As we begin the second day of Severe Weather Awareness Week, today’s focus will be on Receiving Warnings. The first precaution you should take is to become weather aware. What does this mean? This means that you are in the know of weather forecasts, have a safety plan set up, and that you can react quickly and promptly to any weather alerts issued. Sure, the National Weather Service does an excellent job of issuing warnings, however, how are you going to receive them?
There are multiple ways to receive these warnings. The most safe and recommended way to receive alerts are using NOAA All-Hazards Weather Radios. But, the first and most used way is by receiving them from TV/Radio media or internet media (Us!). Unfortunately, studies have shown that only 5-10% of the population use a weather radio. So, if you don’t have one, we highly recommend you get one.
Myself, writing this article, have heard many families unplugging or turning off the radios because the alert noise that goes off every week for the weekly test. You are not being weather aware! Just simply silence it buy clicking a button. If you turn it off, you will not get the alerts coming through, and that is not what you want! If you unplug it, and you are in bed sleeping, and a Tornado Warning is in effect, you will not be in the know of it! Tornado Sirens can not be heard most of the time inside – because they are met for the outside.
Another way of receiving warnings is through the Wireless Emergency Alerts system, or WEA system. This is a brand new system just implemented just this year, and so far has worked fabulously. Select high-impact NWS alerts (Blizzard Warnings, Tornado Warnings, Extreme Wind Warnings, Hurricane/Tropical Storm Warnings, Ice Storms, Tsunamis, and Dust Storms) will be sent to your phone in the case of an emergency, even if it’s on silent. As long as you don’t disable it or turn the GPS feature off, you won’t need to worry about not receiving warnings.
Below, you can find what to listen for (Watch and Warning)
Watch: A watch is issued when specific weather conditions are expected, which could be flooding or tornadoes. Stay precautions and prepare to initiate safety plans.
Warning: A warning is issued when specific weather conditions are occurring or immanent. When a warning is issued, initiate safety plans immediately to protect life and property.