The Department of Emergency Services will be hosting an online SKYWARN® – Basics training Monday, Nov. 8, 2021, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.
If you are interested in weather and would like to help the local National Weather Service (NWS) office by providing data on the atmosphere that we observe from radar, satellites, and various reporting stations, consider attending the SKYWARN® program Basic course.
This course is a prerequisite for all other courses. Basics I is a good general overview of what it means to be a spotter and the basics of the different weather phenomena that impact the mid-Atlantic. Upon completion of the course, you will be registered in the program by the NWS and will receive a spotter code from the NWS within six weeks.
Training in Basics I includes:
- The Basic Organization of the National Weather Service
- The Role and Importance of the SKYWARN® Spotter
- Reporting of Hazardous Weather
- NWS Products and the Watch/Warning/Advisory system
- Thunderstorm, Flooding, Tropical and Winter Weather Threats
- The Role of Amateur Short-wave (HAM) Radio in the Spotter Program
This SKYWARN® Spotter Class is offered free of charge by the combined effort of the National Weather Service Office in Sterling, VA, and the Department of Emergency Services. This will be a National Weather Service meteorologist led online webinar class and preregistration is required. To register for this online Basics I training go to:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/skywarn-basics-st-marys-county-md-tickets-191143644787. For more information, please call 301-475-4200, ext. 2124, or email: [email protected].
