David Reimer
EF2
Now that things have settled down I'll put in my full thoughts...
Social media is a great way to share PHOTOS to follow up on your initial report. Spotter Network or a direct phone call to the local NWS office is the best way to get your initial report in quickly. Social media is generally used by VOST organizations and the NWS to collect reports from the general public. Generally hail reports, wind damage, flooding, and winter weather are what social media is best used for. When it comes to significant severe weather (tornadoes) usually I'll be much more cautious when passing those reports along with the Integrated Warning Team. There are plenty of morons who enjoy trying to trick folks by posting fake tornado pictures. Some offices are better equipped to handle social media during events. The NWS Fort Worth is one great example since I work with them on many of their events throughout the year. If you're going to use Twitter as a primary reporting platform you need to include the location of the event, time of the event, and if required the direction/distance. Facebook is useless unless you want your report seen hours later and well after the event.
My social media platforms have around 575,000 followers and it wasn't until this past year that I 'built' connections with some of the Texas offices out west. If you want a local office to automatically 'warn on report' you need to build a relationship with them. Whether that is by being a participating member in your local NWS office's activities or by reaching out on social media. There are so many blowdried boobheads out on social media claiming to be 'chasers' that I can understand why offices are skeptical with radical social media reports. Several social media reports came in back on 4/26/15 in North Texas of a 'large tornado' in the afternoon hours west of Stephenville. Turns out those reports were wrong and it was just a wet RFD wrapping around. On the other side of the spectrum you have March 8, 2010 Hammon Tornado incident that involved the OUN office not warning a rare significant cold-core tornado.
Use this event to learn and build a relationship with your local National Weather Service office - or even ones you tend to be in a lot during chase season. Those who participate in the WAS*IS group on Facebook should head over to their thread regarding this incident. There are many great perspectives from both sides of the table.
Social media is a great way to share PHOTOS to follow up on your initial report. Spotter Network or a direct phone call to the local NWS office is the best way to get your initial report in quickly. Social media is generally used by VOST organizations and the NWS to collect reports from the general public. Generally hail reports, wind damage, flooding, and winter weather are what social media is best used for. When it comes to significant severe weather (tornadoes) usually I'll be much more cautious when passing those reports along with the Integrated Warning Team. There are plenty of morons who enjoy trying to trick folks by posting fake tornado pictures. Some offices are better equipped to handle social media during events. The NWS Fort Worth is one great example since I work with them on many of their events throughout the year. If you're going to use Twitter as a primary reporting platform you need to include the location of the event, time of the event, and if required the direction/distance. Facebook is useless unless you want your report seen hours later and well after the event.
My social media platforms have around 575,000 followers and it wasn't until this past year that I 'built' connections with some of the Texas offices out west. If you want a local office to automatically 'warn on report' you need to build a relationship with them. Whether that is by being a participating member in your local NWS office's activities or by reaching out on social media. There are so many blowdried boobheads out on social media claiming to be 'chasers' that I can understand why offices are skeptical with radical social media reports. Several social media reports came in back on 4/26/15 in North Texas of a 'large tornado' in the afternoon hours west of Stephenville. Turns out those reports were wrong and it was just a wet RFD wrapping around. On the other side of the spectrum you have March 8, 2010 Hammon Tornado incident that involved the OUN office not warning a rare significant cold-core tornado.
Use this event to learn and build a relationship with your local National Weather Service office - or even ones you tend to be in a lot during chase season. Those who participate in the WAS*IS group on Facebook should head over to their thread regarding this incident. There are many great perspectives from both sides of the table.
] False alarms kill people. You don't automatically issue a warning every time a tornado is reported via Twitter. Or called in. Or SN'd. Even if a freacking dominating chaser is the reporting agent. A spotter REPORT is not a sole source - spotter video probably could be. But a report is just part of the process. I highly recommend people interested in the process of issuing warnings ask their local EMs to bring in the free "Tornado Awareness" course from NDPTC. Message me for more info (it's the only FEMA class I've offered that students asked me to bring back.)
