Who are we?

The SKYWARN program in Central Indiana has been active for many years. The basic core values have changed very little during that period.

The Central Indiana SKYWARN Association, Inc., was incorporated in June of 1999. Since that time there have been many changes in the operation of the SKYWARN network. The voice operation was moved to the Indianapolis Carmel Experimenters (www.w9ice.com) 146.97/442.65 repeater system during the spring of 2001. There have been many enhancements to the system such as the addition to link the Illiana SKYWARN Network (www.illianaskywarn.net) 444.35 repeater, which is located just west of Terre Haute, IN. This system enhances the coverage for the southwestern counties, including coverage into Eastern Illinois. In addition, the Association was granted access to the WQKC-FM tower located in Freetown, in Jackson County. This node consists of a two-meter remote base arrangement with a link to the 442.65 repeater in Indianapolis. The node coverage will include Jackson, Jennings, Lawrence, Monroe, Bartholomew and surrounding counties.

In addition to improving the voice network, the Association has developed a training video in conjunction with the Indianapolis NWS which is being shown at SKYWARN spotter training sessions. In the near future other training guides will be posted on our Web page. These training guides will not be a substitute for SKYWARN spotter training held by the National Weather Service. They are meant to augment the normal spotter training class and to be viewed at anytime to refresh all spotters’ recollection as to cloud formations and as a reminder of the power and fury of severe weather.

Why do we do this?

Our customer is the Indianapolis Office of the National Weather Service and our mission is to protect the lives and property of Hoosiers.

Does it sound unusual to refer to a Federal agency, supported by tax money, as a customer? Normally most people would consider a Federal agency, as a servant to the public, and ultimately that is true. However in the case of the SKYWARN spotter, the NWS is the customer and to be successful, severe weather spotters must view the relationship in that way. If not, then the relationship can become strained causing an increased risk to life and property, which is unacceptable. This is why the SKYWARN program must be a structured approach and depends heavily on the cooperation of each local county operation. The present structure of the Central Indiana SKYWARN Association operation is based on the merits of the Incident Command Structure used everyday by many public service agencies with great success. (http://www.training.fema.gov/EMIWeb/IS/is100.asp)

There are many new modes and facets to amateur radio that seem to be a good idea for emergency operations. However don't forget that a microphone is sold with just about every radio and not every amateur radio operator is interested in laptops, PDA's, or other modes. When you consider the speed and ferocity in the development of severe weather, it is crucial that information be relayed immediately without delay. Telephone and power lines are highly susceptible to high winds contained in severe thunderstorms. Any reliance on modes of emergency communications that depends on these utilities to be intact during severe weather events is risky.

The Central Indiana SKYWARN program has one very simple, yet complex, goal, and that is to protect the lives and property of fellow Hoosiers. Very few hobbies allow the participant to have such an impact on the lives of their neighbors. It is of little consequence whether this occurs in the heat of the day or in the middle of the night. To the SKYWARN spotter, community service takes on an added significance.

The SKYWARN spotter is a unique individual whose ultimate reward is simply community service. Not only do they provide a measure of protection for their neighbors but for their family as well. This is one reason why many leave their families and venture out into harm's way to provide this essential service. The SKYWARN spotter is a professionally-trained volunteer. The amateur radio SKYWARN spotter is prohibited from any type of compensation by Federal Communications Commission Part 97 rules governing amateur radio.

How do we respond?

The Central Indiana SKYWARN Severe Weather Network is activated solely at the request of the Indianapolis NWS Office. Their request for spotter activation is based on information gathered from the Storm Prediction Center as well as local input from the Indianapolis NWS staff. The near real time information spotters provide is an essential piece of the total flow of information the NWS uses to determine whether a severe weather warning is issued. It is vital that the SKYWARN program strive to continuously improve the delivery of information to the NWS. This increase in lead-time will give the general public an opportunity to prepare themselves for the threat of severe weather.

Not every severe weather watch issuance requires network activation. However the Central Indiana SKYWARN Association is alerted to the severe weather potential and the appropriate measures are put into motion to ensure an immediate response if conditions warrant.

Each county in Central Indiana has the authority, and is encouraged, to activate their local county net prior to any request from the NWS. This proactive approach has proven extremely successful in positioning the appropriate resources in preparation of severe weather. It has been proven that developing a severe weather pre-plan can provide that extra few seconds that can make a difference. If there is an active pre-plan in place with adequate support training then it takes less time to manage those resources and therefore the information those spotters develop is available without delay.

In addition, each time a spotter turns in a report this information is not only recorded as a Local Storm Report, to aid in the warning verification process, it is also valuable to researchers. These climatologists, who study the atmosphere and develop tools to predict severe weather, take your reports and apply them to the study of storm structure and development. It is essential that no matter how insignificant the report may seem, when taken as a whole, it could be an important piece of a puzzle researchers need to describe the atmosphere.

Summary

SKYWARN is open to all individuals who have a genuine interest in protecting the public from the effects of severe weather. It matters not what organization you belong to, your age, your family situation, or your physical abilities. All that is required is that you attend regularly scheduled SKYWARN spotter training instructed by the National Weather Service. As far as amateur radio operators are concerned, the same guidelines apply. It makes no difference if you are a member of RACES, ARES, or the local amateur radio club. SKYWARN is a program of the Department of Commerce and is administered by the NWS. There is no place for politics or discrimination based on what group you may be associated with. In fact these disagreements between groups can only degrade the level of cooperation and ultimately put residents in harm's way. It is essential to find a way to work together during these severe weather events.

In closing, there is no substitution for planning, training and cooperation.