Updated: 2024 03 22
Spring usually brings severe weather in many parts of the country, and I think most would agree that tornadoes are one of the worst in terms of little or no notice. Hurricanes come with at least several days’ notice, and although they can bring severe winds it’s usually floods that kill most people.
In normal situations we all probably have at least one app on our phone to track weather. In addition, we probably have our phones set to give us news and weather alerts. As we have mentioned in previous articles you should have radios for communications, and most VHF radios (Baofeng’s etc.) should have the ability to monitor the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), National Weather Service (NWS) weather radio frequencies. The NOAA weather broadcasts use seven frequencies between 162.400 to 162.550 and vary by location. It is important you use the correct frequency for your area because NOAA sends specific messages and alerts based on geographical areas using Specific Area Message Encoding (SAME). Each county or municipal area has a specific code that can be entered into a weather radio. The radio will then alert to the county and weather type based on the code.
The same system is part of the Emergency Alert System (EAS). There are event codes not only for weather events but corresponding to evacuations, civil emergencies, hazardous materials, nuclear plant warnings and others.
There are lots of options for weather radios, including some that have solar power, hand cranks, connections for USB power charging of devices, etc. Some are just weather radios and others can also pick up local Am and FM radio stations. It is a good idea to get one with the radio capability as EAS alerts are sent faster through the broadcast stations that the NOAA stations.
Before the days of internet based radio and TV local stations would rebroadcast the alerts. While they still do, a large number of people who utilize internet based services may not receive the alerts, so it is important to have other means to receive the alerts. When travelling local radio stations will broadcast alerts however if you are listening to satellite radio or CD’s then you should probably have a weather radio in your vehicle. A simple weather radio
In addition to TV and radio most municipalities have siren systems, however these are usually only activated for a warning, and not watches. Another source of notifications is Amateur Radio. Some ham repeaters are programmed to rebroadcast the watches and alerts.
Other areas have Skywarn or weather nets. Skywarn is a program of the National Weather Service to train weather observers. Usually most NWS offices offer a number of courses prior to severe weather season. In addition to in person classes they offer a basic on line class. Many Skywarn observers are also ham radio operators and many areas will conduct a weather or Skywarn net on a local repeater, to coordinate messages to the local NWS office. Additionally most NWS offices have ham radio stations. In my area there is a daily weather net year round with people reporting their local weather which is then forwarded to the local NWS office.
You can enhance your ability to monitor the weather with a weather station. Over the years there are a number of weather stations on the market for amateur weather spotters. These range from a simple clock with a remote that is placed outside and gives you temperature and indicates a change in the barometric pressure with symbols. Other stations include complete home stations, with rain and wind gauges, wind speed and direction and barometric pressure. Most can connect to the internet and then provide you the information on your phone with their app.
This (2024 03 22) is currently the best rated weather station. It comes with 2 different styles of display. There is also a lightening detector add-on which is well worth the extra $65. Having your own weather station provides you a level of redundancy if you rely on your cell phone for severe weather warnings. Cell tower go down = no weather or warnings. This is my next purchase on the preparedness list
There are also lightening detectors which are great when doing outdoor activities.
There are also hand-held weather monitors available. These are perfect when in the field, hiking or otherwise on the move. These vary from a simple wind and temperature gauge to devices that have humidity sensors, barometric, altitude and air density sensors. If you do long range shooting you probably have one of these. I personally have a basic Kestral station as well as a more advanced Extech 45158 station I recently upgraded to.
Final Thoughts
I highly recommend that you take a Skywarn course and learn the weather patterns in your area. You will probably find that at this time of the year your local NWS has scheduled their classes for the year. If you can’t find or get into one then at least take their on line class.
You should also check your local ham nets and club and see which ones run a weather net and/or provide weather alerts on their repeaters. The easiest way to find them is to search Repeater Book for your state and navigate to your state. You will find an index for weather nets and Skywarn. If you don’t have your ham license yet you can still listen, but I strongly urge you to get your ham licenses (see articles in the February edition of Survival Dispatch Insider). I also strongly suggest you get a weather alert radio that you can carry with you, as once programmed with the SAME code for your area it will remain silent until an alert is receive, so it can be set up to alert you at night.
You should also identify suitable space in your home and work that can be used as a tornado shelter and have your family practice before tornado season starts.