Here are some interesting facts about tornadoes that could save your life.    

• Tornadoes are violently rotating columns of air extending from severe thunderstorms to the ground. 
• Tornadoes usually are preceded by very heavy rain and possibly hail. If hail falls from a thunderstorm, it is an indication that the storm has large amounts of energy and may be severe. In general, the larger the hailstones, the more potential for damaging thunderstorm winds and/or tornadoes. 
• The most violent tornadoes are capable of tremendous destruction with wind speeds of 250 mph or more. 
• An average tornado damage path is one-to-three miles wide and 50 miles long. 
• The average tornado moves from southwest to northeast, though tornadoes have been known to move in any direction. 
• The average forward speed of a tornado is 30 mph, but may vary from nearly stationary to 70 mph. 
• Tornadoes can occur throughout the year, however, the peak season in North Carolina is March through May. 
• Tornadoes are most likely to occur between 3PM and 7PM but have been known to occur at all hours of the day or night. 
• National Weather Service (NWS) officials in Raleigh, Morehead City and Wilmington, North Carolina; Blacksburg and Wakefield, Virginia; Greenville-Spartanburg, South Carolina; and Morristown, Tennessee provide warnings for North Carolina. 
• The NWS is now using Doppler weather radar to sense the air movement within thunderstorms.  Early detection of increasing rotation aloft within a thunderstorm can allow time for lifesaving warnings before the tornado forms.

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