Kansas City, Mo. ? As a tornado passed about a quarter-mile away, hundreds of customers at the massive Cabela’s outdoor store in the city’s western suburbs huddled in a safe area.

The tornado passed by the store and nearby Kansas Speedway in Kansas City, Kan., causing little to no damage, but the widespread destruction nearby provided a reminder of why both tourist attractions have emergency plans in place.

Ron Soucie, the general manager at Cabela’s, said some customers came running into the store seeking shelter, and the 180,000 square-foot store was able to provide it.

Cabela’s, which has hosted 2.4 million visitors since last August, was the top tourist attraction in Kansas last year. At any given time, Soucie said, more than 1,000 customers could be inside the store. Managers estimated there were between 300 and 400 customers in the store Sunday when the storm hit.

For tornadoes, Soucie said, the store’s plan is fairly simplistic. Employees secure the store and encourage all customers to meet in a back room with no windows.

Soucie said the retail area of the store could be a dangerous place during a tornado because of the hunting and fishing items the store sells. Besides knives, fishhooks and the like, the store also has glass ceiling panels and many glass fixtures.

There was not a race Sunday at Kansas Speedway, but the track has plans in place for a number of emergencies, including fires, tornados and even terrorist attacks.

Spokesman Stann Tate said the speedway is in touch with weather services for several hours before any race.

The grandstands seat more than 80,000 people, but Tate said there could be an additional 20,000 fans in the infield area of the track.

In the best case scenario, Tate said the speedway would try to evacuate all fans from the premises. With Interstates 70 and 435 nearby, Tate said the 100,000 fans could be evacuated in an hour-and-a-half to two hours.

Otherwise, the speedway has safe zones in which fans can gather.

“There are some safe areas, but if we had 100,000 people out here, we don’t have that much space,” Tate said.

Tate said employees perform exercises before each race season to prepare for potential emergencies. Speedway staff also meet with officials from the Kansas Highway Patrol, Wyandotte County Sheriff’s Department and local police.

Tate said the speedway always has an operations center open during the race with the law enforcement agencies. He said the Speedway also runs a fire patrol in the grandstands during a race and has a medical center and helicopter from the University of Kansas Medical Center on site.

Steve Schneider, director of stadium operations at Arrowhead Stadium, said plans are in place to move Kansas City Chiefs and Wizards fans out of harm’s way if necessary.

In his seven years working at the stadium, Schneider remembers evacuating fans just once: in October 1998, during a Chiefs game he remembers as the “monsoon game.” It was delayed by lightning, and fans were asked to leave the seating area and move into the concourses below.

In a tornado, Schneider said security officers and stadium workers would encourage fans to head to Arrowhead’s lowest level. If necessary, Schneider said, fans could move into an underground tunnel connecting Arrowhead and the Royals’ Kauffman Stadium.

Schneider said there is also a time issue. “How many can you get there and how quick?” Schneider said.

Like at Kansas Speedway, Schneider said workers are briefed on evacuation plans and officials are in touch with weather services while events are in progress.