Scattered severe thunderstorms are forecast across central and eastern North Dakota, as well as far northwest Minnesota Saturday (Slight Risk level 2 of 5). Damaging wind gusts are the primary threat. Elevated to critical fire weather conditions will persist through the weekend across the Western U.S. Isolated dry thunderstorms could lead to new fire starts over portions of the northern Rockies. Read More >
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Frequently Asked Questions What is my spotter ID number? Do I get an ID card? Spotter Training Live Course Forecasters from the National Weather Service in Hanford conduct storm spotter training sessions each year to help prepare spotters for the upcoming severe weather season. The NWS conducts the training at the invitation of local emergency management officials who organize the training and who, in most cases, are responsible for maintaining their local storm spotter network. Most sessions are open to anyone who is interested in learning more about being a spotter, but you should check to be sure before attending a class. Our live training sessions are approximately 1.5 hours in length. This goal of the training is to train spotter to assist local officials and the NWS with early detection of severe weather, and provide ground truth during severe weather events. The learning objectives of both our live and web based training are: • Understand the how the NWS Integrated Warning System works and how the spotter fits into this system • Identify the ingredients needed for organized thunderstorms • Recognize the visual and environmental clues suggestive of severe weather • Distinguish between legitimate clues and non-significant features associated with severe weather • Learn how to stay safe when storm spotting • Learn proper storm reporting procedures |