by Glenn S. Austin
Chief, Hydrologic Services Division
Office of Climate, Water, and Weather Services

NWS will make an initial set of forecast grid elements from the National Digital Forecast Database (NDFD) official on December 1, 2004. NWS Director, Brig. Gen. D.L. Johnson, USAF (Ret.), made the NWS decision for an NDFD Initial Operational Capability based on customer feedback, an assessment of systems requirements, an internal review, and clearly-defined program goals and objectives.

"In keeping our promise to provide sufficient notification to partners of scheduled changes in services, the NWS will determine, and formally announce, by September 15, 2004, which of the current eleven experimental forecast grid elements we will make official," Johnson said.

Since November 2003, approximately three dozen NWS employees have been involved in the Digital Services Project. Five action teams were formed to specify and document improvements needed in operations, systems and communications, outreach and training, performance assessment, and program planning. These action teams were made up of dedicated representatives from the field, regions, National Centers, and headquarters.

"The work of the digital services action teams has been critical to our future and our interactions with our customers," Johnson said. "The teams represent the kind of people we need right now to help spread the vision for digital services." Johnson commended all participants for their unselfish commitment to help make the program a success. He said the findings and recommendations included in the action team reports were critical to establishing a date for NDFD Initial Operational Capability.

Next steps include establishing a full time staff to provide management and leadership for this important new service program. Johnson also asked for NWS Headquarters to coordinate the development and training of smart tools to assist forecasters with quality control of the NDFD grids.

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NWS hosted about two dozen guests for a Partners Workshop on June 24-25, 2004, in Silver Spring, MD. Leading the agenda was a discussion on how NWS should evolve digital services. Attendees included TV weathercasters, academia, private sector companies, and emergency managers.

Candid comments about the public/private partnership were shared by several speakers during a Listening Panel chaired by Greg Mandt, Director, NWS Office of Climate, Water, and Weather Services (OCWWS). Speakers included Jim Block of Meteorologix; Larry Denton representing the Weather Channel; Bob Ryan, Chief Meteorologist for NBC-TV 4, Washington, DC; and Ken Reeves of Accuweather.

Among the topics raised by these partners included NWS procedures for testing and implementing new products, discussion of what the NWS should and should not be doing, the autonomy of the NWS Regions and the challenge of getting the Regions and local offices to follow agreed-upon policies and procedures, and NOAA's draft public/private partnership policy. NWS also got compliments for overall improvements in data distribution and the initial NWS Service Improvement Plan distributed in 2004.

The workshop began with a greeting from NWS Director Brig. Gen. D.L. Johnson, USAF (Ret.). Johnson is the first NWS Director to formally address a partners workshop. He asked for good discussions of agenda topics, and said he wanted to hear attendees thoughts on topics ranging from digital services to Valid Time Event Code (VTEC) software challenges, Watch by County, and more.

Digital services dominated much of the workshop's discussions. Technical and service panelists took questions and comments from attendees. Some partners questioned the reason for offering XML National Digital Forecast Database (NDFD) services. Robert Bunge, Director of NWS Internet Services, stated that XML has been planned and briefed for over a year and was implemented at the request of both the academic and emergency management sectors. Another question was asked about the quality of the NDFD. Preliminary verification compares the NDFD to known observation points. (The NWS Office of Climate, Water, and Weather Services indicated that the verifications web site containing monthly data will be online no later than July 6.)

Ron Gird, OCWWS Outreach Program Manager, said participants were pleased with the dialogs at the workshop and they offered ideas for improving NWS/Partner communications further. One suggestion was for NWS to offer list services or news groups on certain topics to further two-way communications between partners. Another action the NWS took from the workshop was to consider how more frequent partner workshops could be conducted via webcasts for interested parties who may not be able to attend the semi-annual workshops. Workshop minutes and actions are available on the Partners Workshop web site.

Other topics covered at the meeting included an update on VTEC and a discussion of NWS plans for testing VTEC; an update on Watch by County given by Joe Schaefer, Director, Storm Prediction Center, and a discussion of how NWS should evolve watch and warning services. Other updates covered Ultraviolet Alerts, Dissemination Services, and monitoring precipitation, flash floods and volcanic activity.

A Family of Services meeting, relating to data communication line services for sharing U.S. Government obtained or derived weather information, closed out the day-and-a-half workshop.

