Tornado myths that won't die RoadyGoat
1966On June 8, 1966, folks in Topeka trusted an old legend that Burnett's Mound, the hill on the southwest edge of town, would split any tornado and spare the city. That evening an F5 roared straight over the mound and tore a 22-mile path through Topeka, killing 17 and injuring more than 500. Hills don't stop tornadoes. Neither do rivers or tall downtowns; storms have crossed all of them. Two more myths refuse to die. An overpass is not a shelter: wind speeds usually run higher up under the beams, and flying debris funnels right through. And opening your windows does nothing. Houses fail from wind and debris, not a pressure explosion, and you only waste seconds you don't have. The real plan never changes. Get low, get inside, put walls between you and the wind.
