MWN Blog

Thanks for the info. Until alerts become storm ba...

2012-04-19T21:36:10.412-05:00

Thanks for the info. Until alerts become storm based, we will have problems with people taking them seriously when they need to.

Nick - So glad you are OK and weren't also str...

2012-04-16T08:07:43.887-05:00

Nick - So glad you are OK and weren't also struck. It had to be horrifying to watch and feel helpless! Rest up and get ready for the next one! Y'all do a great service!
--Erik

Thank you for posting this about us Eric. My guys ...

2012-04-16T02:16:00.756-05:00

Thank you for posting this about us Eric. My guys were very fortunate they were not injured worse and that I was somehow able to jump out of the way. Something we'll never know how. Thank you everyone for your thoughts an
d prayers. please keep them going for my friends. I don't know what I would have done if things woukd have been worse. I do know that if put in the position again we would help out without thinking twice. My guys need to get better soon because if we are needed again any time soon we will be ready. Thanks again Eric for posting this great update.

Thank goodness you guys are okay! With the memory ...

2012-04-15T21:27:25.615-05:00

Thank goodness you guys are okay! With the memory of AG still very fresh, I can honestly say I was scared. Hope you have a speedy recovery so you can get back to your usual awesomeness :)

My thoughts and prayers go out to everyone involve...

2012-04-15T21:14:18.694-05:00

My thoughts and prayers go out to everyone involved.I will remember the sad day we lost Andy forever.

Thank you Jesse! I know they appreciate it as well...

2012-04-15T18:09:16.315-05:00

Thank you Jesse! I know they appreciate it as well.

My prayers go out to the Storm Chasers and those t...

2012-04-15T17:55:20.615-05:00

My prayers go out to the Storm Chasers and those that were injured in the rollover accident.

Beau - Thanks for reading, commenting, and passing...

2012-03-23T17:06:37.608-05:00

Beau - Thanks for reading, commenting, and passing it on! I checked out your site, blog, and social media feeds. Fantastic job! Very detailed on all of it. Good to "meet you"!
--Erik

Great article and observations on the ridge. Ther...

2012-03-22T21:56:30.159-05:00

Great article and observations on the ridge. There is little doubt that terrain does impact local weather - the question is how much does it influence the weather. Great observations - I sent your article to the PAH Office

Vonavie - See my comment to Emily just posted. Pre...

2012-03-21T13:58:09.479-05:00

Vonavie - See my comment to Emily just posted. Pretty much the same applies to you. Most of the time it is a perception issue. In fact, I would argue from a "big picture" that northeast AR tends to get worse weather as a region than areas closer to Memphis. On average, you've got it pretty good up there for severe storms and for snow! Thanks for the comment

Emily - That is a perception that people from many...

2012-03-21T13:56:01.746-05:00

Emily - That is a perception that people from many places hold. There are many in Memphis that think that your area gets all the storms! It's all really a matter of perception, as one tends to focus on their little part of the world versus the big picture. This "myth," I'll call it, is somewhat reinforced by the fact that there do tend to be more overnight storms (especially in the summer with the right pattern) that form and move out of the Ozarks towards this region and then weaken as they arrive in the early morning hours in the Mississippi River Valley. However, on the grand scale, you're no more or less susceptible to severe weather than anyone else in the immediate area, especially 1-2 counties away. Thanks for your comment!

I live on the ridge between Paragould and Jonesbor...

2012-03-19T06:47:41.054-05:00

I live on the ridge between Paragould and Jonesboro. We feel like we live at a point that weather tends to split and go north and/or south of us. This is handy for severe weather but disappointing when it's snow time.

I grew up in Obion co, tn. We always believed the ...

2012-03-18T22:22:42.088-05:00

I grew up in Obion co, tn. We always believed the Miss River affected our weather b/c it seemed strong storms from mo would die down just a little when they crossed the river, then reform and produce severe storms/tornados by the time they got to weakley co...could this be true?

Thanks again for your in-depth commentary Brett! ...

2012-03-10T18:55:20.504-06:00

Thanks again for your in-depth commentary Brett! Very insightful.

Ultimately it was deteriorating infrastructure. Mo...

2012-03-10T17:13:27.327-06:00

Ultimately it was deteriorating infrastructure. Most of our sirens were over 20 years old, and many were 40 years old. We could no longer find parts to repair them. Sirens would lose drivers, stop rotating, or go dead, and there was nothing we could do about it. As well about 20-25% of the county that was rural when we first built was now a large suburb with no coverage.

The bond issue went on the ballot twice before getting passed. We thought too little was budgeted at first, but with a lot of testing and design work we were able to both decrease the number of existing sirens while expanding coverage to the uncovered areas of the county.

We still have two big issues left. Even with all the design work, we have dead spots from high background noise, terrain, vegetation, and/or large buildings. High background noise from traffic is especially a problem. The second is that we moved most of the sirens. While a lot of people can still hear the sirens inside, it is not the same people that could hear them inside before. The people who could hear the sirens inside before are concerned that they cannot hear them inside now.

This has been a blessing in disguise though. Now that the pattern of siren coverage has changed, people are much more aware of the need for weather alert radios. The local news is promoting them heavily, and local stores are routinely selling out. So, updating and changing our outdoor coverage is leading to more people taking care of their indoor coverage.

