Philadelphia got the message about killing heat in June 1993 when 118 people died in a wave. Now the city is testing a new watch and warning system. University of Delaware computers will analyze National Weather Service data and predict, up to two days in advance, when potentially deadly air masses will arrive. Nevertheless, during the last heat wave at least 42 heat-related deaths were reported in the city, most of them residents who were 60 or older. Far too many people don't take enough precautions during heat waves, but many preventable deaths also occur every year because of storms, floods and other kinds of dangerous weather.
Some people never hear the warnings.
In the case of tornadoes, people might get only 30 minutes to take shelter. But weather bulletins are aired on a special radio that automatically turns on and sounds a warning as a twister approaches. And some victims hear the warnings but ignore them. Part of the problem is that warnings of severe weather, though they are earlier and better than ever before, are still too broad. Mo. And some people in tornado-prone areas figure the storm, somehow, won't affect them.