Radar sees the storm. You see what it does.
SKYWARN is the National Weather Service’s network of trained volunteer spotters. A warning gets issued faster and pulled sooner when someone on the ground says what’s actually happening. It’s organised per forecast office - 121 of them - so start with yours.
Offices covering Ohio
5 offices · each has its own radar, nets and spotter lineToday’s reports in Ohio
SPC preliminary log · times UTCWhat to report
The NWS warns on 1″ hail and 58 mph wind; most offices want to hear about less.- ·Tornado on the ground (say if you see debris)
- ·Funnel cloud - rotating, not touching down
- ·Wall cloud, especially a rotating one
- ·Where it is relative to you, and which way it's moving
- ·The largest stone, compared to a coin or ball (chart below)
- ·1″ (quarter) is the severe threshold - smaller is still worth a report to most offices
- ·How long it fell and whether it's covering the ground
- ·Measured gusts of 40 mph+; 58 mph is severe
- ·Damage: trees down, limbs bigger than your arm, roof or structure damage, power lines
- ·Say whether it was measured or estimated
- ·Water over a road, especially moving water
- ·Creeks and rivers rising fast or out of their banks
- ·Rainfall of 1″ or more in an hour if you have a gauge
- ·Snowfall of 1″ an hour or more, and totals
- ·Freezing rain and ice accumulation on wires and trees
- ·Visibility under ¼ mile, blowing and drifting
- ·Lightning and thunder on their own
- ·Rain that isn't causing flooding
- ·Ordinary dark clouds, scud, or clouds that only look scary
Where a report goes
In this order.- 1 · The net, if one is up
When the office activates SKYWARN, a net control on the local repeater takes reports in a set format and relays them straight to the forecaster. Listen first, check in when asked, keep it short: who, what, where, when.
- 2 · The office directly
No net running? Every office has a spotter line or online report form on its SKYWARN page. Trained spotters get the number in class; anyone can use the form.
- 3 · Tell the room here
/report hail quarter · 71st & Memorial in #oh-wx puts it in front of everyone watching the state. It does not reach the NWS - do 1 or 2 for that.
A good report in one breath: “Quarter-size hail, 71st and Memorial in Tulsa, started 4:12, still falling.” Location, what, when, and whether it’s ongoing. Never drive into it to get a better look - the office would rather have no report than a spotter in a ditch.