56th IAEM Annual ConferenceNovember 15-20, 2008

Daniel NoahWarning Coordination MeteorologistNWS Tampa Bay Areadaniel.noah@noaa.gov

“The purpose of any organization is to identify and fill the relevant needs of those they serve”

Steven S. Little

Mr. Little wanted a milkshake while staying ata hotel. They had the ingredients but wouldnot make him one.

Rules, regulations, procedures, and customsimpede a companies’ innovation.

NWS Mission: Protect Life and Property by Issuing Warnings and Forecasts for Hazardous Weather

Transcend job descriptions and mission statements to fill relevant needs of our customers

Every emergency is unique and your NWS must remain flexible

Emergency ManagementPre-911

Emergency ManagementPost-911

ICS 100/200 - Incident Command SystemICS 800 - National Response PlanNIMS 700- National Incident Management System

National Response Plan

Prepare for and provide a unified national response to disasters and emergencies – from the smallest incident to the largest catastrophe

National Incident Management System

NIMS provides a consistent nationwide template to enable all government, private-sector, and nongovernmental organizations to work together during domestic incidents

Common terminology and organizational structure regardless of where you work

Incident Command SystemIncident Commander

Operations Section

PlanningSection

LogisticsSection

Finance/Administrative

Section

Public Information Officer

Safety Officer

Technical Specialist (NWS’s Role in EM)

Staging Areas

Branches

Divisions & Groups

Single Resources

Task Forces

Air Operations Branch

Air Support Group

Air Tactical Group

Resources Unit

Situation Unit

Demobilization Unit

Documentation Unit

Service Branch

Communications Unit

Medical Unit

Food Unit

Support Branch

Ground Support Unit

Facilities Unit

Supply Unit

Time Unit

Procurement Unit

Compensation/ Claims Unit

Cost UnitStrike Teams

Hurricane Wilma at Fort Myers EOC

October 2005

Florida Professional Emergency Manager Certification

• 150 hours of training in emergency management • 50 hours must been attained in Florida in a classroom

• 10 professional contributions to Emergency Management• Experience and time in the business

But It Doesn’t Stop ThereThe NWS must understand your job in order to anticipate what you might need

We can talk-the-talk, now what?

The NWS and Emergency Management must build personal relationships to effectively communicate with each other.

A disaster strikes your community. Are you going to listen to someone you’ve never met? Relationships and trust are imperative.

Building Relationshipshttp://www.stormready.noaa.gov/contact.htm

Relationships

Your NWS must also build relationships with emergency management partners

Your customers are our customers

Polk County, FL - Super FogJanuary 9, 2008

70 cars in accident, 5 fatalities

Location of Fire

Multi-Car Pileup

Smoke combined with the cool stable air at night to form super fog

Interstate 4

Fog/Smoke was Exceptionally DenseNWS Tampa Bay found out 1.5 hours after event

Neither the DOT or Highway Patrol thought to call NWS Tampa Bay Area to get the word out

Gasparilla in Tampa

150,000 in attendance

January 19, 2008

A Line of Storms Approached

The parade had already begun.

After briefing Hillsborough County Emergency Management, the Gasparilla Children’s Parade was shut down.

The parade had never been shut down or cancelled in 17 years!

Storms Caused Winds over 60 MPH

Partner Feedback

“Thanks to the Forecasters on duty Saturday, January 19th during the Kids Parade for Gasparilla - they worked very closely with us and were vital in making the decision to cancel the parade for the safety of the public - it was not a popular decision, but it was the right one!”

Larry Gispert, DirectorHillsborough County Emergency ManagementPresident, IAEM

Super Bowl XLIII

NWS Tampa Bay Area will staff the EOC during the event

We will do a live practice run during the 2009 Outback Bowl

Media & Tornado Event

Webinar helped to Diffuse Media Frustration & Misunderstanding

WFO Tampa issued a tornado warning at 10:05 PM during prime time news, caught a Chief Meteorologist off guard, who angered the news director because he broke into their newscast.

February 26, 2008

Questionable Tornado Warning??

Step-by-Step Thought Process

Tampa is the 13th Largest Media Market

And yet we found out some TV station operationsand automated product generation were stuck inthe warning-by-county world instead of using the warning-by-polygon

These stations contacted their vendor to make the appropriate changes

NWS Instant MessagingThink of it as a tool for Situational Awareness

• Leave it on in the background if weather is in the area• Check out the conversations and products links to find out what is happening in your county• Ask NWS questions in public or private chat room• Give NWS feedback on what you know is happening

Instant MessagingUsage of system on a quiet weather day

http://www.iemchat.com will be turned off on February 2, 2009 and will be replaced by NWS Chat (https://nwschat.weather.gov), which will be hosted on NWS servers.

