On Wednesday, the UNMC Omaha campus will participate in a tornado drill as part of Severe Weather Awareness Week.
Review family plans
This week also is a good time to review family emergency plans regarding severe weather. Assistance in preparing family emergency plans can be found here.
The National Weather Service will issue a test tornado watch and warning at 11 a.m. and the test tornado warning at 11:15 a.m. (unless severe weather is in the area). Douglas County will sound civil defense warning sirens for the daytime drill.
The hospital also may conduct an additional test tornado watch/warning drill on the evening/night shift, around 8 p.m.
Everyone should:
- Review the severe weather plan in the emergency preparedness guide, as well as your department’s plan;
- Know what to do and where to go in the event of a tornado warning; and
- Take the stairs, not the elevator, during a warning.
“The pandemic has shown how important it is for us to be prepared,” said John Hauser, UNMC safety manager. “We need to know what to do and where to go to be safe.”
During or following the drill, employees, faculty or students who experience problems or wish to make suggestions can contact Hauser or complete an online survey.
The American Meteorological Society offers information on sheltering during the pandemic. Remember to wear a mask.
“Members of the UNMC community should register their cell phones with UNMC Alerts so that they will receive notification of tornado warnings and other campus emergencies,” he said. UNMC students and staff can verify their UNMC Alerts information or sign up as a new subscriber by following
these instructions.
I hope you realize that the stairwells in DRC buildings are all glass, since we can't take the elevator.