I received a very nice email from a lady that is a great fan of the ABC 33/40 weather blog and all of our weather material. She had some interesting thoughts on the two-tiered tornado warnings. I got her permission to post them here:
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I would like to comment on the two-tiered tornado warning system. I probably don’t even know what I am talking about; I am a simple housewife.
That said, I am genuinely concerned that a new two-tiered system would be too confusing. It seems that a tornado warning should result in quick immediate action to get to a safe place.
If someone in the John Q. Public has to figure out what kind of tornado situation is present then precious, potentially life-saving minutes may be lost—- or worse, if too complicated the warning may be ignored altogether out of sheer frustration.
There are good, simple folks in my community who do not follow the weather regularly and still don’t know the difference between a watch and a warning. Perhaps that shocks you or perhaps you figure that those individuals do not represent the “normal” Alabamian.
A survey of rural Alabama might demonstrate the true situation; maybe you could find an intern somewhere willing to find out if Alabamians know the difference b/w a watch and a warning….just a thought.
Thanks for the opportunity to voice my opinion. I am certainly open to opposing arguments and willing to reconsider my own.