NWS Chat Instant Messaginghttps://nwschat.weather.gov

• Developed for the purpose of sharing critical decision support information with core partners• NWS Chat will leave experimental mode if EM and Media partners find service of value• A NWS server may make your I.T. feel better about allowing it on your system

The Power of Instant MessagingTornado Signature 30 Miles North of Tampa

The Power of Instant Messaging December 16, 2007 Chat Log – Pasco Tornado

(12/16/2007 4:32:40 AM) iembot: TBW issues Severe Thunderstorm Warning for Hillsborough, Pasco, Pinellas [FL] till 5:30 AM EST (12/16/07 04:34:54 AM) iembot: TBW issues Special Weather Statement STRONG THUNDERSTORMS WILL AFFECT SUMTER HERNANDO AND CITRUS COUNTIES for Citrus, Hernando, Sumter [FL] till 5:15 AM EST(12/16/07 5:05:35 AM) iembot: TBW issues Flood Statement for Pasco [FL] till 6:15 AM EST(12/16/07 5:07:59 AM) nwstbw_soo: Issuing another a Tornado Warning for Pasco(12/16/07 5:08:20 AM) iembot: TBW issues Tornado Warning for Pasco [FL] till 6:00 AM EST(12/16/07 5:10:40 AM) iembot: Storm Prediction Center issues Mesoscale Discussion(12/16/07 5:12:38 AM) iembot: TBW issues Short Term Forecast(12/16/07 5:24:01 AM) iembot: TBW continues Tornado Warning for Pasco [FL] till 6:00 AM EST(12/16/07 5:26:18 AM) wflaweather: hi guys...any damage reports?(12/16/07 5:31:42 AM) iembot: TBW issues Marine Warning for Coastal waters from Englewood to Tarpon Springs out 20 nm, Tampa Bay waters [GM] till 6:15 AM EST

(12/16/07 5:45:30 AM) nwstbw_soo: Issuing another TOR for Eastern Pasco/Southern Sumter(12/16/07 5:45:54 AM) iembot: TBW issues Tornado Warning for Pasco, Sumter [FL] till 6:00 AM EST(12/16/07 5:47:33 AM) wflaweather: thx for the update and heads-up(12/16/07 5:47:54 AM) nwstbw_soo: WFLA...At this point some reports of power outages in New Port Richey and Clearwater areas.(12/16/07 5:48:09 AM) wflaweather: thanks(12/16/07 5:52:57 AM) iembot: TBW issues Short Term Forecast(12/16/07 5:53:44 AM) wflaweather: news desk heard a scanner report of structural damage to a fire station near Land O Lakes. Will check and pass along more later...(12/16/07 5:57:48 AM) wtvt_wx: Pasco fire confirms damage to two out buildings at co jail in Land O Lakes.

The Power of Instant Messaging December 16, 2007 Chat Log – Pasco Tornado

Results After Clicking on Tornado Warning

125 Female Inmates Evacuated 5 Minutes Before $750K Hardened Tent

They Were In Was Destroyed

Improved Relationships Through Instant Messaging

I.M. Members at NWS Tampa Bay

• Emergency Management• Media• StormReady Cities & Universities• Department of Transportation• FL Division of Forestry• (FL Highway Patrol)• U.S. Coast Guard• MacDill Air Force Base• SKYWARN Net Control Operators

NEW! Interactive NWShttp://inws.wrh.noaa.gov

You manage which warnings and advisories you want sent to your cell phone or Email

iNWS: Pick a Point, County, or an Areahttp://inws.wrh.noaa.gov

NWS Spectrum of ServiceOutreach and Preparedness Efforts

• Your NWS can write articles for your websites and safety guides• Your NWS can create realistic weather scenarios and can be one of the controllers for your exercises• Your NWS can be a resource for weather data needed in your mitigation plans and grant writing

NWS Spectrum of Services

Product request

Web Briefing

Recorded Briefing

Communicating Threat with Emergency Management

NWS Spectrum of Services

Live VirtualBriefing

IC CenterOn-site

IC Incident On-site

Communicating Threat with Emergency Management

We Are There With You If Needed

Response to 2005 Katrina Louisiana Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness

in Baton Rouge

Take Advantage of NWS Resources

Decision Support ServicesForecasting Hazardous Material Plume

Where Will The Plume Go?

CAMEO vs NWS Hysplit

CAMEO/ALOHA Computer-Aided Management of Emergency Operations (CAMEO)

Small Scale Release

• 0-6 square miles and up to 1 hour• ALOHA is the part of Cameo that createsthe “cloud footprint” that can be plotted to aid first responders in decisions

>90% of the time this will be the responder’s model of choice

NWS Hysplit Dispersion Model

Large Scale Release

• 6+ square miles / 1+ hour(s)• Chemical, biological or radioactive contaminant• Uses actual forecast model to calculate dispersions• Output available in multiple formats

• GIFs, Postscript, PDF, ArcView, Google Earth• Sent to you via Fax or Email

• Emergency Management must request from local NWS office

Hysplit Output for Google Earth Example: Sheraton Convention Center, Chlorine Release, 11/17/2008

Acute Exposure Guidelines Levels

CAMEO vs Hysplit

CAMEO vs Hysplit

Which model should youuse for a moderate sizewild or forest fire?

CAMEO vs Hysplit

Request Hysplit for Large Scale Releases to Obtain Better Data and Make Better Decisions

Building Relationshipshttp://www.stormready.noaa.gov/contact.htm

Let us know what kind of milk shake you want

A Question For You…

What do you get when you combine the following?

Weather Engineer Toaster

Answer: A new way to receive a forecast!

Any Questions, Comments, Discussion?

I should have beena weatherman

Any Questions?