Pinellas County Tornado Drill Today ‪// #‎PCtornadodrill‬

Today is the Pinellas County Tornado Drill.

Below is a quick reminder from the Pinellas County website of what you need to do if there is a tornado warning/watch in your area. 

 County to take part in the Great Tornado Drill on Jan. 25

•    Residents encouraged to identify their source of emergency alerts and secure shelter

•    Participants should take cover at 10 a.m. on Jan. 25  and take a selfie

•    Post a photo to social media with hashtag #PCtornadodrill for a chance to win a NOAA weather alert radio

With the weekend’s high risk of severe weather fresh on the mind of Pinellas County residents, it is fitting that we are participating in the Severe Weather Awareness Week.

The statewide week runs Jan. 23 to 27 and is an opportunity for residents to learn about the various hazards that frequently impact the state and how families and businesses can prepare for these natural events.

A highlight of the week is Wednesday’s Great Tornado Drill. Pinellas County will participate in the drill from 10 to 10:30 a.m. This drill is a fun way for everyone to practice sheltering in the building where they are located, whether it is a business, school, community center or other structure.

To prepare for the drill, residents should make sure that they have access to an emergency weather alert radio, have a phone that is equipped to send emergency notifications, and sign up with Alert Pinellas at www.pinellascounty.org/AlertPinellas. They should also locate the safest room in the structure, typically a room in the center of a building on the ground floor with no windows. 

At 10 a.m., participants should act as if a tornado notification was received and take shelter immediately in the room that was identified. If an actual tornado notification was sent, there would only be about 11 minutes to get everyone to safety.

Once in your safe room, take a selfie of the group and post it on social media using #PCtornadodrill. Emergency Management will provide a free NOAA Emergency Alert Radio to the best posts. Posts will be shared on the Pinellas County’s Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

For more information on emergency preparedness, go to www.pinellascounty.org/emergency. 

Sign up for Alert Pinellas, an emergency notification service. It is FREE to our residents and will give us multiple ways to get the word to you whenever an urgent situation arises.