A new nationwide survey highlights America’s deepest weather fears, and the results show striking gaps between the threats people worry about and how prepared they actually feel to face them.

The poll of 2,500 adults, conducted by Talker Research on behalf of Master Lock, found tornadoes ranked as the scariest natural disaster overall (46%), narrowly edging out tsunamis (43%), followed by earthquakes (35%) and hurricanes (33%). Wildfires (30%), flash floods (26%), heat waves and droughts (6%), blizzards (4%) and mudslides (4%) trailed behind.

Regional fears and confidence

The study revealed major regional differences in how Americans think about disasters.

Northeast: Residents reported high confidence in handling more familiar threats like heat waves or droughts (68%) and blizzards

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