The National Weather Service will hold a statewide Integrated Weather Team meeting in Great Bend on Jan. 22, 2019, at the Great Bend Events Center.
The IWT consists primarily of the NWS, emergency managers and media: three entities that play a crucial role in the preparedness and response efforts for high-impact weather events. The meeting provides an opportunity for these entities to discuss best practices and challenges during weather operations, and ways each group can improve preparedness and response efforts to support a more unified message during high-impact weather events.
Meteorologist Chance Hayes with the NWS office in Wichita said Great Bend Fire Chief Luke McCormick will be the host for this meeting.
Participants will hear an update on Severe Weather Awareness Week, March 4-8, 2019, and the statewide tornado drill set for March 5. There will be a wildfire tabletop exercise involving everyone in attendance.
A presentation on the Integrated Public Alert & Warning System will explain how federal, state, local, tribal and territorial authorities use IPAWS to alert and warn the public about serious emergencies in various ways. These include the Emergency Alert System (EAS), Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Weather Radio and other public alerting systems that form a single interface.
There will also be a panel discussion with media.
Hayes said the Great Bend Events Center is a new location for the Kansas IWT annual meeting, but Great Bend is an ideal location for weather discussions.
“Barton County has ranked No. 2 in the state for the county with the most tornados since 1950,” he said. Sherman County is No. 1.
Those who attend have also been invited to join the NOAA’s Weather-Ready Nation national ambassador program. Its purpose is to help ready communities for extreme weather, water and climate events. The current seasonal campaign provides information about winter weather driving.
Winter Driving: Focus on Safety
A few winter safety driving tips include:
• Get the weather forecast - Change your travel plans if hazardous weather is expected.
• Check road conditions - Call 511 or visit the Kansas Department of Transportation’s webpage. Adjust your route or travel plans if road conditions are poor.
• Change the way you drive - Drive slower than normal and leave more room. DO NOT use cruise control, brake quickly or take sharp turns when roads are wet, snowy or icy. Avoid risky behavior such as texting or phone calls, speeding or drug/alcohol use. Wear your seat belt. Stay alert.
• Don’t crowd the plow - Give them plenty of room to work and only pass them when it is safe to do so.
• Prevent a bad situation from turning worse - If you’re involved in an accident, try to pull off the road and use your vehicle’s hazard lights, flares, reflectors or flashlights to warn other drivers. STAY OFF THE ROAD, dial 911 and wait for the police to arrive. These actions can help prevent multi-vehicle crashes in winter weather.
• Pack an emergency supply kit - Stock your vehicle with a mobile phone, charger, batteries, blankets, flashlight, first-aid kit, high-calorie nonperishable food, scraper, etc.
