Cold Safety

Cold Weather Information

Cold weather impacts parts of the United States during the winter months and affects millions of people.  Cold weather can be dangerous causing frostbite and hyperthermia, which in severe cold, can happen within minutes.        

Warning Signs of Hypothermia 

Any thunderstorm that is considered severe will contain hail at least 1 inch in diameter, winds gusting at 58 M.P.H. or greater, or a tornado. While the classification for severe thunderstorms only require one of these criterion, many storms will have one or more of the above.

Warning Signs of Hypothermia

• Confusion
• Shivering
• Difficulty speaking
• Sleepiness
• Stiff Muscles

Hail

Stronger thunderstorms contain hail. Hail is caused by water droplets rising in the updraft of a storm. Once they reach a certain level they start to freeze and get larger until they can no longer be supported by the updraft. This is when they fall to the ground. Hail is larger than sleet and falls only during thunderstorms.

Hail falls in various sizes depending on the severity of the storm. Larger hail can cause damage to cars, windows, roofs, and other structures. Hail can also cause serious injury or death as they can be large size and can fall at speeds of 100 M.P.H. or greater.

Thunderstorm Facts

• Thunderstorms may occur in a cluster, as a single storm, or a line of storms.
• Some of the most severe storms occur when a single storm affects one area for an extended period of time.
• Thunderstorms can produce heavy rain lasting a half hour or longer, which can lead to flash floods.
• Warm and humid conditions are the best for thunderstorm development..
• Around 10 percent of storms are classified as severe.
• The average thunderstorm is 15 miles wide and lasts around 30 minutes.
• Worldwide, there are an estimated 16 million thunderstorms each year, and at any given moment, there are roughly 2,000 thunderstorms in progress. There are about 100,000 thunderstorms each year in the U.S. alone.
• Lightning is hotter than the suraface of the sun, reaching temperatures around 50,000!