Skywarn Spotter Safety Tips
by Jock Elliott

Introduction ­­ Remember Your Mission

At various times in its history, the National Weather Service has stated categorically that it will always need severe weather spotters. The reason? A concept called "Ground Truth."

Ground truth is simply independent observation and reporting of what is actually happening with the weather at a particular location. Thanks to Ground Truth, the NWS now knows the correlation between certain weather events and their radar signature. But there's more to it: a spotter can deliver Ground Truth when the satellite cannot see; when the weather event is below the radar horizon or is blocked by hills; when the remote sensor is too far away from the weather event.

So your mission as a Skywarn spotter is simply this: to see with trained eyes and to report. The spotter's mission is NOT to chase, but to provide information from wherever you are ­ ­ at a fixed location or mobile. The objective is provide information that the NWS can use to the benefit of the public.

Number 1 Safety Tip: know where you are in relationship to the storm

Spotting conditions vary greatly across the U.S. On the Great Plains, spotters can see for miles, and tornadoes often occur in low­precipitation supercells. In the northeast, visibility is frequently obscured by hills and trees, and tornadoes are often hidden by torrential rain. And while severe thunderstorms often track from the southeast to the northwest, sometimes they do not. In the northeast, many of the longest lived and most severe of all thunderstorms occur in "northwest flow," in which storms track from northwest to southeast. The Derecho of July 15, 1995, was an extreme example of a northwest flow severe thunderstorm outbreak.

As a result it is absolutely critical that as a Skywarn spotter you are aware of your location and how that relates to the location, track, and speed of the storm. A spotter who does not know where he or she is in relationship to the storm runs the risk of being overrun by the storm and unprepared for the dangerous weather which may accompany the storm.

If you are a ham radio operator or a CBer, stay in touch with your net control for updates on the track and speed of the storm. It's also a good idea to keep one ear on a NOAA weather radio station for updates. If you have cable TV, the Weather Channel broadcasts local Doppler radar for your area every 10 minutes or so. The point cannot be overemphasized: spotters need to know where they are in relationship to the track of the storm. If you are in the vicinity of a thunderstorm, you should try (whenever possible) to keep a 2­3 mile "buffer zone" between you and the storm.

Number 2 Safety Tip ­­ Drive Safely!

In his excellent "Storm Chasing with Safety, Courtesy, and Responsibility," Chuck Doswell of the National Severe Storms Laboratory identifies the number 1 threat to storm chasers as "being on the highways." And while the mission of spotters is not to chase storms but to observe and report, there are many times when Skywarn spotters find themselves spotting from their vehicles.

The following guidelines can help you to stay out of harm's way:

­ Use common sense about spotting and driving. If you need to closely observe some weather structure, and it will take your eyes away from the road, pull over to make your observation. Driving requires concentration; driving in bad weather requires even more. That's why storm chasers operate in teams ­­ so the driver can attend to the task at hand.

­ Be very alert to standing water on the roads. Hydroplaning can lift your tires from contact with the road, and disaster can quickly follow.

­ If you park on the side of the road, make sure you are fully out of the driving lane. Be mindful of the condition of the shoulder; you don't want to find yourself stuck in a ditch and unable to move from the path of severe weather.

­ Slow down in reduced visibility conditions, such as heavy rain or blowing dust. Turn on your headlights to make your vehicle more visible to others.

­ Stay off secondary roads at nighttime. They can be a mess after a storm goes through. This is one of the cardinal unwritten rules of storm chasing and good advice for spotters as well.

Specific Weather Threats ­­ Flash Floods

Floods and flash floods have become the #1 killer among weather phenomena. Many flash floods occur at night, making them more difficult to see.

Flash flood safety tips:

­ Don't drive or walk into flooded areas.

­ Abandon vehicles which stall in high water.

­ Be especially cautious at night.

Specific Weather Threats ­­ Lightning

Lightning ranks as the #2 killer among weather phenomena. Primary hazards are electric current (around 30,000 Amperes) and temperature (nearly 15,000 degrees C). Spotters are often in prime strike locations ­­ in open fields or on hilltops.

