It's Groundhog Day!

Happy Groundhog Day! Well, sort of... unfortunately, Punxsutawney Phil once again saw his shadow today predicting 6 more weeks of this agonizingly cold winter weather. In this shot, by Carolyn Kaster/AP...

"Ben Hughes, handler of the weather-predicting groundhog Punxsutawney Phil, holds Phil in the air after removing him from his stump at Gobbler's Knob on Groundhog Day, Monday, Feb. 2, 2009, in Punxsutawney, Pa. The Groundhog Club said Phil saw his shadow and predicted six more weeks of winter. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)" ~source

Poor little groundhog... it seems, he might need to be entered into the forecasters protection program. Six more weeks of winter on a mostly cloudy day... some nerve.

Down here in the south though, we have our own weather-telling rodent that forecasts the arrival of spring. Ours is determined by our very own General Beauregard Lee, located at the Yellow River Game Ranch near Stone Mountain, Georgia. Fortunately for us, we had more overcast skies than in Pennsylvania, and...

7:33AM - GENERAL BEAU LEE DOESN'T SEE SHADOW; PREDICTS EARLY SPRING!

Hooray for us!!!! Sounds like chase season will start early for me... especially with Beauregard's 96% accuracy claim...

Lee's every move on February 2nd, Ground Hog Day, because he has an astounding rate of accuracy. Even The National Weather Service has commended General Beau Lee for his predictions. ~source

... but I am coming across lots of contradictory claims. I'll be happy with an "early spring" though. I am tired of the cold!

I do have some exciting Georgia news! This week is Georgia Severe Weather Awareness Week! What an exciting time it is to learn wonderful things about weather safety. Topics to be covered are...

Sunday - Family Preparedness
Monday - NOAA Weather Radio
Tuesday - Thunderstorm Safety
Wednesday - Tornado Safety (Tornado Drill)
Thursday - Lightning Safety
Friday - Flooding
Saturday - Volunteers/Spotters

I plan to cover these topics each day to support the National Weather Service in their education. It's a cause I support whole-heartedly (...as if you couldn't tell)! I missed Sunday's topic while I was enjoying company for the Superbowl and a little Superbowl pre-party. Don't overlook the HIGHLIGHT OF THE WEEK!

The statewide tornado drill on Wednesday - February 4

A test Tornado Warning will be issued around 9:10 am on NOAA Weather Radio

For additional information concerning the tornado drill, please view this invitation.

Back-up date for Tornado Drill (if Severe Weather is imminent on Wednesday will be Friday the 6th.)

last year, it was actually rescheduled for severe weather...

Anyways, Sunday's topic was Family Preparedness!

1. Gather information about hazards.
2. Meet with your family to create a plan.
3. Implement your plan.
4. Practice and maintain your plan.

More information is available at this link. Mini-Dew and I have a definite plan for severe weather, and I sleep with a weather radio beside my bed. Great lead in, Dew... Today's topic is the NOAA Weather Radio! The NOAA Weather Radio is as important as a life-saving device as a smoke detector in a home or business and a life-preserver near water. EVERY home should be equipped with at least one NOAA Weather Radio with battery backup.

NOAA weather radio is a nationwide network of radio stations broadcasting continuous weather information direct from a nearby National Weather Service office. NOAA weather radio broadcasts National Weather Service watches, warnings, forecasts, and other hazard information 24 hours a day.

Some weather radios are equipped with a special tone feature, which can sound an alert and give you immediate information about a life threatening situation. During an emergency, the National Weather Service will interrupt routine weather radio programming and send out a special tone that activates weather radios in the warning area. Recently, a radio that can handle the Emergency Alert Signal was introduced. The Specific Area Message Encoder (SAME) tone alert can be set up to only sound for your county. This cuts down on the number of unwanted tones you receive, and alerts you only when a life threatening situation is in your county.

I have a radio that sounds an EAS signal (which will wake the dead, trust me) for the SAME code counties I have selected. I have chosen surrounding counties, so I can be aware of what's coming and be prepared by waking up to see what's coming my way. If it's really bad, I can alert a fellow Weather Brigade team member to keep eyes on my area in case I lose power. If you don't have a weather radio in your home, drop what you're doing, go out and buy one, NOW! It's that important! Many vendors carry NOAA Weather Radios!

Have a great and weather-wise day!
~Dewdrop