Attendees will learn to face hurricanes, hoarded homes, cybercrimes and more at the National Tornado Summit

OKLAHOMA CITY – National experts will share innovative strategies in recovering from tornadoes, wildfires, flooding, hurricanes and more at the 2018 National Tornado Summit. The 7th annual event will be held February 26-28, in Oklahoma City.

“This year’s conference will cover all disasters,” said National Tornado Summit Committee Co-Chair Kim Decker. “Session topics include nocturnal tornadoes, swift water rescues, disasters at major sporting events and what first responders need to know about entering a hoarder’s home during a disaster. This is a very exciting lineup.”

The National Tornado Summit gives attendees the knowledge they need to best prepare for and respond to disasters. Conference attendees include:

• Insurance Producers
• Insurance Adjusters
• Emergency Managers
• Insurance Regulators
• Engineers
• Meteorologists

“Year after year, the National Tornado Summit continues to be an excellent training opportunity for emergency management personnel, as well as attendees from other fields,” said Oklahoma Emergency Management (OEM) Director Albert Ashwood, National Tornado Summit Committee co-chair. “OEM is proud to take part in the Summit and I look forward to the multitude of success stories, experiences and insights that will be shared throughout this event.”

New this year, attendees can choose to attend FORTIFIED Wise™ training provided by the Insurance Institute for Business and Home Safety (IBHS). Those who attend the one-day workshop will gain a solid understanding of FORTIFIED building standards, which provide the strongest and most critical construction techniques for high-risk areas in the plains and coastal states. The workshop is open to attendees of the National Tornado Summit for a small additional fee.

For the sixth straight year, the Summit includes the National Severe Weather Workshop. The sessions organized by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) focus on the latest breakthroughs in tornado forecasting, the development of new standardized procedures for estimation of tornado wind speeds and the challenges of forecasting hurricane-produced tornadoes.

Attendees can also tour the National Weather Center in Norman, Okla. During an open house, attendees will explore the state-of-the-art facility and talk one-on-one with experts from the NOAA National Weather Service (NWS) Storm Prediction Center and the NWS Norman Weather Forecast Office. The tour offers an up-close look at mobile radars, laboratories, surface-weather observation stations and more.

The full agenda and registration information is available online at www.tornadosummit.org. For registration questions, call (405) 974-5306 or email ce@uco.edu.

About the National Tornado Summit

The National Tornado Summit is hosted by the Oklahoma Insurance Department, University of Central Oklahoma, Oklahoma Emergency Management, NOAA National Weather Service and National Association of Insurance Commissioners. It serves as a national forum for experts to exchange ideas and recommend new policies to improve disaster mitigation, preparedness, response and recovery in order to save lives and property.