Lightning safety tips:

­ Make sure you are not the tallest object in the immediate area. Spotters should remain near the cone of protection given by tall objects such as radio towers or power lines, as long as high winds are not likely to blow them down. The cone of protection extends at a 45­degree angle from the peak of the object, and the spotter should take care not to touch the radio tower, etc.

­ Remain in spotting vehicle or indoor location whenever possible.

­ Crouch down to make yourself a poor lightning target if you must go outside. if you feel your skin tingle or your hair stand on end, squat low to the ground on the balls of your feet. Place your hands on your knees with your head between them. This way you are making yourself the smallest target possible and minimizing your contact with the ground.

­ If in the woods, take shelter under the shorter trees.

­ If in a boat on or on a body of water, get to shore and away from the water as quickly as possible.

­ A car's AM radio can sound crackling and whirring noises that are indicative of antenna arcing immediately preceding a strike.

­ It is also strongly advised for spotters to take CPR classes. The majority of people who go into cardiac arrest from a lightning strike can be resuscitated.

Specific Weather Threats ­­ Hail

Fatalities from hail are rare, but hail is the most destructive weather element. Hail causes around $1 billion damage annually, primarily to crops, roofs, vehicles, and livestock.

Hail safety tips:

­ Substantial structures and highway overpasses (out of traffic lanes) offer the best hail protection. An awning, a gas station overhang, or even an unexposed side of a building can also offer protection.

­ Vehicles offer good protection from hail up to about golfball size, but significant windshield and body damage can result with hail larger than golfballs.

­ If at all possible, face the vehicle into the hail ­­ side windows are brittle compared to windshields. But keep driving lanes clear.

Specific Weather Threats ­­ Downbursts

Downburst winds can exceed 100 mph and are capable of doing the same damage as a weak to strong tornado. Rapidly shifting wind direction and changes in visibility pose problems to mobile spotters.

Downburst safety tips:

­ As with hail, a substantial structure away from windows offers the best protection.

­ Mobile spotters should keep a firm grip on their vehicle's steering wheel. Heavy precipitation and/or blowing dust may result in rapid visibility changes, which in turn leads to hazardous driving conditions.

­ Keep an eye on anything that could fall on you or your vehicle and move away from such hazards as the wind picks up. Because of wire tensions, power lines (especially metal frame towers) have a strong tendency to fall like dominoes. As a result, an even far down the road could land live wires on your vehicle.

Specific Weather Threats ­­ Tornadoes

Obviously, tornadoes pose a number of hazards for mobile and point spotters. High winds and flying debris can result in hazardous spotting conditions. and significant damage to vehicles and buildings.

Tornado safety tips:

­ Mobile spotters in high­visibility areas may be able to drive away from an approaching tornado. However, THIS DOES NOT APPLY TO SPOTTERS IN URBAN AREAS, INEXPERIENCED SPOTTERS, AND SPOTTERS IN LOW­VISIBILITY AREAS (such as heavily wooded areas). This is especially true in the northeast where most tornadoes are shrouded in heavy precipitation. Also, very few roads in the northeast would permit you to outrun a tornado which is following you. The average forward speed of a tornado is 30 mph, with a range from nearly stationary to 70 mph.

­ Point spotters and mobile spotters without an "escape route" should take shelter in a substantial building, ditch, ravine, or other low spot, but beware of heavy rainfall and flash flooding.

­ Tim Vasquez says flatly that "NO mobile spotter should even NOT have an escape route, even if it's being aware of a side road that goes half a mile and dead ends." Avoid situations that restrict your mobility during severe weather, such as a freeway during rush hour. Use forethought when decided where to move next.

Acknowledgments.

I owe a heavy debt of gratitude to the people who helped make this guide possible: an unknown copy writer at NWS who prepared the Presenter's Guide for "Concepts of Severe Storm Spotting"; Chuck Doswell, National Severe Storms Laboratory; John Quinlan, NWS Albany, NY; and Tim Vasquez, Storm Track. Their comments and guidance were invaluable; any mistakes are mine. ­ Jock Elliott