(And we used GIS extensively for system design and to communicate system status with the vendor. It was very useful when the radio system was being setup.)

Thanks for your in-depth example from St Louis Co....

2012-03-09T15:26:25.515-06:00

Thanks for your in-depth example from St Louis Co., Brett! I was aware that St. Louis just re-did their siren system. In fact, saw a GIS application showing the siren configuration. Your detail highlights why we say what we do - they are outdoor sirens for a reason.

So what was the impetus for the re-built system in St. Louis? Progressive-minded individuals in leadership, complaints from citizens, deteriorating infrastructure, or perhaps a combination? Just curious... thanks again!

--Erik

We just rebuilt our system in St Louis County, and...

2012-03-09T14:53:37.701-06:00

We just rebuilt our system in St Louis County, and one of the questions we were asked was "what would it take to have the sirens work everywhere indoors too?"

Typical indoor background noise is only 50 dBC, so the siren loudness needs to be at least 59 dBC to hear it inside (9 dBC above background is the key threshold for perception).

An uninsulated drywall and plywood exterior wall will attenuate 33 dB of sound. That means to hear the siren inside, the siren loudness needs to be 92 dBC on that exterior wall.

Our sirens are almost all Whelen WPS-2910-S sirens. Those are 129 dBC; loud enough to cover 99% of the county at 70 dBC with just under 200 sirens. Most sirens are not this loud.

To have one of those big sirens hit your house at 92 dBC, your house has to be within 1330'. If you have a plaster with lathe or modern masonry house that can attenuate 50+ dBC, your house needs to be within 400' of the siren to hear it inside!

So, the kicker... in order to cover the entire county at 92 dBC instead of 70 dBC, we would have to increase the number of sirens from 200 to 3800. Our new system price tag would jump from $8 million to $152 million. And I can tell you from experience that it is physically impossible to find regularly spaced locations for 3800 sirens in a 500 sq mi county. It was hard enough to get 200 locations that most residents found acceptable.

And that is why siren systems are not designed to be heard indoors.

Can't wait for this! After seeing Tornado Alle...

2012-03-05T17:04:31.065-06:00

Can't wait for this! After seeing Tornado Alley yesterday, I need a weather fix. :)

Thank You, this is sound resonable information. No...

2012-02-12T16:19:09.112-06:00

Thank You, this is sound resonable information. Not Hype! Great Work

We lived in Dogwood Grove during the tornado. The...

2012-01-29T16:26:11.230-06:00

We lived in Dogwood Grove during the tornado. The Sunday afternoon on the day of the storm neighbors were stringing Christmas lights on roof tops. Many others were away for the Thanksgiving weekend or there would have been many more causalities. The first indication we had of the approaching tornado was TV news coverage. As the storm approached the Dogwood Grove area, the power failed, and we lost TV coverage. There were no sirens to warn us when the power failed. The wind began to accelerate and the light was an eerie green. I could hear a strange low drone of the storm in the distance. I was able to call my children and get them safely into a bedroom closet. The storm lasted only about 20-30 seconds, but it seemed longer. Twisted tree limbs came through our windows, and the force of the wind blew open the French doors. The water was like a fire hose aimed through the doors. We lost enormous trees, but never heard them fall during the force of the wind. After the storm the temperature dropped dramatically...at least 20 degrees. Fences were gone, roof tops were gone, 3' diameter trees were felled, and those houses on the periphery had windows broken from flying debris. Stunned neighbors grouped on the street following the 3:30 storm; some of them visibly shaking. Power failed for about 3 days. A long line of gawkers came through Dogwood Grove, some people were smoking cigarettes amidst the smell of broken gas lines. At night helicopters circled in an attempt to stop looting. Looters stole from houses but also took broken wooden swing sets. The insurance companies walked through the neighborhood to aid in filing claims and told residents to secure their homes. Some left for Embassy Suites were they grouped, others stayed in boarded-up houses with shot guns. We were fortunate to find plywood for the windows in Collierville. We were greatly relieved when the Germantown Police Dept. blocked the neighborhood to outsiders and sent police on bikes into the area. The week following the storm people rented moving van trailers to salvage whatever memories they could. There were at least 40 houses that were totaled/nothing but total debris, and many more with great damage. The months after the storm brought a time of struggle, houses were torn down, lots cleared, new constructed began again, but there was an enormous amount of destruction for a long time. It was almost 2 years until all of the lots were rebuilt. It may seem like a long time, but whenever the temperature and humidity match the day of the storm, I feel very uneasy.

Michael - I had an upgrade available at Christmas ...

2012-01-09T21:23:19.189-06:00

Michael - I had an upgrade available at Christmas with my Samsung Android phone. Considered the iPhone 4S, but with my app stuck in the review process, I had no choice but to stick with Android again. Glad I did too!

--Erik

This is why I am a Droid man!

2012-01-09T21:00:37.116-06:00

This is why I am a Droid man!

The snow is late here in the london, 10 Cel. by ni...

2011-12-22T15:16:24.890-06:00

The snow is late here in the london, 10 Cel. by night!

visit me?

That is precisely why we like the Android approval...

2011-12-14T13:33:55.849-06:00

That is precisely why we like the Android approval process better - there is none! :-)

Hey! No problems with the Android version. Works j...

2011-12-14T12:04:55.304-06:00

Hey! No problems with the Android version. Works just fine!