KANSAS CITY, Mo. — When you hear a tornado siren blaring, do you seek shelter immediately — or do you head outside to get a glimpse of what’s happening?
Weather enthusiasts usually take any opportunity to see severe weather in action, sometimes putting their lives at risk. A Kansas City area psychologist said this mindset boils down to basic human instinct: fight or flight.
“People may think the only way to keep myself safe and to keep other people safe is for me to watch what is coming toward me, to watch this danger,” said Dr. Lauren Spears, a clinical psychologist in Overland Park. “I think risk perception plays a role here. One thing is that it’s actually adaptive in many situations for humans to want to keep an eye on danger.”
But when danger is approaching, that “fight” instinct can backfire. Spears said many times, people misjudge the situation they are in, not realizing how severe the conditions are.
“Our bodies are getting ready for the threat, but rational thought and reason goes by the wayside, so we might not make the best decisions on what keeps us safe,” Spears said.
Jeff Hern had his first experience seeing a tornado back in 2003.
“The first time I saw a tornado, I told my wife to come look at it, and she said no, and then I went inside,” Hern said.
Hern witnessed the EF4 tornado that killed one person in Kansas City on May 4, 2003.
“It’s like if you never saw the Super Bowl, but it's right there in front of you, you are going to sit there and watch it,” he said. “But as far as I’m concerned, it’s something you don’t want to mess with.”
Spears said humans in general are highly reinforced by new, thrilling situations, leading some people to want to go outside when severe weather rolls in.
On the other hand, there are others who have that “flight” instinct when it comes to severe weather.
“Maybe they have had negative experiences in the past with severe weather, maybe their parents were highly anxious in storms so they model that behavior to be anxious,” Spears said. “But there is something about them that makes them want to take shelter even when the storm is two hours away.”
Social media also can play a big factor in someone’s motivation to seek storms. Hundreds of pictures are shared every year of severe storms, from funnel clouds to lightning strikes. The more extreme the picture, the more likely it’s going to get a lot of attention.
Spears said the problem comes when people put themselves in risky situations to shock their social media viewers.
“You have to post content that is more shocking or gains more attention than anyone else on your news feed,” Spears said, adding that the more pictures people see can desensitize them to actual dangerous situations. “You see hundreds and hundreds of images and people are putting themselves in dangerous situations. After a while, you start to think maybe it’s not as dangerous after all, if everyone else is doing it.”
As for Hern, he says he will never go back outside to see a tornado again.
“I won’t do it again, I will be honest with you. I won’t do it again,” he said. “It was scary.”
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