This week is Severe Weather Awareness Week. Each day Raccoon Valley Radio will be highlighting a specific topic, with today’s being tornadoes. In 2016 one of every ten tornadoes in Iowa touched down in Guthrie or Adair county.

Adair and Guthrie County Emergency Management Agency Coordinator Bob Kempf tells Raccoon Valley Radio tornadoes are rather unpredictable. Additionally, he cautions homeowners to be mindful of damage, even if a tornado doesn’t directly reach their property. “One of the biggest things is it hurls other things into something. It picks things up and just literally turns them into missiles and torpedoes. It may have missed your house but your house may be damaged by all the boards that came off the barn.”

He also says businesses should take extra precaution when considering emergency preparedness plans during tornadic activity. “Take time in your workplace to practice tornado safety. Everybody kind of jokes, ‘We’re adults. We’ve been around for years. Why do we have to do fire drills and tornado drills.’ Well, there’s new people there. They don’t know where to go in your place of business and you’re the one that can teach them and make sure they’re doing it right.”

There were no injuries as a result of two tornadoes last year that touched down in Adair and Guthrie counties. To hear more on tornado safety, listen to today’s Let’s Talk Guthrie County program.