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2003 Injury, Fatality, Damage Statistics Finalized

The Office of Climate, Water, and Weather Services has released final 2003 injury, fatality and damage statistics for all major weather categories. Here are some of the details: In 2003, there were 438 weather-related fatalities, a significant decrease from 542 in 2002. In 2003, flooding took the most lives, claiming 86 weather-related victims. The next biggest killer was tornadoes with 54 fatalities, followed by lightning with 43 deaths, and rip currents with 41.

• Weather-related injuries dropped in 2003 to 2,924 from 3,089 in 2002.
• In 2003, severe weather caused $11.4 billion in damages, up from $5.7 billion in 2002.
• Of the 438 weather-related fatalities in 2003, males accounted for about twice as many deaths as females.

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Ground Truth Search Results in Life-Saving Tornado Warning Phone Call

By Pat Slattery
NWS Central Region Public Affairs Officer

A June 16 search for ground truth verification of a tornado on the ground probably saved the lives of a rural family in the path of the tornado in Colorado.

Working a severe weather event in Bent County, Warning Coordination Meteorologist Tom Magnuson of the Pueblo, CO, Weather Forecast Office (WFO) started calling area farmsteads to find out if anyone had seen the tornado, which had been indicated by the WFO Pueblo NEXRAD and warnings issued by the staff. On his third call, Magnuson connected with the wife of a rural family downwind of the tornado - and completely unaware of its presence or the warning.

When asked whether anyone had seen the tornado, the woman told Magnuson the family had been watching a movie and wasn't aware there was severe weather in the area. Magnuson advised the woman and her husband that a tornado was probably within a mile of their home and the family needed to get to shelter immediately. Magnuson gave the family some tips for finding shelter in the home and he heard the wife directing the children into an internal closet.

Magnuson later learned the home had been destroyed by the storm, but none of the family members were injured thanks to his phone call.

In subsequent media interviews, Magnuson emphasized that the Weather Service doesn't provide individual warning phone calls but does share information on storms while seeking ground truth verification. "This was just a freaky thing that happened," he said.

The family will definitely receive information from Magnuson about NOAA Weather Radio in the near future. In a later phone call, the husband told Magnuson the family would rebuild on the demolished home site, but this time would include a basement in the building plan.

Read a local news story about Magnuson's call here.

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Attendees at Workshop for Hard of Hearing Experience Storm Warnings First Hand

Greg Zwicker, right, explains the RCA AlertGuard TV to visitors at the NOAA Exhibit at the SHHH Convention in Omaha, NE, recently.

On June 12, 2004, the Omaha/Council Bluffs area experienced a typical mid-western bout of severe weather. The NWS issued a Tornado Watch for a number of counties in the area, closely followed in rapid succession by Tornado Warnings, Severe Thunderstorm Warnings, and Flash Flood Warnings. Attendees at the 19th Annual Self Help for Hard of Hearing People (SHHH) International Convention at the Hilton Hotel in Omaha, NE, got a first-hand demonstration of new emergency warning technology during the storms. Shortly after a workshop entitled "Disaster Preparedness Tips for Hard of Hearing People" ended, an RCA AlertGuard television set in the NOAA NWS (All-Hazards) Weather Radio (NWR)

exhibit began to wail and sounded a siren as each successive warning was issued by the NWS Weather Forecast Office in Omaha.

"One of the first things that visitors to the NWR booth at deaf and hard of hearing conventions say is 'Why are you here?'" said Ken Putkovich, a long-time NWS staffer and advocate for using NWR for warning the deaf and hard of hearing. "That remark is followed immediately by 'I'm deaf (or hard of hearing), a radio is useless to me!' Although that is technically true, we're stressing the features of NOAA Weather Radio that make it the only public emergency warning system useful to the deaf and hard of hearing communities, including receivers that can notify the deaf with strobe lights, pillow shakers, or bed shakers."

Attendees and exhibitors alike crowded around the TV and watched as text messages from WFO Omaha scrolled across the screen, identifying the locations where severe thunderstorms, tornadoes and flash floods were expected. Many conference attendees went to three-story high windows in the new Hilton Hotel to confirm first hand that there was indeed severe weather happening. Torrential rain swept over the glass facade of the Hilton and of the Qwest Convention Center across the street, flooding the street below. Some reported seeing funnel clouds. Others immediately changed their travel plans, delaying departures to later that day. Everyone was highly impressed by the timely, lively demonstration of this powerful, new, life saving emergency warning technology, according to Putkovich.

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Paducah Hosts Multi-Agency Fire Management Meeting; New IMET Tool Demonstrated For Several Agencies

Front left, Mark Barbo, Bureau of Land Management/National Interagency Fire Center, describes the new Incident Weather Observing System with Kathleen Kennedy. Taking a closer look at the equipment are Scott Osborne and Linda Alderdice of Fort Campbell, KY.

