Storm Spotter Training Class rescheduled for late February
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Sand Springs, OK - A Storm Spotter Training Class originally scheduled for January 30th in Sand Springs has been postponed till February 27th due to the recent Federal Government Shutdown.
The class will be administered by meteorologists from the National Weather Service (NWS), which is a division of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in the U.S. Department of Commerce.
Weather changes constantly in Oklahoma – and sometimes not for the better. Understanding what is going on in the skies above can be a life or death proposition.
Sand Springs’ location on the western edge of the Tulsa metropolitan area places it on the front lines for severe weather events, which can potentially impact thousands of Oklahomans. Trained citizen storm spotters play a critical role in providing life-saving information to local emergency managers and meteorologists at the NWS office in Tulsa.
Area residents can receive storm spotter training from NWS meteorologists on Wednesday, February 27th, 2019, at 7:00 p.m. at the Case Community Center, 1050 W. Wekiwa Rd. There is no charge to attend, and pre-registration is not necessary. The training lasts about two hours.
The training benefits all citizens – from those affiliated with storm spotting organizations to those just wanting a better understanding of what is happening around them when skies turn dark. It includes videos of severe storms and information on how severe storms form and what they look like. The training will include statistics on severe storms and the damages they cause each time severe weather happens.
The training will help citizens better understand the different severe weather watches and warnings issued by NWS and help storm spotters analyze the differences between storms with real severe weather potential from those that only have menacing-looking clouds.
Although recent technology has greatly enhanced meteorologists’ abilities to provide critical and accurate storm information, trained storm spotters are irreplaceable for providing on-the-ground accounts of what is actually happening at specific locations. Many citizens have taken the class over the years to enhance their own piece of mind, as well as possibly save the lives of others during a weather emergency.
