Emergency communication system
161 people were killed and at least 990 injured when an EF5 multiple-vortex tornado hit Joplin, Missouri. Because Joplin is located in a tornado-heavy area of the country, many people considered the tornado sirens routine and ignored them. Instead, many residents waited until they received confirmation from another, non-routine, source, such as seeing the tornado, a radio or TV report, or hearing a second siren. In the aftermath, an assessment team recommended that emergency warnings take risk perception into account to convey a sense of urgency. NOAA Officials are considering ways to change the warning system to distinguish smaller tornadoes from more deadly ones.
Tornado outbreak of April 9–11, 2009
The tornado outbreak of April 9–11, 2009 was a tornado outbreak that affected large portions of the Southern United States on April 9–11, 2009. At least 5 people were killed by tornadoes including three in Mena, Arkansas and two in Murfreesboro, Tennessee just south of Nashville. A total of 85 tornadoes were confirmed over the two days. Three people were killed in Texas due to wildfires caused by strong winds stemming from the same storm system.