More than 125 attended a storm spotting class presented by the National Weather Service at the Salem Community Activity Center.
National Weather Service Meteorologist Melissa Delia says the role of storm spotters is important as a storm moves across the region.
“When we are sampling with the radar, we’re sampling up pretty high in the storm, especially out here in central Illinois,” Delia said. “What folks on the ground can give us is ground truth, what they’re actually seeing. We might have funnel clouds forming that we can never see with the radar no matter how close the storm is to our radar. Folks always add additional detail that we really need.”
Delia says spring is the worst time for severe weather.
“The Midwest has always kind of been a zone that has seen a lot of severe weather. We have seen it shift over the past couple of decades less from the Texas, Oklahoma and Nebraska area more into the deep south, so talking Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi. We are still seeing a lot of severe weather in the Mid-Mississippi Valley, which is kind of where we are, and it’s important that folks are aware of what’s possible and how to stay safe.”
Delia says this year’s spring forecast indicates we could see a more active than normal spring storm season. She noted the importance of having a place of shelter to go to during severe weather.
The storm spotter class was sponsored by the Marion and Fayette County as well as Salem Emergency Management Agencies.
