Communities must provide safe spaces — and persuade weather-weary residents to use them.
By Sarah Kaplan and Sarah Kaplan Reporter for Speaking of Science Email Bio Follow Frances Stead Sellers Frances Stead Sellers Senior writer covering national politics Email Bio Follow March 7 at 3:00 PM BEAUREGARD, Ala. — Connie Moman thought these would be her last moments: huddling in her bedroom closet with her husband and her dog, feeling the wind rattle their double-wide trailer, listening to the towering trees in her yard splinter in the tornado’s grip.
“There had been discussion before” about such safety measures, said Richard LaGrand, a newly elected county commissioner for the district that includes Beauregard. “But, I can promise you, not discussion like there will be. And action.
“But it’s a really difficult and tedious process,” Smith said. Homeowners must pay upfront for the shelters, which typically cost several thousand dollars, and can only get reimbursed for up to 75 percent of the price. All of which makes the measure unaffordable for most residents of the county, where the median household income is about $45,000, Smith said.
“You need outreach, education and training before the storm,” said Marc Levitan, a research wind engineer with the National Institute of Standards and Technology.
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