🚀 go-pugleaf

At 12:57 AM 4/25/96 GMT, Joe A. Dellinger wrote:
>        On CNN they said that the NWS issued a tornado warning for Ft. Smith
>_before_ the tornado hit, but that high winds had downed the telephone lines
>so the NWS was unable to call the local civil defense on the telephone. (!)
>As a result the civil defense did not get the call, and didn't sound the
>sirens (until after the tornado had already hit). It was a serious enough
>screw-up that there is some sort of investigation as to what they should have
>done differently.

The NWS shouldn't be personally calling anyone!  The only acceptable ways of
communicating warnings are in broadcast form and this includes:

   - NOAA Weather Radio/EAS
   - NWWS Weather Wire
   - NAWAS
   - Locally operated NWS SKYWARN radio networks (inter-city)

Individual agencies relying on phone calls are asking to get burned when
things get rough.  Agencies with the responsibility for activating warning
sirens should have provisions that allow for local activation (activation
not based on NWS warnings) and they should have other means of getting
weather information besides waiting for an NWS warning.  If a tornado were
to develop two miles west of a community chances are there would not be enough
time for the NWS to hear about it, get the warning out, and have that warning
reach the majority of the public in time.  By using spotters and developing
working relationships between communities, emergency management officials
have much better oddds of knowing a tornado is coming and activating local
warning sirens.  ..Chris..
*====================================================================*
Chris Hayes Novy - WA9V   Internet: chris@siu.edu
Southern Illinois Univ.             chris@lib.siu.edu
Systems Administration       Phone: (618) 453-1683 (work)
Morris Library                      (618) 457-6149 (home)
Carbondale, IL 62901-6632      FAX: (618) 453-3440
*====================================================================*