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TO THE WEATHER WATCHER
To all new weather watchers- whether you are involved with CANWARN, ALTAWATCH,
or the Severe Weather Watcher Program - welcome to the program and to those
who are experienced, thank you for the invaluable service you have been performing
for the Meteorological Service of Canada (MSC) and your communities. As a weather
watcher you are serving a vital role, not only for meteorologists, but for the
public and your neighbours. The weather office needs your eyes and your enthusiastic
involvement to help it detect and evaluate local severe weather events and issue
the weather watches and warnings that can save lives and help people guard against
property damage.
Weather watchers' reports are sometimes the only information available concerning
local severe weather events such as tornadoes or funnel clouds, large hail,
flooding, heavy rain or heavy snowfalls, freezing rain or damaging winds. Our
radar network cannot detect the fine detail and localized events your eyes can
see.
The volunteer service you provide accounts for a large proportion of severe
weather reports received by MSC. Since the weather watch program started in
1978, thousands of volunteers have become involved, and as a result of their
timely information many warnings were issued which might not have been otherwise.
Watching the weather is a year-round job. Not only do we all need to be alert
to risks from both winter and summer storms, you need to keep your senses honed
to become and remain "weather wise".
What do we expect of you as a weather watcher?
It is very important that you know what to look for, when to start watching
for it, and how to make a clear, precise report to the weather office. This
book will give you the tools you need to do your job well and participate in
the drama of weather as it unfolds. Read it thoroughly and use the quick reference
on what and how to report (outside back cover)when you call in your sighting.
The book will help you determine how significant what you see might be. Never
hesitate to report something suspicious. It may be the last piece of evidence
meteorologists need to issue a warning.
Who are the weather watchers?
Weather watchers are volunteers recruited from the ranks of weather enthusiasts
and public-minded people across Canada. People from all walks of life participate,
forming a far-flung network of severe weather observers. In some areas of the
country the provincial police and RCMP participate in the program, as do several
telephone systems, climate observers and many short-wave radio operators.
CANWARN
There are very active amateur radio operators engaged in weather watching
in parts of Canada. In central Alberta, ALTAWATCH has been active for many years,
and the CANWARN program, which started in Ontario, has now spread to include
Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and New Brunswick. There is also a network of
amateur radio operators in Quebec, RAQI (Radio Amateur du Québec Inc.)
which will start in summer 2000, and eventually become part of CANWARN.
CANWARN offers a very active program for its spotters, and augments its effectiveness
and level of participation by providing opportunities for its members to meet
occasionally to exchange slides and share stories and training tips. The CANWARN
action checklist (see box) gives a taste of what it is like to be involved as
a CANWARN spotter.
We hope that you, too, will enjoy sharing your knowledge and experiences with
friends and fellow weather enthusiasts, whether through CANWARN, ALTAWATCH,
RAQI, or the Severe Weather Watcher Program.
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Created :
2002-08-26
Modified :
2002-12-19
Reviewed :
2002-12-19
Url of this page : http://www.msc.ec.gc.ca /education/severe_weather/page02_e.cfm
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