North Platte CWA Warning Reference Points

[Mike McDonald]

While following today's storms, I found that NWS North Platte has added reporting points throughout its CWA. As described on the site:

"The North Platte NWS has completed work on inserting various landmarks into its warning program, to provide better information about the location and path of severe weather in its warnings to the public."

They have provided maps for each county in the CWA showing these points as well as roads and towns. The maps are also availabe in one file.

The maps were produced in a GIS, so the points might be available in shapefiles that could be used in a program such as GRlevelx.

The link is:
http://www.crh.noaa.gov/lbf/?n=warningpoints

Mike

 

[Kevin Scharfenberg]

Adding lakes and parks and such to the warning text is great, but in my opinion this is TERRIBLE:

* THE TORNADO WILL BE NEAR...
HIGHWAY 30 MILE MARKER 100 BY 550 PM MDT...
7 MILES EAST OF HIGHWAY 27 MILE MARKER 100 BY 600 PM MDT...

It implies way more precision in both location AND time forecasts than is meteorologically possible (in a word, it's bunk - see the paper by Speheger and Smith in the December 2006 NWA Digest). Even if we could scientifically do this regularly, it sounds silly and/or confusing when heard (so it will be 7 miles in which direction of what mile marker on which highway by what time again?!?!?).

 

[rdale]

I suppose they are thinking that people on the road will hear the full text of the warning, AND know their nearest mile marker. I don't have much faith in that.

Certainly the second example is ridiculous.

 

[Jeff Miller]

The problem with using Mile Marker references is not very many people know EXACTLY where these mile markers are. I for one do not constantly look for these markers while driving, not even locally. The only people this sort of warning format benefits are those who are driving on the road going to or escaping the storm, or locals with enough knowledge of the road to know. Even so, 7 miles east of a mile marker is confusing to say the least to people who are on other roads besides said interstate.

Landmarks, rivers, cities, and well known areas are much better warning tools than mile markers, which is way too narrow and specific to be of great value to a town or towns, ESPECIALLY given the changes a tornado can make. What happens if the tornado changes directions AND maxes out? a NE moving tornado 7 miles from the milemarker and 1/8 a mile wide to the south suddenly tracks north and enlarges to a mile wide wedge. The observer or homeowner who thought he was safe is now in danger. Too specific for something that constantly changes and subject to a much greater variable than 7 miles east of a milemarker.

 

[Van DeWald]

This is mainly designed for travelers who are not familiar with towns in the local area. Sure, folks don't pay attention to mile markers, but if driving, and they "hear" that information on the radio, I can guarantee they'll be looking intently for the next mile marker on the highway to find out where they're at. They come up every mile, so from the time that someone hears it, they'll likely see a new mile marker within less than a minute. As far as giving references to "7 miles east of highway mile marker 100", I think that's asking too much of folks. The same can be said for warnings that state, "The storm will be near... 8 miles southwest of Logan at 1010 pm". For those folks that live 8 miles southwest of Logan, I'm sure they know exactly where they are in reference to the town, but for everyone else, it's a bad reference, in my opinion.

Van

 

[joel ewing]

I'm from Nebraska, and one of the big problems that North Platte NWS has to deal with in their warnings is that much of their warning area is in the "Sandhill" region. Anybody who has chased this area knows that there isn't too much in the way of landmarks at all out there. Beautiful in it's own way, it's never the less pretty bleak.
I guess the question becomes.....how would you have written the warning, given the circumstances?

 

[rdale]

Most of this discussion is not a big deal - the public rarely hears that part of the warning. They look on the TV, and if they see the met draw a box around their area - it's coming. Very few get the full text of the warning read to them by a radio DJ.

 

[Mike McDonald]

It sounds like a good idea, but you're right, mile markers don't mean much. I made two round trips on the same section of state highway today and don't have a clue what mile markers I passed.

Locations of landmarks and known places (at least to locals) in addition to towns make sense.

Mike