The Gardendale Chamber of Commerce is promoting an event to help residents prepare for tornadoes like those which hit the state last April.

The Weather and Safety Awareness Expo will be held on March 6 at the Gardendale Civic Center. The expo will feature Tuscaloosa Mayor Walt Maddox, who will recount his city’s devastation from the tornado and what was learned from its aftermath.

Mark Prater, the chief meteorologist from CBS-42 television, will also speak about severe weather forecasting and preparation.

In addition, the expo will feature a number of booths, including one where attendees can have their NOAA Weather Radio service set to the correct transmitter and codes so that they can receive automatic weather warnings. Other booths will feature vendors of storm-related services such as tornado shelters and homeowner’s insurance.

The expo will run from 4 to 8 p.m. Admission is free, and booth space is also free of charge.

For more information, call Chamber Director Alan Hall at 514-2226. In addition, the chamber will hold a meeting today for those interested in setting up a booth. The meeting is at 10 a.m. at the civic center.