Attitude, decision-making, and behavior among a small group of citizens near the path of the Siren, Wisconsin tornado of 18 June 2001

National Weather Digest, Dec, 2003 by William Monfredo, John P. Tiefenbacher

Abstract

A strong F-3 tornado devastated the northwest Wisconsin Village of Siren during the evening of 18 June 2001. The National Weather Service (NWS) issued a tornado watch, and severe thunderstorm and tornado warnings for Siren, but the emergency warning siren was inoperative. The survey team traveled to the disaster site several days after the tornado and surveyed the path of the tornado by ground and air. A field study utilizing a questionnaire helped in comprehending the nature of warnings and responses on the periphery of the tornado damage path. Administered through interviews, the standardized survey aided in gathering information on awareness, preparedness, monitoring of the developing extreme event, and perceptions of risk. The team identified common beliefs, behaviors, and attitudes for this "near miss" experience. Though this research utilized a small sample size of 30 individuals, it provided insight into people's responses to a relatively rare and dangerous event. The public should not rely exclusively on any one method of warning dissemination, especially one that may be vulnerable to electrical outages. While television is a very popular way of obtaining weather warnings, findings hint that NOAA weather radio remains a largely untapped and potentially successful resource if publicized properly in this part of the country.

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1. Introduction

During the early evening of Monday, 18 June 2001, a strong F-3 tornado struck the northwest Wisconsin Village of Siren. The community of less than 1000 people (U.S. Census Bureau 2001) located 65 miles northeast of Saint Paul, Minnesota, sustained a direct hit from the storm. The National Weather Service (NWS) issued a tornado watch, severe thunderstorm warning, and a tornado warning for Burnett County. However, Siren's emergency warning system siren was inoperative due to a lightning strike weeks earlier. The path of the tornado began one-and-one-half miles east of Grantsburg, Wisconsin, three-eighths of a mile north of Highway 70 at 0106 UTC (Fig. 1). The tornado continued east through the Village of Siren in Burnett County before ending 34 miles from where it began. The tornado was up to one-half mile wide at times. Media outlets in the county reported 16 injuries and two deaths resulted from the tornado. This field study after the storm aids in understanding where the tornado traveled and the nature of awareness, warnings, and responses of citizens on the edge of the tornado damage path. Documenting and working with important details of this community's interaction with the storm, as well as garnering pertinent public information, including important lessons learned, yielded a unique opportunity to understand an unusual storm event in a close-knit community of northwest Wisconsin.

2. Background and Objective

Tornadoes routinely devastate both property and lives throughout the United States (Marshall 1993; Grazulis 1993). While some university researchers have concentrated on the physical nature of supercell thunderstorms and tornadoes (e.g., Fujita 1970; Bluestein 1999), others investigating the tornado hazard have considered the social aspects of tornado disasters (e.g., Kessler and White 1981; Burton et al. 1993; Mulilis and Duval 1997; Paul 1998; Balluz et al. 2000). Relatively recent research involving tornado victims has concentrated on those people most directly affected by the storm (i.e., those in the main path of the tornado), and whether people in such danger should favor ditches and ravines, or cars as a safer place than mobile homes (Schmidlin and King 1996).

After a tornado, people's perceptions and knowledge of the timing, magnitude, and location for severe storms may be altered. Attitudes about the meaning and effectiveness of warnings may generate personal vows toward greater vigilance, improved responses to warnings, or overall safer behaviors in the event of another such storm. Personal awareness of tornado risk may be elevated, at least until memories fade, and so pledges and commitment to future mitigation practices may appear strengthened. Mitigation efforts may be threefold in nature, ranging from infrastructural (installing either tornado safe rooms or storm clips to roofs), to behavioral (heeding warnings, sheltering or evacuation), to technological (acquiring a weather radio for instance).

Investigation into the behavior, awareness, and response of those involved in "near misses" or "close calls" with these dangerous storms is likely warranted. "Close calls" or "near misses" are herein defined as peoples' experiences next to the periphery of a tornado damage path. The exact position relative to the path of the storm can affect personal decision-making and actions taken. Locations near the periphery of the tornado damage path can allow the uninjured residents or those with minor injuries a fresh opportunity to make new choices about preparing and mitigating for a future disaster. Therefore, it is very important to comprehend the nature of these "near miss" experiences.