SOURCE: Ron Isaacs, director of Scalia Lab Leslie Gabbard / THE POST

Even though some Ohio University residence halls have no underground levels, not just any tornado can sweep students or residence halls off their feet.

The residence halls are structurally sound buildings made of concrete and reinforced with steel that only the strongest tornado could destroy, said Ron Isaac, director of Scalia Lab for atmospheric analysis in the Department of Geography.

Ohio's tornado season started April 1 and lasts until July 1, during which time tornadoes are more common, Isaac said.

If a tornado is spotted in the area, students and faculty members should take proper safety measures and seek shelter, said George Houghton, a fire protection engineer for OU.

Proper shelter for students and faculty members in residence halls and campus buildings includes moving to the lowest level of the building and staying away from windows, said Leroy Scribner, hazardous materials manager for the Department of Environmental Safety. It also is recommended that people get under a table for extra protection, he said.

But OU is less likely to have a tornado than other areas of the state, Isaac said.

"Chances for tornadoes in the southeast part of the state are slim. They are most common in the southwestern part of Ohio," he said.

Tornadoes cannot form without the appearance of thunderstorms, which serve as an early warning that a tornado could be developing in the area, Isaac said.

In addition to natural warning signs, the university is taking extra steps to ensure campus safety by installing emergency radios across campus, Scribner said. The university has installed 30 radios and will install an additional 150 radios that will be delivered this week. Athens residents also can purchase these radios.

These emergency radios remain inactive until Campus Safety or the Emergency Operations Center sends out a signal to warn of severe weather, Scribner said.

The university is working with city officials to install an outdoor warning system, consisting of sirens that would be set off in severe weather emergencies. The installation of the initial system with one siren would cost about $32,000. A city committee is investigating the plan to construct the outdoor warning system, Scribner said.