Apartment Safety
Apartment Severe Weather Safety: Tornadoes, Hail, Flooding, Fire Alarms, and Power Outages
How apartment residents can plan for severe weather, including shelter rooms, upper floors, elevators, parking, pets, and building communication.
Quick answer: Apartment severe weather safety starts with knowing the lowest interior shelter area and how your building communicates emergencies.
Tornado sheltering
Use a small interior room, hallway, stairwell, or designated shelter area on the lowest safe floor.
Avoid windows, balconies, and large-span roof areas.
Flood and outage issues
Upper floors may be safer from flooding but harder during power outages if elevators stop.
Keep water, lights, and chargers ready.
Building plans
Ask management about shelter areas, fire alarms, garage access, and emergency messages.
Do not wait until a warning to learn the layout.