LOCAL BRIEFS

STAPLES - To prepare children for the birth of a new baby, Lakewood Health System announced it is hosting a free sibling class for parents and children of all ages.

The class will be 6-7:30 p.m. July 7 at Lakewood Health System in Staples.

Children will have the opportunity to prepare for the new baby by practicing in sibling-related activities. Each child will learn how to handle and play with the newborn and how to assist mom and dad with the baby's cares. Parents and children will tour the labor and delivery room and nursery at Lakewood Health System.

For more information or to register, contact Gayle Christenson at (218) 894-8623.

Severe weather site offers survival tips, storm facts

While Minnesota's 2009 tornado season got off to a slow start, multiple tornadoes have been reported since June 17.

And a state Web site offers survival tips and weather facts as a reminder to plan ahead for severe weather.

Storm spotters reported the state's first tornado of the season with a touchdown in Wilkin County on June 17. Historically, the earliest date for the first tornado of the year is March 18 and the latest is June 23. Storm systems continue to form in the west, a typical pattern once the season begins.

In the last 58 years, 1,525 tornadoes have caused 95 deaths in Minnesota and nearly 1,900 injuries, the state reported. The Severe Weather Awareness Web site - at www.severeweather.state.mn.us - is sponsored by the Department of Public Safety, the National Weather Service and the Red Cross.