The wrap-up meeting for the 2002 “severe weather season” was held today at the NWS office in Wilmington. Here are some items of note:
- NOAA WX radio transmitters, at 300 watts each, are in operation in Richmond, IN (162.5) and Owenton, KY (162.45).
- The “replacement” voices are being integrated into more of the forecast products, including severe weather statements/watches/warnings.
- NWS’s StormReady program is alive and well. Details on the program can be found at http://www.nws.noaa.gov/stormready/. In the Wilmington service area, Scioto and Boone Counties are certified. Union County (Ohio) is getting close.
- Winter Weather Awareness Week will be November 17-23 in Ohio and Indiana. Dates have not been announced for Kentucky.
- Starting October 1, Wilmington will be issuing a product called the “Hazardous Weather Outlook”. This product will NOT be issued by NOAA Weather Radio, but will be available from sources like EMWIN and IWIN. Many offices already issue a similar product…the format will be standardized on 10/1. (Look for Special Weather Statements on EMWIN/IWIN to see what the current format looks like.)
- As you all know, the amount of SkyWARN activity was very low during this drought year. Wilmington logged 14 nets (that includes activity for Dayton, Columbus, and West Union) totalling 45 hours of activity. There were 4 nets in April, 6 in May. There was no SkyWARN activity during the period 7/30 – 9/19.
- In the future, NWS will be looking for some more detail on damage reports. Specifically…if you can determine the address (or at least road name) of the damage, they would like that to be relayed. As always, we are looking for first-hand reports, so please don’t relay what you might hear on public safety frequencies.
Thanks for your support of SkyWARN and it’s mission in 2002. While some activity is possible during the winter months, we don’t anticipate another burst of activity until the spring. As always, be prepared for anything, check in to the weekly/monthly nets, and attend the spotter training sessions that will probably start in late January.
-73- de N8TFD/Steve