Even relatively weak tornadoes can overturn and roll vehicles, and stronger ones can lift them into the air completely and throw them long distances, causing injury and even death to any occupants. (This storm chaser risked it all for tornado science.)

Stay in the car with the seat belt on. Put your head down below the windows; cover your head with your hands and a blanket, coat, or other cushion if possible. If you can safely get noticeably lower than the level of the roadway,leave your car and lie in that area, covering your head with your hands.

In a vehicle: Being in a vehicle during a tornado is not safe. The best course of action is to drive to the closest shelter. If you are unable to make it to a safe shelter, either get down in your car and cover your head, or abandon your car and seek shelter in a low lying area such as a ditch or ravine.

The idea of opening windows and doors in the event of a tornado – an effort to “equalize pressure” is a waste of time, NOAA said. “Opening the windows is absolutely useless, a waste of precious time, and can be very dangerous. Don’t do it. You may be injured by flying glass trying to do it.

Tornado safety preparation tips

1. Designate a safe room. This area can either be a storm cellar, a basement or a room on the lowest level of your home or building without any windows, like a closet.
2. Put essentials in your safe room.
3. Remove outdoor items.
4. Reinforce your home.
5. Contact your insurance agent.

Tornadoes and straight-line wind are able to carry debris, accelerating it to speeds more than 100 m.p.h. Debris can’t be put into the basement if you are below ground-level. But there’s one place that’s better than a basement with no windows. That’s under the stairs in the basement.

A closet underneath the stairs would be ideal if it’s cleaned out and has enough space to fit your household, Mitchell said. Getting low and away from windows can be tough if you live in an apartment, especially if you live on an upper floor. “At least find an interior room,” Mitchell said.

While a basement is a good place to take shelter from a tornado, no corner of a basement is safer than any other. According to the SPC, this myth arose from the mistaken belief that most tornadoes come from the southwest and that any debris they generate would fall into the northeast corner of a basement.