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.

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.

The National Weather Service is in the holiday spirit this afternoon, and it found the geekiest way possible to wish you a merry Christmas and remind you of the best gift you can give someone this year.

As warm weather slowly creeps in, severe weather outbreaks will begin to happen more frequently. One of the most repeated phrases by victims after any weather disaster is "we had no warning!" With all the technology available today, that should never be the case. All homes, businesses, and schools should be equipped with a NOAA weather radio.