tornado safety

The National Weather Service is predicting a wave of severe weather for this morning through the afternoon. All modes of severe weather will be possible, including tornadoes, damaging winds with gusts up to 70 mph, and large hail up to golf ball size.

Alabama meteorologists are warning about severe storms coming to the Yellowhammer State this weekend and into early next week. Damaging winds, hail and frequent lighting are being identified as the main threats during around midnight on Sunday into Monday morning. Weather experts say an isolated tornado is also possible.

Sunday night’s tornado warning in Pickens County was a reminder that bad weather can occur almost any time in Alabama. Researchers with the U.S. Department of Energy are conducting research into how forests may influence the development of severe weather.

Alabamians are remembering the devasting tornado outbreak that destroyed communities across the state on April 27, 2011. According to the National Weather Service, the super-outbreak affected 26 states across the Southeast, but Alabama saw the worst destruction.

The National Weather Service says a survey team will be assessing possible tornado damage in Dallas and Chilton counties after a round of severe weather blew through Alabama.

March officially begins the spring severe weather season in Alabama. This is the most active time for tornadoes in the state. Primary tornado season is early March through May, with the greatest number of tornadoes occurring in the month of April.

Most tornado-prone areas, including almost all of Alabama, Oklahoma, Missouri, Texas and Mississippi are in the zone with the most lax standards. One of the big problems, experts told the AP, is that the federal rules that call for tougher manufactured home standards, including anchoring, only apply in hurricane zones.

If the only time you put your pet in a carrier is when you take it to the veterinarian's office, it may not seem like a safe place to your furry friend.…