Why no basements in most of the homes??? (for sale, mattress)

Okie-John · 07-08-2007, 11:58 PM

In the North basements are important to keep pipes from freezing, improve home heating and they are also cheaper to build since you have to excavate deep anyway. In Oklahoma, you only have to excavate 12 to 24 inches and the ground shifts causing the basements to crack. Most of the houses in Oklahoma that have basements were built 75 or more years ago. Safe rooms are getting pretty popular with new built homes. I personally want to be below the surface of the ground if there is a tornado in the area. We have a cellar that is about 50 years old and it is cracked and leaks, but it is better to wade in 12 inches of water than to try to survive a tornado either in the interior room of a house or in a safe room. The cellars don't crack as much as basements would because they are much smaller. Recently steel cellars have become popular because they are quick and easy to install and don't crack or leak. Hope this helps.

Mattie Jo · 07-09-2007, 05:11 AM

happytown · 07-09-2007, 08:58 AM

WOW-That sure looks bad for Oklahoma regarding tornadoes. I didnt know that OKC, Tulsa and Dallas were the main victims. I thought Kansas was known for having more than that.

Mattie Jo · 07-09-2007, 09:20 AM

You know what? I don't know whether to believe that map or not. I think it was put out by a website that sold steel storm cellars in OK. They cost $3,500 for one that is about 5x6 foot. I guess you could sit in it all night. And that doesn't include digging a hole and putting it in. Wonder if someone here can find a map that is real? Not that this one isn't. But like you, I didn't believe that Oklahoma had more than Kansas.

Mattie Jo · 07-09-2007, 09:22 AM

Okay, this map was put out by FEMA, and we know we can trust FEMA. LOL.

Mattie Jo · 07-09-2007, 09:25 AM

Mattie Jo · 07-09-2007, 09:32 AM

http://www.cdli.ca/CITE/tornadoUSmap.gif (broken link)

happytown · 07-09-2007, 11:06 AM

Ya- those look a bit more realistic! That company certainly messed with the map. The lines around the designated areas(Oklahoma) are not even smooth. They are probably using shock and awe to scare their market into buying their stuff.

Dale_ · 07-09-2007, 01:20 PM

From the looks of deaths by county the map os fairly accurate IMO.
Oklahoma Climatological Survey

In searching around though many of those deaths happened in years past when the warning system was not what it is today. In todays world of mass info it is dramatically less outside of 5-3-99.

cindycat · 07-20-2007, 10:36 AM

I lived in Oklahoma for 60 years and it was my 58th year before we were actually hit by a tornado in SE Oklahoma City...a little roof damage, 85 trees lost and lots of glass and debris from other houses. Even when I was a kid, a tornado hit my small hometown (Miami, OK, which recently made national news because of flooding) but we were a few miles across town and didn't feel a thing.

The folks in Moore (just south of OKC) may feel a little snake-bit, since they were hit in 1999, 2003 and...another one sometime in that timeframe. I've read in several threads about shelters or basements but haven't seen the in-garage shelter mentioned. After each of the two major tornadoes, FEMA offered to pay a portion of the cost of new shelters. We had a shelter built in the garage. They cut out the concrete, dug a hole, dropped in a shelter with a sliding top. We parked the car over it. It looked kind of like a pit at a service station. If you needed to use it, you'd slide the top back and go in. It cost $3000, including installation, in 2003. We didn't worry about getting stuck down there because the shelters were registered with the city, so they'd know where to look. Fortunately we didn't get a chance to use it before we moved. I'd just go down now and then and Raid the crickets.

Dale spoke of the accuracy of pinpointing the tornado's location. We often said we could listen to Gary England and he'd tell us what block of exactly what street it was on. (That's true of all the TV meteorologists but Gary England is sort of the gold standard since he's been there longer than any of the others.) The National Severe Storms Laboratory is in Norman and the local meteorologists have been instrumental in all sorts of forecasting and tracking innovations. Yes, tornadoes may come, but, by golly, you'll know where they are!