How Do You Stay Aware Of Hazardous Weather?

[KenD500]

Reading this article, I see this quote, "We had no idea a severe storm was approaching".  I was amazed.

 

Before my Troop goes on a camp out, I'm checking the weather web sites for the upcoming weather conditions.  Once we're on the camp out, I carry a weather radio Link.

 

What do you do to prepare for weather?

[JasonG172]

One. I look a couple days in advance 

Two.  if there is something in the area I keep track of if on my The Weather Channel app

[Gone]

Take weather training. Take NOAA advanced weather training. Carry a NOAA weather radio with you and have it programmed correctly to get the appropriate watches and warnings. Always watch the sky and read the weather. Check out the Storm Prediction Centers' website...MUCH better than any weather app. Check the watches and warnings section of the SPC to see in advance if your area is in danger.

 

I'm disappointed the person in that article was unprepared. The BSA basic weather training (which it seems he failed) covers the basics.

 

http://www.spc.noaa.gov

Edited May 22, 2015 by Bad Wolf

[Gone]

@@KenD500 my cousin is a storm spotter in Texas and was on that storm. There's NO WAY this troop if they're paying attention could have missed that super cell!! It was tracking and dropping funnels from TX to OK.

 

If I were BSA I'm not sure I'd be posting this on my website. Shows the incompetence of the leaders in charge IMHO.

Edited May 22, 2015 by Bad Wolf

[KenD500]

I agree @.  I live in North Texas.  We are often camping in Oklahoma.  The entire area is known for spring storms & tornadoes. 

 

Maybe they're putting it on the website to encourage others to get trained, or to start conversations like this.

[qwazse]

Was there with the wife and kids 8 days before. Made a dash up Elk Mt. But, it really wasn't hard to see what was coming and what the window of opportunity was.

 

Just like with scouts, I used weather.gov two days before then the day before. That was enough to tell me that we would have to review plans the morning of. (Mrs. spent a lot of time drumming up alternate destinations. Noble attempt, but useless.) Morning of, we saw that the Wildlife refuge was the least turbulent. We set our noon turn-around time. Son #1 had been in a 100 MPH winter storm before, so I knew he would not linger at the peak.

 

If it wasn't for the slow service at Meers, and everyone wanting to swing by our hotel before returning to Daughter's apt, we would have been holed up before the heavens let fly. Oh well, pitted van roof souvenier.

 

The rangers there are pretty conciencious, so they have a good idea of who is setting up where. Just because a dad was clueless doesn't mean the SM didn't review evacuation routes with the ranger.

[Gone]

I agree @.  I live in North Texas.  We are often camping in Oklahoma.  The entire area is known for spring storms & tornadoes. 

 

Maybe they're putting it on the website to encourage others to get trained, or to start conversations like this.

The storm spotted training offered by the NWS is a great resource for leaders.

 

We put JASMs and PLs through it every spring. Suggested for ASMs too.

[Stosh]

Reminds me on top of Mt. Baldy. (cue up the music)  Saw a storm approaching and everyone started down the hill quickly.  But our SM didn't have all the pictures he wanted yet.  Well, as ASM I announced, I was heading down NOW.  About half the boys decided to over ride the SM and go with me.  We made it to the tree line and I told the boys to dump the packs, spread out among the trees and get unto lighting posture.  They did.  About 10 minutes later the SM came waltzing down madder than a whole hive of disturbed bees.  He was in the process of giving me a tirade about not sticking together in bad weather when a lightning strike hit a dead tree about 20' behind him.  I'm surprised the group around him didn't get residual from it, but it hadn't rained enough to wet the ground.  I jumped up told the boys to pick up their gear and head down as fast as they can while the clouds were recharging.  I looked at the SM and quietly said, "I think we're done here." and booked it off down the trail.  This time the whole group went with me.  I never want to get that close ever again. 

[Stosh]

The storm spotted training offered by the NWS is a great resource for leaders.

 

We put JASMs and PLs through it every spring. Suggested for ASMs too.

 

Totally agree on the storm spotter training.  Excellent stuff, I recommend for everyone, especially for guys like my former SM.

