Launches campaign to inform homeowners of new features of shelters that will save lives in during tornadoes reports Smartsheltersinc.com

Oklahoma City, OK -- (SBWire) -- 08/29/2014 --While no state is immune to tornadoes, Oklahoma, Texas and Florida by far exceed any other states in tornado touch downs. Additionally, the mid-west states of Colorado, Kansas, Arkansas, Nebraska, Illinois, Indiana, Missouri, which in addition to Oklahoma and Texas, make up "Tornado Alley" the most common areas to see tornadoes. While other countries such as Australia and Japan also report tornadoes, they are most common in the United States and Canada, with the US reporting over a thousand each year.

To counter this almost common occurrence in the mid-west, Smart Shelters Inc has launched a campaign to make homeowners aware of the need for storm shelters. "What the Joplin, MO tornadoes with its 158 fatalities taught us more than anything was the need for storm shelters at home, at work and in public places. Even the National Weather Association endorses the use of storm shelters to saves lives during severe storms."

The storm shelters Tulsa spokesperson Robin Hood says a number of people fear storm shelters because they are claustrophobic, but with new technology, that shouldn't be a factor. Hood explains."With our new forced air ventilation, claustrophobia is helped or eliminated completely, and, there are a few methods to overcome most of it. We give the advice to be the final person into the shelter and to leave the door open until you actually hear a tornado approaching. You won’t have a problem shutting it for several minutes. Most people actually feel better if they are the person in charge of the door. For the most part, people are only in their shelter about 15 minutes anyway. We also provide a 6,000 pound escape jack to push away any debris off of the top of the shelter."

Other homeowners worry about the home falling on top of the shelter and being unable to get out of the shelter. Hood puts those fears to rest, also. "The shelters all have ball-bearing sliding doors which allow you to roll the lids open easily instead of lifting them against debris. And in most applications, the shelters are covered and protected by a vehicle, except for two feet on the end to slide the door back. Also, the shelters are registered after we install it, so emergency personnel know who has them and where you're located."

Hood urges families and business to take action now, when the need is not present. "While many people have a general idea of where they consider is a safe place to go when a life threatening storm approaches, a properly constructed storm shelter may be the only way to survive. In addition, a well-built storm shelter provides the peace of mind you need when threatening weather is predicted."

About Smart Shelters, Inc
Based in Oklahoma City, OK, Smart Shelters builds and installs storm shelters, tornado shelters, and safe rooms for the state of Oklahoma. With their patent pending lockable lid design, any vehicle is able to park over the shelter while still being accessible. Having installed over 800 shelters since 1999, the process is certified sound by a structural engineer.