Last night, on Twitter, some people were asking why people would continue to live in Tornado Alley. I think this is a pretty common misconception here in the United States, that Tornado Alley is some narrow sliver of the county and the rest of us are somehow “outside of Tornado Alley.” Like it’s a real alley and shaped like one.
But here’s every tornado in the past 60 years. Shall we all go live in the Rockies? Shall everyone move to the southeastern corner of Oregon?
There is no “there” where “they” are and “we” are not.
Tiny Cat Pants 
That was pissing me off, too.
We can’t all go live in the Rockies, because there are dangerous rock falls and snowstorms there. How can people live there? It’s not safe.
I’d rather take my chances with an occasional tornado other than a wildfire, earthquake, mudslide, hurricane and other phenomena on both of the coasts. Devastating all, to be sure. And now the (GOP) senators from OK , who have denied aid to Sandy victims will be looking for a handout. Assholes.
Even in the heart of Tornado Alley in the middle of tornado season, you are more likely to be killed in a car accident than a tornado. We are not good at really understanding relative risk.
Well, but surely someone should have understood relative risk enough to have put basements under those schools.
There was a basement under one of the schools, that’s how some of the kids drowned. I assume a water main broke. You need a safe room or cellar in a tornado, a basement isn’t always enough, as the building can come down around you.
I’ve been seeing a number of emails from our colleagues in Oklahoma explaining that, because of the clay soil, basements there tend to collapse, so they, in general, don’t put them in.
People always assume they know more about how to prevent other people’s tragedy’s than they really do.