Winter Storm Warning what’s that?
Rich Apuzzo
Chief Meteorologist S k y e y e W e at h e r L L C
“The National Weather Service in Wilmington has issued a Winter Storm Warning…” Do you know what that means? Do you know the difference between a Tornado Watch and Tornado Warning? As a meteorologist these terms are second must be put under a certain category…flood watch, flash flood watch, flood advisory, nature to me and the difference between a watch and warning is obvious, yet I still hear flood warning, flash flood warning, river flood warning, urban and small stream flood from people who don’t know the difference advisories, etc. So many names for the same and often swap one term for the other. A thing…too much water in certain areas, and long time ago I stopped using watches and the water can be dangerous to lives, transwarnings in my forecasts except to alert my portation, and property. clients that the watch or warning has been issued. If the words don’t tell you exactly I should make it clear that private enterprise what’s happening, then why not use words does a lot of that as well, but government that do? For example, a Winter Storm Warning means different things in different parts of the country so I prefer something like this, “A winter storm heading for the Tri-State area will bring strong winds, snow accumulations from 3 to 6 inches and falling temperatures during the afternoon…” That tells you what you need to know without having to worry about whether it’s a “watch” or “warning”. Of the many problems with big government, one that we can all agree upon is that government always complicates simple proj- and government-funded institutions are notorious for complicated naming systems ects and procedures. They never streamline and communications procedures… but the or simplify anything, though they someNational Weather Service is beta-testing times try. Just look at the alphabet soup of the idea of simplifying weather alerts. I saw agencies: FBI, CIA, NSA, NWS, NOAA, this article from the Associated Press last NCIS, EPA, NHC, SPC, FCC, FTC, and January, “Change in the Air for Blizzard of on and on. The abbreviations are supposed Winter Weather Terms”. In the article it is to simplify things, but for whom? Most people couldn’t tell me what all of the above noted that there are 14 different watches, warnings and advisories for winter weather abbreviations stand for and even fewer can alone! I like the idea of giving “just the facts” tell me exactly what each one does. without all the fancy names. Here is the The NWS is the National Weather Service, crux of that article: “…Alongside a winter and for a long time they have operated like storm watch for northeast Wyoming, the any other government agency with speWeather Service released a possible subcial names for different weather elements, stitute statement: “The National Weather oscillations, atmospheric or oceanic patService in Rapid City (S.D.) is forecasting terns and so on. Naturally that also goes for the potential for a significant winter storm.” everyday weather forecasts. Instead of just “The purpose of this project is to use lantelling us that flooding is possible, the data 9 88.9/89.1 FM • www.class x radio.com • The New Breed Of Rock
guage that is self-evident, that everybody would immediately understand,” said Eli Jacks, the forecaster leading the experiment. The experiment began in December and runs through March 31 at 26 Weather Service offices covering Alaska, Oregon, the northern Great Plains, Michigan, New England, Appalachia and Oklahoma. A separate website for the project avoids confusing people who just want to look up the forecast. The clear-and-simple approach could be carried over to heat waves, flooding, dangerous wind and other conditions, but that will depend on what the public has to say. The rest of the story is here: http://bigstory. ap.org/article/change-air-blizzardwinterweather-terms You won’t be seeing the proposed changes soon, but possibly starting next winter if the feedback is positive. Like any change in government operations, it takes a long time with lots of meetings and paperwork, plus training for the people issuing the new advisories because old habits are hard to break. In the meantime, winter is winding down in the Ohio Valley and I am seeing a favorable setup for an active tornado season here, which means that this is a good time to review your warm-season severe weather definitions. Here is a great website to get you started: www.nws.noaa.gov/om/severeweather/index.shtml Keep your eyes on the sky and enjoy the changing weather and my weather forecast. You can catch them each weekday by listening to ClassX Radio on 89.1 FM in Northern Kentucky. If the signal gets weak in your area, then try 88.9 FM or ClassXradio.com.