The Pacific Ocean gifted us with a whale of a storm that will make this week a mess for just about everybody. The approaching disturbance will trigger dangerous thunderstorms in the south, another blizzard in Colorado, flooding rains, and usher forth an abrupt end to the unusually warm air that’s bathed us for so long.

Humans suck at preparing for disasters. Society barely made it through the scourge of Twitter changing stars to hearts. When the sky darkens, thunder rumbles, or snow starts falling, many people simply fall to pieces. These five tips will help you get through the next big storm that’s bad enough to earn its own scary name.

The picture perfect storm that’s raked the center of the country over the past two days caused 135 reports of damaging thunderstorm winds and 12 reports of tornadoes on Wednesday. The storm also generated some pretty strong winds as it swirled through the Great Lakes, with a 55 MPH gust in Buffalo, 49 MPH gust at Chicago O’Hare, and a 45 MPH gust in Detroit, leading to some wind damage and coastal flooding. The weather will slowly calm down as the storm lifts north into Canada.

The Novemberesque storm that’s swirling through the center of the United States is unfolding just as forecasters expected, with heavy snow in Colorado last night giving way to severe thunderstorms in the Midwest. The severe weather outbreak continues this evening, with several tornadoes reported and more possible as the line moves east through the evening hours.

A classic fall storm—just like the ones you used to know—promises to put a big pause on our Septemberest November Ever. This picture-perfect low pressure system will bring blizzard conditions to Colorado, severe thunderstorms with tornadoes to the Midwest, and ripping winds from the Plains to the Great Lakes.

The unusual March-like temperatures bathing much of the country this week are coming with a nasty side effect: March-like thunderstorms. A small but feisty severe weather outbreak is brewing in the center of the country right now, with damaging winds, large hail, and even a few tornadoes possible.

It’s been a while since we’ve had to talk about severe weather, and today it could threaten the East Coast of all places. A decent cold front pushing toward the coast this afternoon might trigger strong thunderstorms from Nashville to Boston, and some could be severe. Even a few tornadoes are possible in the NYC and Philly areas.

Last night, a destructive tornado tore through a community near Charleston, S.C., destroying homes and lofting debris tens of thousands of feet into the air. Tornadoes were not in the forecast last night—this happened largely by surprise. Owning a weather radio is your best defense against unexpected natural disasters like this.

A possible tornado struck Troy, Alabama, without warning on Thursday night, damaging several structures and overturning a tractor trailer along its path. Early reports on Twitter indicate that the local Walmart and a sports store sustained heavy damage, with the roofs of both stores caved in, much to the surprise of the dazed shoppers inside.

If you’re reading this at home, chances are you can look up from the screen and see at least one smoke detector. These life-saving devices are able to alert you to smoke from a fire, letting you get out before it’s too late. Weather radios do the same thing for hazards like tornadoes and floods. Every home, school, and business in the United States needs to be equipped with these critical devices that let you act before hazardous weather strikes.

Round two of a three-day severe weather outbreak across the eastern half of the United States is getting ready to unfold across the Midwest this evening and tonight. The atmosphere is getting antsy, and it looks primed to produce more destructive straight-line winds and maybe even a strong tornado or two. The storms also have the potential to develop into another derecho, much like the one we saw today.

A classic summertime severe weather outbreak is likely to unfold over the next few days across the eastern half of the U.S., with each day seeing the potential for extensive straight-line wind damage, large hail, and some tornadoes. The storms could organize into a much-hyped feature known as a “derecho.”

The last thing people in the Mid-Atlantic want to hear is more rain and storms, but that’s exactly what’s in the forecast today. Cities from Pittsburgh to Philly and D.C. to New York will see the risk for strong thunderstorms this afternoon, some of which could produce damaging winds and even a few tornadoes.

If you live in or around any of the counties shaded in blue on this map, odds are that your commute’s gonna suck as you head home this evening. Severe thunderstorms are firing up all over the place, and these counties are all under a severe thunderstorm watch through nightfall. Damaging winds, large hail, and some tornadoes are possible in these storms.

A line of intense thunderstorms rolled through the I-95 corridor this evening during the height of rush hour, stranding commuters, tearing down trees and power lines, damaging buildings, and even injuring a few people. After the rain wound down, more than 800,000 customers from D.C. to New Jersey were without power.

You can swim through the air on the East Coast this afternoon. It’s a typical hot, muggy summer afternoon, and an approaching cold front is allowing this soupy air to explode skyward and trigger some nasty thunderstorms. It looks like the storms will arrive in the megalopolis just in time for rush hour, of course.

Someone managed to pull a classic (but weak) Howard Stern prank during NBC Chicago’s live coverage of a tornado warning southwest of Chicago on Monday night. Even better than the call itself was the reaction of the worried anchors, who were completely oblivious to what happened.

An intense line of thunderstorms ripped, tore, screamed, blasted, and raced through the state of Iowa this morning, producing wind gusts exceeding 90 MPH in spots. Right or wrong, the storm is being touted as a “derecho” in the media; regardless of the name, the storms were brutal.

Tornadoes are possible in any of the severe thunderstorms that blow across the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast this afternoon, with the greatest risk existing across a stretch of land from Virginia to Vermont. Any of the storms that pop-up this afternoon also carry the risk for damaging winds and large hail.

As we crawl through this, our second day of True Summer (not that fake astronomical stuff), many people who haven’t had thunderstorms yet this year are in for a flashing, crashing, startling treat. What exactly is it about lightning that makes that thunderous noise, and why does it seem to crackle, boom, and roll?