A demonstration of the new Incident Weather Observing System (IWOS), state-of-the-art equipment that will replace on-site Advanced Technology Meteorological Units (ATMUs) used by Incident Meteorologists assigned to fire scenes highlighted a recent annual fire weather cooperators meeting designed to streamline multi agency operations. Hosted by the Paducah, KY, Weather Forecast Office, Fire Weather Program Leader Kelly Hooper was focal point for the May 24-26, 2004, session. This was the first time the NWS had been asked to host the regional event in its 14 years. Mark Barbo, Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC), educated

the group on the IWOS components, set up, maintenance, and financing of the new technology.

Guest speaker Brian Potter from the Eastern Area Modeling Consortium (EAMC) focused on the latest research available on smoke dispersion models and solicited volunteers for beta testing. He also introduced several other state-of-the-art projects his organization was working on to assist others in the field. Hooper said all participants eagerly adopted the meeting theme of "No Boundaries" to encourage cooperative efforts among the various agencies.

Hooper said participating agencies used the meetings to maintain current partnerships and establish a basis for future partnerships. This was partially accomplished by addressing NWS customer needs and identifying strengths and weaknesses of current working relationships, reframing the big picture. The shared mission to protect life and property was understood by all and served as the principle reason to continue the focus on strengthening collective teamwork.

Participants included fire management representatives from the NWS Central and Eastern Regions, National Forest Service, National Park Service, BLM, NIFC, EAMC, Southern Area Coordination Center, and Department of Defense, participating for the first time. Participants originated from as far west as Boise, ID, as far north as Lansing, MI, and as far southeast as Atlanta, GA.

"Accurate weather data is an essential input to many facets of fire management - it was a wonderful opportunity to see the latest in mobile field technology (IWOS) for gathering weather observations," said Kathleen A. Kennedy, Assistant Fire Management Officer, Daniel Boone National Forest, Kentucky Interagency Coordination Center. "The IWOS presentation will pay great future dividends having added to our knowledge about collection systems, data transmission, and hardware maintenance."

Scott Osborne, Fire Management Officer, Department of Defense, Ft. Campbell, KY, said he also appreciated the IWOS demonstration. "It was very helpful to have a representative there to answer questions and clarify some of the points. The presentation and knowledge of the staff was very evident and I found the whole meeting was invaluable as a networking tool."

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Honor Roll:
NWS Memphis Team Recognized For Outstanding Aviation Support

NWS Southern Region Director Bill Proenza, right, presents Aviation Team of the Mid-South member and Memphis CWSU Meteorologist-In-Charge Doug Boyette with the NWS Headquarters Aviation Services Branch Quarterly Team Award.

The Aviation Team of the Mid South (ATOMS) recently received two NWS regional and national awards for its work in support of aviation safety in Tennessee, Mississippi, and Arkansas. ATOMS consists of NWS forecasters from the Memphis, TN, Weather Forecast Office (WFO) and the Memphis Center Weather Service Unit (CWSU). NWS Southern Region Director Bill Proenza presented the First Quarter Southern Region Aviation Services Excellence Award Trophy and the NWS Headquarters Aviation Services Branch Quarterly Team Award during a recognition ceremony at the Memphis WFO on June 10, 2004. The team was recognized for hosting the highly successful "Wind and Wings Weather Workshop"

which drew pilots and aviation specialists from throughout the tri-state area. The overall theme of the workshop was aviation safety and weather awareness, but the workshop also covered topics ranging from low-level wind shear microbursts to interpretation of Doppler radar data.

"Southern Region offices have won four of the last six quarterly awards in addition to the 2003 annual team award which was presented to the NWS training and certification office at the FAA Academy in Oklahoma City," said Proenza. "Our people throughout the Southern Region are constantly taking the initiative to improve aviation services to make our skies safer for pilots and passengers."

The ATOMS group includes Jim Duke, Meteorologist-In-Charge of the Memphis WFO; Doug Boyette, Meteorologist-In-Charge of the Memphis CWSU; Scott Cordero, Warning Coordination Meteorologist, WFO Memphis; Buzz Merchlewitz, Service Hydrologist, WFO Memphis; and Andrew Sniezak, Aviation Focal Point, WFO Memphis.

The Memphis team is closely affiliated with the Safety Program Department of the Federal Aviation Administration's Memphis Flight Standards District Office (FSDO). ATOMS and the FSDO have plans to collaborate on outreach events in the near future.

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