(Spirit Lake)– This week (April 6th-10th) is Severe Weather Awareness Week in the state of Iowa.
Even though it doesn’t seem possible with the cold weather and last weekend’s snow, severe weather season is upon us.
Todd Heitkamp, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Sioux Falls, says it’s a good time to review severe weather terminology and what you would do in the event of a severe thunderstorm or tornado.
A watch is issued when conditions are favorable for the formation of severe thunderstorms or tornadoes. A warning is issued when a severe thunderstorm or tornado is actually occurring or is being detected by radar.
Severe Weather Awareness Week will be highlighted Wednesday (April 8th) with a statewide tornado drill in Iowa. Dickinson County Emergency Management Coordinator Mike Ehret says a statewide mock tornado watch will be issued at 10:00 a.m. He says a mock warning will follow at 10:10 a.m., at which time sirens throughout the county will sound. That will be followed by an all-clear.
Ehret urges residents, businesses, industries, schools and other entities to participate in Wednesday’s drill. He says it’s a good time to devise a plan of action if you don’t already have one, and to actually implement that plan during the drill.
The annual severe weather spotter’s program for Dickinson county will be held Monday, April 27th at 7:00 p.m. at the Expo Building in Spirit Lake. The program is put on each year by the National Weather Service. It’s free of charge and open to anyone interested.
