Class to Train Official Weather Spotters

If you keep your television tuned in to the Weather Channel and are habitually watching the skies for severe weather, here's a class for you.

In conjunction with the City of Treasure Island Emergency Management, the National Weather Service is offering a free SKYWARN weather-spotter training class July 21 at the Treasure Island City Hall Auditorium, 120 108th Ave. Basic training is from 7 to 8 p.m., and advanced training is from 8 to 9 p.m.

The basic training will focus on severe weather in the area, weather safety, thunderstorm formation, and severe weather cloud identification and reporting.

The advanced training will feature a discussion on sea breeze fronts,
lightning patterns, visualizing instability and hurricanes.

The National Weather Service will issue a warning for only one or both of the following reasons; Doppler radar detects severe weather or SKYWARN spotters report severe weather.

Each year, Americans cope with an average of 10,000 thunderstorms, 2,500 floods, 1,000 tornadoes, as well as an average of two deadly hurricanes. Some 90 percent of all presidentially declared disasters are weather related, leading to around 500 deaths per year and nearly $14 billion in damage.

Becoming a trained SKYWARN spotter can help protect yourself, your family and neighbors, according to Dan Noah, warning coordination meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Ruskin and a Bloomingdale resident.

Noah said trained spotters know the weather threats in Florida, safety rules, and visual clues regarding thunderstorm strength.

Residents can attend the training even if you do not want to be an official spotter.

SKYWARN is a program sponsored by the National Weather Service (NWS) consisting of trained weather spotters who provide reports of severe and hazardous weather to help in the warning process. SKYWARN spotter reports provide vital "ground truth" to the NWS. The reports serve the NWS mission of protecting life and property in three ways: assist in present and future warning decisions, confirm hazardous weather detected by NWS radar, and provide verification information which can be used for future research efforts.

SKYWARN is a volunteer public service for those 18 years or older. Each year spotters donate their time and/or equipment to help the NWS issue severe weather warnings.

The National Weather Service is the primary source of weather data, forecasts and warnings for the United States and its territories. It operates the most advanced weather and flood warning and forecast system in the world, helping to protect lives and property and enhance the national economy. Visit the NWS online at weather.gov/tampabay and on Facebook at
http://www.facebook.com/US.NationalWeatherService.TampaBay.gov.