MT. JULIET, Tenn. (WKRN) — With severe weather threatening Middle Tennessee, Mt. Juliet officials urge residents to have a plan in place.
One month after the city remembered the lives lost in the 2020 tornado, the community is bracing for a round of severe weather that will start Wednesday, April 2 and is expected to last through the rest of the week.
“Since 2020, there was a lot more storm readiness out there in the community,” said Richard Frankich, administrative services manager for the Mt. Juliet Police Department.
Frankich said dozens of homeowners have invested in storm shelters since the 2020 tornado.
“They're very stable, very secure, very difficult for the storm to break through, so it's a great place for the families to take cover during a storm situation,” Frankich said.
Considering they have become more popular, Frankich has been asking families to register their storm shelters with MJPD. He said this information is critical for first responders.
“Then we know also that we can start looking and 'Okay, this home is registered with us.' We need to know right where we can go and look for that storm shelter, how we can get into that storm shelter and start looking for those individuals,” Frankich said.
In the aftermath of the 2020 tornado, Frankish said Mt. Juliet realized the need for a community storm shelter.
“Hypothetically, had that storm tracked even just a mile further north, it would have wiped out our current police headquarters, which would have taken out our dispatch center,” Frankich said.
While a new police headquarters is still under construction, Frankich said a tornado bunker for the department and the community will be part of the facility.
“At that point, when storms blow through the area, if folks need a place to come shelter temporarily during the storms, our doors will be open to them, let them come in and take cover,” Frankich said.
Make sure you text MJ to 67283 to subscribe to the text alert program so you can stay prepared and alert.
Don’t forget to take the power and reliability of the WKRN Weather Authority with you at all times by downloading the News 2 Storm Tracker app.