[Gone]

Was on a mobile so could not reply with the full arsenal of tools for weather. they are now below:

• CONUS loops so you can see what's coming.
• How to load GIS data in to things like Google Earth so you can have weather layers over maps of where your will be.
• KMZ/KML files for the various weather products. These are downloaded and opened in Google Earth. Focus on downloading "Real Time NWS Warnings"  and the "National and regional mosaic loops". These will help you pin point the weather where you are going.
• The weather safety page is a great resource for the scouts to pull from for making weather-related meetings. 
• SkyWarn puts on classes every year. The training is free.
• The NWS Twitter feeds are EXCELLENT (and I HATE twitter, but this is worth it). Once you follow the main feed sign up and follow your regional feed (e.g. https://twitter.com/NWSFortWorth)or the regional feed for where you will be going. All the data you would get at NWS (including watches and warnings) ware tweeted out on all feeds.
• As @@KenD500 mentioned, get a weather radio. The SAME codes are here. Program it to get all major alerts (flood, fire, avalanche, severe weather, tornado, ice, etc.). I have used this one in back country and around town. It has been everywhere and is rugged.
• The SPC as I noted above is THE BEST resource for short term forecasting. Check the watches and warnings often. If you can follow it, the mesoscale discussions will give you all the detail you need to know...and then some.

These are many of the sources your local weatherman will use for weather prediction, in addition to the various models offered on the SPC site. I would HIGHLY recommend you have your SMs trained up on this stuff. It is easy, fun and WAY more accurate than the Weather Channel.

Edited May 22, 2015 by Bad Wolf

[Eagle94-A1]

We have one ASM  with a weather app on his phone. I have a weather radio. that's what we use on trips.

 

From way back when, I start checking  weahter.com at the latest 2 days before a trip, Then the day before and day of.

[pargolf44067]

Reminds me on top of Mt. Baldy. (cue up the music)  Saw a storm approaching and everyone started down the hill quickly.  But our SM didn't have all the pictures he wanted yet.  Well, as ASM I announced, I was heading down NOW.  About half the boys decided to over ride the SM and go with me.  We made it to the tree line and I told the boys to dump the packs, spread out among the trees and get unto lighting posture.  They did.  About 10 minutes later the SM came waltzing down madder than a whole hive of disturbed bees.  He was in the process of giving me a tirade about not sticking together in bad weather when a lightning strike hit a dead tree about 20' behind him.  I'm surprised the group around him didn't get residual from it, but it hadn't rained enough to wet the ground.  I jumped up told the boys to pick up their gear and head down as fast as they can while the clouds were recharging.  I looked at the SM and quietly said, "I think we're done here." and booked it off down the trail.  This time the whole group went with me.  I never want to get that close ever again. 

 

@@Stosh, is this the same moron that didn't want to tell the boys about the bear procedures in another thread?  This guy sounds like a real winner of a SM.

 

Back to the original post, I have a NOAA weather radio as well weather apps.  I have taken the weather training from BSA, but some of the other ideas here sound pretty good.

[desertrat77]

We're in tornado country...almost all scouters have a smart phone with weather info cued up.   I carry a basic but effective NOAA weather radio.   It also pays to keep an eye on the skies, the old fashioned way, as well.  During district events, I've noticed scouts and scouters show a lot of savvy about watching the sky.

[CalicoPenn]

Checking weather apps a couple of days before a trip is a fine idea, but if the weather patterns are unstable, it still might not be an accurate picture of what the weather might be.  How do you know if the weather patterns are unstable?  Here's a rule of thumb that a local weather forecaster (and not just a reader - Tom Skilling is considered by many to be one of the best in the business) suggests - watch those weather apps every day for 5 to 10 days before you leave and note the predictions - if they are consistent from day to day in their predictions, then the pattern is generally stable.  For consistency, say your looking at Thursday's forecast starting Sunday - and every day it says the same thing - Sunny, 75. then you've got stability.  But if it isn't consistent - it says  that Thursday will be sunny and 75 degrees on Sunday, then cloudy, 65 on Monday, then cloudy, warm, rainy on Tuesday, you're got an unstable weather pattern and predicting what Thursday is really going to be is flipping a coin.   If the weather pattern is unstable, notch up the alertness.

