[californiadisasters] Watches? Warnings? What’s the Difference?

Watches? Warnings? What's the Difference?

Although not as common as in other parts of the country, severe thunderstorms do occur over the Pacific Northwest and Northern California. The summer season is frequently when severe thunderstorms flare up. However, severe thunderstorms can occur during other times of the year. Do you know what it means when a Severe Thunderstorm Watch is issued? What about a Severe Thunderstorm Warning? How can these help you stay safe?

A Severe Thunderstorm Watch is issued by the National Weather Service's Storm Pre-diction Center (SPC) based in Norman, Oklahoma. SPC meteorologists issue fore-casts and watches related to severe thunder-storms and tornadoes across the nation, while also monitoring for heavy rain, heavy snow, and fire weather concerns. A Severe Thunderstorm Watch highlights an area where an organized episode of hail one inch in diameter or larger and/or damaging thun-derstorm winds are possible during a three-to eight-hour period. Watches can cover a large area, as evident by the picture to the right. Watches are not issued for all severe thunderstorms, as many storms affect a small area for a short period of time; watches are intended for areas where well-organized or significant severe weather is possible or where the threat of severe weather will last for a long period of time.

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings are issued by your local National Weather Service of-fice, which is Medford, Oregon, in this case. A warning means severe weather is expected to occur within a very short period of time in your area (generally within an hour) or has already been observed. A severe thunder-storm is defined as having either one-inch diameter hail or larger and/or thunderstorm winds exceeding 58 mph. A severe thun-derstorm warning serves as a notice that you should seek shelter immediately. Warnings are storm-based, meaning they cover a much smaller area compared to watches and are more specific to a particular storm or storms, often encompassing the area a storm serves as an immediate threat to or its expected track. Remember, lightning and heavy rain are not criteria for a severe thunderstorm warning to be issued. For more severe weather information, visit the SPC website at: http://www.spc.noaa.gov.

Source: http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/mfr/skywarn/summer2010.pdf

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