Stuart Passes Tornado Warehouse Safety Preparedness Bill, Advancing Bill to the Senate

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — State Rep. Katie Stuart, D-Edwardsville, is improving protections for workers in their workplace in the event of a tornado or other inclement weather emergency by requiring employers to have a tornado safety plan in place and warehouses designate or construct a tornado shelter for workers and other warehouse personnel.

“The December 2021 Edwardsville tornado was a tragedy that took six lives due to the lack of clear instructions, adequate emergency training, and overall, a tornado safety plan, and this bill addresses the shortcomings that led to these lives being taken,” said Stuart. “There are steps we can take to minimize the devastation from a tornado and that begins with having a safety plan in place and having a quality tornado shelter in each warehouse.”

Stuart’s House Bill 2987 requires all operators of a warehouse to have a tornado safety plan in place for each warehouse they operate and for these plans to be sent to local emergency departments. Warehouses and local emergency services will be required to coordinate when creating a safety plan, ensuring the safety plan aligns with existing emergency response plans.

Stuart’s bill also requires warehouses to have a tornado shelter space that can accommodate all those in the warehouse during operating hours. This requirement ensures that not only do warehouse workers have a sufficient place to shelter, any other person, including workers who are only there temporarily, have a sufficient place to shelter in the event of a tornado. Based on a risk assessment process, warehouses will need to meet a life-safety performance level that matches or exceeds the most environmentally intense building code, helping create and update warehouses so they can withstand inclement weather events.

“Tornadoes are not rare in Illinois and our legislators and communities should be doing everything we can to make sure everyone is safe during a tornado, whether they be at home, at school, or at work,” said Stuart. “I am proud to champion this bill, helping create safer workplaces and better prepared workers in the event of a tornado.”

Stuart’s bill received bipartisan support in the House and now moves to the Senate for consideration.