Why are tornadoes a threat during tropical storms, hurricanes? The Dirty Side of Hurricanes

When we think about hurricane impacts, the coast may be the first thing that comes to mind, but the impacts of landfalling tropical systems don't stop at the coastline. Hurricane Helene was the most recent major hurricane to prove this here in our state.

"I remember the panics. I remember the sounds, I remember the clouds. I remember everything from that day," Keisha Justice recalled about the day Helene first moved into North Carolina and was impacted by a tornado that spawned in the outer bands of the storm.

She was inside her boutique, Pretty Essentials, in Rocky Mount when the tornado hit. She ended up taking cover in the stockroom and said she never thought in a million years that she would have been caught in a building, let alone a building that was affected by a tornado.

That tornado, spawned by Helene, was rated an EF-3 with maximum winds of 140 mph as it moved through Nash County. More than a dozen structures were damaged, along with 15 people who were injured.

Rocky Mount police Captain Ryan Hepler says he remembers the day all too well. He told ABC11 his officers did a great job on the initial response, and then they worked with local partners such as the fire department and their state partners in the aftermath of the tornado.

So why are tornadoes a threat during landfalling tropical systems?

It's a combination of many factors. Hurricanes already rotate, but add in the interaction of the storm with surface friction after it makes landfall, and add in any wind shear. This creates an environment tornadoes can form.

All of the ingredients together make the atmosphere unstable enough to produce tornadoes, especially in the right front quadrant.

In the right front quadrant, the strongest instability is present. Winds are stronger, and so is the threat of tornadoes.

While you may think tornadoes and hurricanes are two separate weather events, it's normal to see them together.

Tripp Bunn, the Director of Fire, Rescue and Emergency Management, recalled tornadic events spinning up quickly during recent tropical storms and hurricanes that have impacted the state.

Although predicting exactly where tornadoes will touchdown after a storm makes landfall is extremely difficult, the National Weather Service, in coordination with the Storm Prediction Center, issues watches ahead of time. This gives you time to get a plan in place. Once a warning is issued, it is time to take immediate action.

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Tripp Bunn said every moment matters. You cannot wait to take action.

"When you guys are saying on the news or we're saying get to your safe space, you know, have a safe space identified, you know, it's important to get in those places because you don't know when or how it's going to affect you. Because flash flooding and tornadoes can happen so quickly with tropical systems, it's important to have a safety plan in place before you need it. Once the impacts begin, prompt emergency response isn't guaranteed."

Bunn also said that the first 72 hours are on you, then the resources are put into place. Because impacts from tropical systems often extend over a large area, emergency management has to prioritize who they get to and when they get to them. Having not only a safety plan in place but also an emergency kit ready ahead of time could save your life.

Have enough medication, food, and water to last for several days, as power outages are anticipated during hurricanes and tropical storms.

North Carolina is prone to hurricane strikes. In fact, NC ranks among the top five states for most hurricane landfalls. We get a lot of hurricanes because of our protruding coastline that sticks out farther into the Atlantic Ocean than any other state in the Southeast.

The Gulf Stream, very warm waters off the East Coast, can also fuel storms as they approach North Carolina.

Because of our unique coastline, it's not a matter of if, but when we will see our next hurricane. As hurricane season begins, now is the time to create a plan to keep yourself, family, friends and pets safe!

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