It’s hard to think of tornadoes, large hail and flooding rainfall when we’re dealing with up to 6 inches of snow and near-whiteout driving conditions. But it’s that time of year with Severe Weather Awareness Week beginning Monday.
One of the National Weather Service’s main focal points this decade has been multiple information sources in cases of severe weather, and that is again a key topic for the Weather Service this year. Warning coordination meteorologist Chad Omitt was on KVOE’s Talk of Emporia recently, promoting the need for residents to get information from the Weather Service, local media like KVOE, severe weather radios, certain apps and reliable social media outlets.
Lyon County Emergency Management Coordinator Jarrod Fell says the time to plan is now — not with severe weather already fully developed and headed your way.
As usual, the week will have several daily focus points:
*Monday: Preparedness
*Tuesday: Tornado safety. This will include the statewide tornado drill at 10 am
*Wednesday: Lightning safety
*Thursday: Hail and wind safety
*Friday: Flood safety
Most area counties still have storm spotter training sessions coming over the next month:
*Wednesday: Greenwood County — Eureka High School, 6:30-8:30 pm
*March 11: Lyon County — Bowyer Community Building, 7-9 pm
*March 14: Osage County — Burlingame’s Schuyler Community Center, 7-9 pm
*March 27: Coffey County — Fairgrounds 4H Building, 7-9 pm
*April 2: Chase County — Chase County Community Building, 6:30-8:30 pm
*April 2: Wabaunsee County: Mission Valley High School, 7-9 pm
Click here for the National Weather Service’s Severe Weather Awareness Week information packet.
