# Presentation: 365496

## What Happens to Your 

**Severe Weather Report:**
**A WFO Perspective**
**Pat Vesper**
**Warning Coordination Meteorologist**
**WFO Midland, TX**

## Severe Weather Reports – Why?

- Why are severe weather reports important to the National Weather Service?

## Severe Weather Reports – Why?

- Why are severe weather reports important to the National Weather Service?
-   They provide ground-truth information.

## Severe Weather Reports – Why?

- Why are severe weather reports important to the National Weather Service?
-   They provide ground-truth information.
-   They aid in our situational awareness.

## Severe Weather Reports – Why?

- Why are severe weather reports important to the National Weather Service?
-   They provide ground-truth information.
-   They aid in our situational awareness.
-   They assist us in our verification efforts.

##  A Fact About Severe Reports:

-   **Severe weather reports have a positive impact on the entire integrated warning system.**

## National Weather Service Mission:

- “To provide weather and flood warnings,
-  public forecasts and advisories for all
-  the United States, its territories, adjacent
-  waters, and ocean areas, primarily for
-  the protection of life and property.”

## Forecast Offices Nationwide

**Forecast Offices Nationwide**

## The Simple Equation For Getting Reports

**  ****We nurture partnerships with emergency management. **
**  ****We proactively collaborate with the media.**
**  ****We are supportive of our volunteers - the Skywarn Spotters,           Amateur Radio Operators, and Coop Observers.**

**Building trust leads to better communication **** **
**Better Communication = More Reports**

**The Simple Equation For Getting Reports**

## We are part of a larger team

**  ****PD, FD, EMS, SO **
**  ****Local Media – Television and Radio Stations**
**  ****Skywarn Spotters and Amateur Radio Operators**
**  ****Emergency Management**

**This Team Protects Our Community**

**We are part of a larger team**

## The NWS Reporting Network 

- Public
- Reports

- Emergency
- Management

**PD     SO  FD    EMS   **

- NWS Volunteers

**Spotters; Hams; Coop Observers   **

- Storm Chasers

- Media

**Newspapers; Radio;  TV  **

**NWS Reporting Network**

## So How Do We Get Reports?

**It’s not a simple answer.**

## Advances in Information Technology

**  ****Weather Forecast Offices (WFOs) are using MYSQL and PHP to develop Intranet contact databases.  (Allowing for warning emails & much more) replacing the old contact binders**
**  ****WFOs have talented programmers writing programs to pull spotter information from these databases into AWIPS for graphical display.   **

## Advances in Information Technology

**  ****The ability to submit web reports in real-time through the Internet to your local NWS office**

**Advances in Information Technology**

## Reports...Reports...Everywhere

**  ****Have allowed offices to receive reports live from local television stations   **
**  ****Have allowed for radar imagery and/or text to be sent through PDAs, pagers, cell phones, and Blackberry(s) **

**Reports...Reports...Everywhere**

## Reports...Reports...Everywhere

** ****from Skywarn spotters relayed through Net Control operations via amateur radio **
** ****through observational data from area mesonets, ASOS, AWOS**
**  ****through communication on the NAWAS (National Warning System)**

**Reports...Reports...Everywhere**

## Reports...Reports...Everywhere

**  ****by appending contact numbers on severe weather warnings and statements and soliciting for reports.**
**  ****through public reports from people who have home weather stations. **
**  ****through area webcams.**

**Reports...Reports...Everywhere**

## Reports...Reports...Everywhere

** ****from the aviation and marine communities.**
** ****from dedicated storm chasers.**
** ****from post-event communications.**
** ****from newspaper clipping services.   **

**Reports...Reports...Everywhere**

## Reports...Reports...Everywhere

**The 122 National Weather Service Offices across the country get severe weather reports in every imaginable way, from every possible resource.**

**Reports...Reports...Everywhere**

## So what do we do with reports?

**  ****We consider every report to be authentic until proven otherwise.**

**So what do we do with reports?**

**  ****Before a report is accepted, we must determine its accuracy.**

## The Preliminary Local Storm Report

**The Preliminary Local Storm Report**

**  ****The LSR is the “Preliminary Local Storm Report”**

**  ****Emphasis should be placed on “Preliminary”**

## The Preliminary Local Storm Report

**  ****The LSR serves as another level of awareness as a severe weather episode is unfolding. **
** ****The LSR is decoded by SPC into the national and hourly reports which can be accessed at:**
**http://www.spc.noaa.gov/climo**

**The Preliminary Local Storm Report**

## The Preliminary Local Storm Report

**  ****LSRs should contain events that meet of exceed warning criteria. **

**The Preliminary Local Storm Report**

## The Preliminary Local Storm Report

** **
** ****LSRs may “summarize” a list of reports during and/or at the end of an event.**

**The Preliminary Local Storm Report**

## The Preliminary Local Storm Report

**  ****Some offices issue LSRs for each report, but append these new reports to an ongoing list of events.**
**  ****Some offices just issue summary LSRs.  **

**The Preliminary Local Storm Report**

**Office have several methods of issuing the LSR.**

## The Preliminary Local Storm Report

** ****Unconfirmed events are omitted.**
** ****Events where partial information would cause confusion are “temporarily” omitted until all data is gathered   **

**The Preliminary Local Storm Report**

**Regardless of LSR method, offices generally follow  similar guidelines for determining LSR content: **

## The Preliminary Local Storm Report

** ****In many cases, storm damage surveys immediately following an event will answer many questions and provide important details (hard evidence). **

**The Preliminary Local Storm Report**

## The Preliminary Local Storm Report

**   **
**  ****Offices will normally provide final information either in an LSR, in a Public Information Statement, or as a write-up on the local office NWS website.**

**The Preliminary Local Storm Report**

## Post-Event Reports

**  ****Additional reports trickle into the office.**
**  ****News clippings and videos are gathered**
**  ****Rural networks are extremely important. **
**  ****Once another event occurs, details become sketchy.**
**  ****LSRs can be produced for events up to 7 days old.  **

**Post-Event Reports**

**The first few days following the event are critical:**

## Post-Event Reports 

**Post-Event Reports **

## What is Storm Data?

**  ****The content for Storm Data comes directly from the local National Weather Service offices across the country.**
**     **

**What is Storm Data?**

## What is Storm Data?

**  ****Offices have 60 Days from the end of the month the event occurred to complete and submit Storm Data. **
**  ****It’s a grueling process for Storm Data focal points – it takes constant attention to do it right**
**Normally a group of people are involved with quality assurance – the data must be accurate.**
**  ****Entries are done through the Storm Dat Program**

**What is Storm Data?**

## Thank you for your reports!