storms 101: How to Prepare for Thunderstorms and Lightning
Summer thunderstorms can develop rapidly, transforming into dangerous weather events within minutes. Here are several safety tips and advice on using a weather app to stay safe during hazardous weather conditions.
Are You Prepared for Summer Storms?
Understanding how to prepare for and respond to these storms is essential for protecting yourself, your family, and your property during the peak storm season.
Preparation Essentials
1. Gather emergency supplies. Before storm season arrives, create an emergency kit containing flashlights, battery-powered radio, first aid supplies, non-perishable food, and bottled water for at least three days.
2. Designate a safe space. Identify the safest room in your home—typically an interior room on the lowest floor, away from windows and large roof spans.
3. Outdoor prep. Trim tree branches near your house and secure outdoor furniture that could become projectiles in high winds.
4. Develop a family communication plan. Establish a designated meeting place or places and make sure everyone has out-of-state contact information.
5. Additional steps. Ensure all household members know how to shut off utilities if necessary, and consider investing in surge protectors to safeguard electronics from lightning-induced power surges.
Tracking Lightning with Weather Apps
Modern weather apps offer real-time lightning detection and storm tracking capabilities that can save lives. Apps like Weather Mode: Live Weather, Weather Underground, AccuWeather, and the National Weather Service app offer interactive radar maps that display lightning strikes, storm movement, and severity indicators. Enable push notifications for severe weather alerts in your area.
Monitor the lightning strike frequency and proximity features—many apps display strikes within 10-25 mile radii and update every few minutes. Use the "time to arrival" forecasts to gauge when storms will reach your location, giving you adequate warning to seek shelter.
What to Do During Severe Weather
When thunderstorms approach, move indoors immediately and avoid windows, doors, and electrical appliances. The "30-30 rule" is crucial: seek shelter when thunder follows lightning by 30 seconds or less, and wait 30 minutes after the last thunder before resuming outdoor activities.
Never use corded phones, take showers, or touch metal objects during storms. If caught outdoors with no shelter available, avoid high ground, isolated trees, and metal objects, then crouch low in a depression or valley to minimize ground contact.
Stay informed through weather radio or smartphone alerts, and avoid driving through flooded roads—just six inches of moving water can knock down an adult, and twelve inches can carry away vehicles.
Key Takeaways
Proper preparation and real-time weather monitoring transform dangerous summer storms from life-threatening events into manageable situations, keeping you and your loved ones safe throughout storm season.
Stay Storm-Alert with This Free App
As you've just read, a crucial key to staying safe during severe weather is being aware of what's coming, whether it's in your area or elsewhere. You need a weather app that gives you real-time, multi-location weather forecasts, radar, reports, and updates. Weather Mode: Live Weather can do all that and more.
Let's check some of its main features:
Real-Time Weather Reporting
Stay updated with precise details on temperature, wind speed, humidity, and visibility for your current or saved locations.
Interactive Radar Maps
Track storms and weather changes as they happen, enabling quick and informed decisions during summer storms.
Detailed 7-Day Forecasts
Know what's coming before it arrives so you can plan accordingly with hourly forecasts that keep you prepared throughout the day.
Location-Based Weather Updates
Add multiple locations to monitor weather in various areas, which is indispensable when traveling or keeping an eye on loved ones.
Sunrise and Sunset Times
Plan your day more effectively with accurate daylight timings.
Stay Prepared: Download Weather Mode: Live Weather Today!
With Weather Mode: Live Weather, this free app includes essential tools for planning and safety in severe weather.
Download Weather Mode: Live Weather today and stay safe with real-time updates and reliable forecasts!