Preparing for storm season

Getting ready for storm season involves more than just double checking our in house equipment and making sure our staff is ready to go. One very important part in saving lives during tornado season is communication. As broadcasters, we have to communicate with our staff in the newsroom, communicate with meteorologists at the National Weather Service, emergency management, and finally, with you. It is a very tedious process, but one that we are always working to improve.

It's called the Integrated Warning Team and it is made up of members of the media (radio, TV, etc), National Weather Service offices from Wichita, Dodge City, Goodland, Hastings, and Topeka, and emergency managers from across the state. We have one primary goal and that is improving our flow of information when life threatening weather is nearby.

Did you know that when the outdoor warning device (tornado siren) goes off, it could be for something other than a tornado? I grew up in a small town (Geneseo, KS), and when the sirens went off, it either meant a tornado warning had been issued, or local firemen were being summoned. If the sounding siren went up and down, it was strictly for fire. But a continuous sounding of the siren meant tornado warning. But some counties are different. For example, Butler county will sound the outdoor warning devices if there is confirmed 80 mph winds moving in. But up until a few years ago, members of the media were unaware of that policy. Just as basketball and football teams are successful when they work together, warning the public of severe weather is only successful if we work together. During a tornado outbreak (which was the case on April 14, 2012), we rely on our trained storm chasers to tell us how the storm is behaving in the field. We usually have a good idea by studying the radar, but actual eyes under the storm is critical in the warning process. Our communication with the National Weather Service is extremely important because all thunderstorm and tornado warnings come directly from their office. And finally, emergency managers are extremely important because they relay storm and damage information from their spotters.

Forecasting severe weather is getting better and better, but it must go hand in hand with our communication with key players in the warning process. So when you see us cover storms this spring and summer, you'll know a little bit more about the people we are in constant contact with, even if we don't mention them on the air. It's a really fascinating process, and when it's successful, lives are saved.

Weird winter for some

It was hard to believe when I read about it, but much of Kansas has received more snow than Chicago to this point in the winter. Wichita has recorded 3.2 inches of snow for the season, with 5.5 inches in Salina, and Dodge City has had about 7. Chicago, through January 15th, has only received 1.3" of snow, and it didn't all come on the same day.

So not only is it unusual, but it is breaking records. In a city that averages between 35 and 40 inches in a winter season, it's very unusual to be this late in winter and still be waiting on the first one inch to fall in a 24 hour time period (from midnight to midnight). This will likely break the record for the latest date for the first one inch of snow to fall ever. If it doesn't happen by January 17th, this will be latest they have ever had to wait for an inch of accumulation to happen on any given calendar day. Amazing, don't you think. The first one inch of snow fell on December 20th in Wichita (nothing unusual about it)

This chart was updated through Jan. 13th showing the top 5 stretches without one inch of snow for a 24 hr time period for Chicago.

Chicago is also setting records with a lack of cold. The first day this winter with a subfreezing high was January 1st, which ties for the latest date without a subfreezing high temperature in winter. Wichita had its first subfreezing high temperature on December 24th.

This chart shows the top 5 latest dates for Chicago to not have had a subfreezing high temperature.

Here in Kansas, this will be a rather chilly week. Bitter cold from the polar regions will slide across much of the eastern US. We will be on the edge of it in Kansas, so typical late January weather is expected. The type of pattern we will see this week continues to be dry. Our next possible storm could be showing up around January 30 or 31st. Stay tuned.

Record low tornadoes

As 2012 comes to a close, this will likely go down as a year with some of the fewest tornadoes on record. This can closely be tied to the drought that has been ongoing for a few years in Kansas and a stubborn high pressure system that was difficult to move for most of the summer.

It can be hard to pin down an exact number of tornadoes, but as a rough estimate, there have been just over 800 tornadoes through the end of September. Official tornado numbers for October, November, and December have not been released yet, but even when those numbers come out, we will likely still have a low number of tornadoes. Last year, there were 1700 tornadoes and a significant death toll too, just over 500 fatalities around the nation. The Joplin tornado alone had a significant loss of life, with over 150 people killed by the EF-5 tornado.

In Kansas, we average about 60-70 tornadoes a year, and across the nation, the average is closer to 1200. One important contribution to thunderstorms and thus tornadoes, is moisture. In a year that has had very little subsoil moisture and little rainfall, it is not a huge surprise the number is down significantly.

Mobile, AL tornado from Christmas Day

The outbreak of severe weather on Christmas Day in the southeast US will go down in history as the largest on record. It's not unheard of to have tornadoes in December, but because the air over much of the US is colder, they are not as frequent as in the spring and summer months.