From experience, Oakwood residents know: Lay low when a tornado threatens

For residents of Raleigh's Oakwood neighborhood, it was the start of a long road back and a lesson they will never forget.

“I remember basically huddling in the bathroom with the dog while it went by," said Curtis Kasefang. "The tornado skipped through the neighborhood."

Since that day, North Carolina's population has increased by an estimated 10 percent; Wake County's population increased more than 23 percent, which means many might not have experienced the scare or know what to do when severe weather hits.

“Pay attention to it. Be aware," said Jeff Hammerstein, assistant chief of Wake EMS.

"Know what your plan is going to be. Know where your family and friends are going to be.”

North Carolina averages 28 tornadoes, two tornado fatalities and 33 tornado injuries each year.

In the April 2011 outbreak, one of the most tragic scenes was Raleigh’s Stony Brook North community, where a fallen tree crushed a home with four young children inside.

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Hammerstein responded to another situation where eight people were trapped.

“Me and some bystanders were able to pull on some branches and free it up and get them out of this house with no power that had a bunch of damage to it so they were safe,” he said.

Hammerstein urged residents new and old to heed warnings and stay off the roads during severe weather.

When under a warning, you should take shelter immediately and turn on WRAL as our team of meteorologists will break down where that storm is and when it could impact you.

Put as many sturdy walls between your body and the storm as possible. If you can, go to a basement, safe room or storm cellar.

Avoid the kitchen and living room, where rooms tend to be open with more windows. The safest location is on a low floor away from any glass that can shatter.

If you must, head to a bathroom and get in the tub or crouch in a first-story closet. For added protection get under something sturdy like a heavy table or workbench. Cover your body with a blanket, sleeping bag or mattress. Protect your head. Cover it with a pillow or consider donning a helmet to protect from falling debris.

If you are driving or in a mobile home, and if time allows, leave for a more sturdy building to ride out the storm. If shelter is not available, lie flat in a ditch or other low-lying area. Do not get under an overpass or bridge. You are safer in a low, flat location.

Bring food, water and a favorite toy for your pets if you must seek shelter.

Those who have been through it before, like Kasefang, plan to lay low.

“Hopefully it won’t be anything, but we’ll be ready to hide if we need to,” he said.