When it comes to speed and destruction, nothing beats a tornado's punch - it hits fast and it hits hard! Not only that, there's little to no advance warning before one shows up on your doorstep (and it won't be polite and ring the doorbell, trust me!). A twister can take out a whole town in a matter of minutes - not to mention your entire house off its foundation in a flash. Now that's some kind of power!

I'm Mr. Prepared, here to tell you that, when it comes to these wicked wind devils, emergency preparations are more important than any other natural disaster - because, when tornadoes do strike, you don't have time to do any last-minute cramming!

That's why I wrote my new free special report, "Top 10 Tornado Survival Facts," available for download at my website at www.MrPrepared.com. It's a valuable primer on what to do before, during and after a twister - and what food supplies and essential survival gear you should always have on hand in case one strikes. The more you understand in advance how tornadoes work - and what you should and shouldn't do when one strikes - the better equipped you are for survival!

And you need to be, especially if you live in the good old USA. Here, violent tornados happen 4 times more often than in all of Europe! Although tornadoes have happened on every continent except Antarctica (breathe a little easier, you penguins!), America is where the most tornado action is. As a matter of fact, the most violent tornado of all happened in the Midwest in 1925 - it was called "The Tri-State Tornado."

Yeah boy, this was one for the record books. The TST, as I like to call it, slammed through Missouri, Illinois and Indiana and still holds the record for the tornado that traveled the longest (219 miles), the fastest (73 mph) and stayed intact the longest (three and a half hours - the average lifespan of a tornado is ten minutes!). It also racked up the most U.S. tornado fatalities - 695 dead.

Almost fifty years later, in 1974, the record books were shattered again when the most extensive tornado outbreak occurred, blowing through parts of the Midwest and in southern Ontario in Canada. There must have been more wind than at a session of Congress - an astounding 148 tornadoes were spotted in just 18 hours, and an unprecedented amount of them were at the most-violent end of the scale. At one point, sixteen tornadoes were on the ground at the same time!

With tornadoes coming a lot more fast and furious in recent years, the TST's record could end up being challenged soon. Although there are certain times of the year and certain parts of the country that favor tornado formations, these wicked weather events can actually happen at any time anywhere in the country.

So know how to prepare for a tornado. Know how to survive during one. And know how to safely deal with what could be an ugly aftermath after the twister has moved on. Download my free special report, "Top 10 Tornado Survival Facts," at my website - and while you're there, check out some of my suggestions for stocking up on emergency survival supplies in case you're cut off from crucial services and assistance due to extreme tornado damage. Your life may depend on it!

This is Mr. Prepared, bringing Awareness to Preparedness!

Copyright (c) 2008 Mr. Prepared