Community Invited To Severe Weather Spotter Training

Residents of Cheyenne County communities are invited to attend a Severe Weather Spotter Training co-sponsored by Cheyenne County Emergency Management and the National Weather Service (NWS). The training session is slated for Wednesday, April 10 at Sidney High School. The session will begin at 6:30 p.m. and will last about an hour and a half.

Everyone is invited. If you are a current weather spotter, firefighter, law enforcement specialist, land management employee, emergency services technician, transportation operator, outdoor recreationalist, or just purely a weather enthusiast, this training workshop is for you.

Training will include definitions and climatology of severe weather, training on cloud and storm recognition, storm hazards and safety tips, and weather reporting procedures.

Across Western Nebraska, more than 400 volunteer weather spotters and cooperative observers provide valuable weather information which is fundamental in helping the NWS protect lives and property. Forecasts are often based on observer data, and even warnings for severe weather have been issued based on information received from trained volunteer spotters, cooperative observers and/or relayed by a HAM operator.

For more information about the NWS spotter program, please see the local office Web page at http://www.weather.gov/cheyenne/ or our national severe weather awareness Web page at http://www.nws.noaa.gov/os/thunderstorm/.

Those interested are encouraged to bring a friend, relative or other interested weather enthusiast. If you have questions, call Aviva Braun, NOAA, NWS (307) 772-2468 or Ron Leal, Cheyenne County Office of Emergency Management (308) 254-7003.