The Minnesota Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management in conjunction with the National Weather Service will observe Severe Weather Awareness Week from April 21 – 25, 2014.
The week’s activities are as follows:
Monday, April 21 – Alerts and Warnings
Tuesday, April 22 – Severe Weather, Lightning and Hail
Wednesday, April 23 – Floods
Thursday, April 24 – Tornadoes (with statewide tornado drills)
Reminder messages will be distributed on Wednesday, April 23 and on the morning of Thursday, April 24
- Two Tornado Drills are planned, see the schedule below for details.
- The first drill allows schools, businesses, and industries to test their sheltering plans.
- The second, evening drill, allows families and businesses with second shifts to practice their sheltering plans.
Important notes for Tornado Drill Day
1) If severe weather is a significant threat on April 24, the National Weather Service (NWS) may issue the watch/warning on Friday, April 25.
The NWS would do that only as a last resort. Cloudy, dark and/or rainy skies are not sufficient to merit postponement; only severe storms.
If severe storms occur Friday, the drill will be cancelled.
2) Effect on Cell Phones and the “Wireless Emergency Alert”:
NWS test warnings have a code that is flagged by systems indicating a test, therefore there is no wireless emergency alert on cell phones for the test.
3) Effect on other communication devices:
Since there are so many companies that relay warnings, and so many methods by which people may receive warnings,
it is impossible to say what will or won’t relay NWS warnings. Most devices either know that it’s a test, via a code,
and ignore it, or clearly indicate that it is a test. But it’s impossible to say that there won’t be a device that
passes along NWS tests without telling people that it is a test.
Schedule for Tornado Drill Day
- 1:00 p.m. Test Watch (TOA).
List of counties in the test watch issued by all six weather offices that serve Minnesota.
Weather Radios will activate with the real TOA code.
1:45 p.m. Test Tornado Warning (TOR) issued by all six weather offices that serve Minnesota.
Weather Radios will activate with the real TOR code.
Outdoor Warning Systems (sirens) will activate.
2:00 p.m. Test Severe Weather Statement (SVS) issued by all six weather offices to announce the end of the test warning.
Weather radio will NOT activate.
Outdoor Warning Systems will NOT activate.
6:55 pm. Test Tornado warning (TOR) issued by all six weather offices that serve Minnesota.
Weather Radios will activate with the real TOR code.
Outdoor Warning Systems (sirens) will activate.
7:10 pm. Test Severe Weather Statement (SVS) issued by all six weather offices to announce the end of the test warning.
Weather radio will NOT activate.
Outdoor Warning Systems will NOT activate.
Friday, April 25 – Extreme Heat
For more information about Severe Weather Awareness week, please visit the Minnesota Department of Public Safety’s website at:
https://dps.mn.gov/divisions/hsem/weather-awareness-preparedness/Pages/severe-weather-awareness-week-program.aspx
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