 

I have a weather alert app on  my smart phone - it sounds my alarm feature if there is sever weather headed my way.  Of course, it doesn't work where there is no cell phone service, usually at places like national wildlife refuges.  In that case, I tend to rely on campground staff to be my alert - I have yet to camp at a national lands campgrounds or a state run campground where someone on staff isn't making the rounds to warn of very severe weather headed our way when warnings come up.  That's not to rely on them 100% but it's one of the things you should expect - I'd even say that in this story, the system worked just the way it is supposed to work.

 

Weather radios and weather spotting aren't a bad idea - but experience helps a lot too.  Sitting in a dark campsite, you may not notice a line of storm clouds a few miles away, especially if you're in a wooded site - but you might notice that the trees and shrubs are starting to make a lot more noise - it's generally experience that tells you that there is a weather event happening or imminent and to be more alert.

 

Here's something a lot of folks don't really know - if a forecaster says your area has a 50% chance of getting rain, it doesn't mean that your area has an equal chance of getting rain or not getting rain - what it means is that 50% of your area will get rain and 50% won't.  I usually hope that I'm in the 50% that won't.

[Stosh]

@@Stosh, is this the same moron that didn't want to tell the boys about the bear procedures in another thread?  This guy sounds like a real winner of a SM.

 

Back to the original post, I have a NOAA weather radio as well weather apps.  I have taken the weather training from BSA, but some of the other ideas here sound pretty good.

 

Ahhh, yep, same guy.

 

Checking weather apps a couple of days before a trip is a fine idea, but if the weather patterns are unstable, it still might not be an accurate picture of what the weather might be.  How do you know if the weather patterns are unstable?  Here's a rule of thumb that a local weather forecaster (and not just a reader - Tom Skilling is considered by many to be one of the best in the business) suggests - watch those weather apps every day for 5 to 10 days before you leave and note the predictions - if they are consistent from day to day in their predictions, then the pattern is generally stable.  For consistency, say your looking at Thursday's forecast starting Sunday - and every day it says the same thing - Sunny, 75. then you've got stability.  But if it isn't consistent - it says  that Thursday will be sunny and 75 degrees on Sunday, then cloudy, 65 on Monday, then cloudy, warm, rainy on Tuesday, you're got an unstable weather pattern and predicting what Thursday is really going to be is flipping a coin.   If the weather pattern is unstable, notch up the alertness.

 

I have a weather alert app on  my smart phone - it sounds my alarm feature if there is sever weather headed my way.  Of course, it doesn't work where there is no cell phone service, usually at places like national wildlife refuges.  In that case, I tend to rely on campground staff to be my alert - I have yet to camp at a national lands campgrounds or a state run campground where someone on staff isn't making the rounds to warn of very severe weather headed our way when warnings come up.  That's not to rely on them 100% but it's one of the things you should expect - I'd even say that in this story, the system worked just the way it is supposed to work.

 

Weather radios and weather spotting aren't a bad idea - but experience helps a lot too.  Sitting in a dark campsite, you may not notice a line of storm clouds a few miles away, especially if you're in a wooded site - but you might notice that the trees and shrubs are starting to make a lot more noise - it's generally experience that tells you that there is a weather event happening or imminent and to be more alert.

 

Here's something a lot of folks don't really know - if a forecaster says your area has a 50% chance of getting rain, it doesn't mean that your area has an equal chance of getting rain or not getting rain - what it means is that 50% of your area will get rain and 50% won't.  I usually hope that I'm in the 50% that won't.

 

This is government double speak for let's make it so convoluted no one really knows and then the weatherman can't be held accountable for being wrong 100% of the time and still keep his job.

 

40% chance of rain is a combination of probability given the present weather conditions AND location, not area.  A 40% chance of rain means that in any given area of the area forecast, the probability of it raining is 40%.