The Warning Process of the NWS...

Ah yes, the dawning of a new day (just ignore the fact that that is a sunset shot.) Looks like an apology is in order... an apology because if I were more in my own state of mind, less adrenalin clogging my normal rational thought processor (you understand, right? It was a monumental moment, death of the Dewvoid), I would have realized that a Severe Thunderstorm Warning had been issued on the cell that I saw in Lowndes County on Tuesday, and as I have searched his log of the events that afternoon, I would have been reminded that Mike actually told me that there was a Severe Thunderstorm Warning for that specific cell...

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TALLAHASSEE, FL
114 PM EST TUE FEB 26 2008

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN TALLAHASSEE HAS ISSUED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR... NORTHERN LOWNDES COUNTY IN SOUTH CENTRAL GEORGIA (among other places)...
*UNTIL 145 PM EST*

AT 110 PM EST...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING PENNY SIZE HAIL...AND DAMAGING WINDS IN EXCESS OF 60 MPH. THIS STORM WAS LOCATED 11 MILES SOUTHWEST OF HAHIRA... AND MOVING EAST AT 65 MPH.* THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WILL BE NEAR... HAHIRA BY 120 PM EST... MOODY AFB BY 130 PM EST...LAKELAND BY 135 PM EST...

A quick check of my dialed call history let me know that when I saw the funnel (1:30), the cell was approximately over Moody AFB, and though there was strong rotation indicated by the intense rotation of the wall cloud, the funnels were definitely not persistent, dropping only for seconds at a time. OK, so there was not "no warning issued" as I incorrectly stated. It was unfair of me to have issue with Parks. He did a great job that day. I have since had some in depth correspondence regarding my (unwarranted) frustration (yes, folks, I am eating some crow here--hey, I'm relatively new to this, so I am going to make mistakes, right?) with one of my favorite forecasters at the NWS-Tallahassee office, and actually one of the folks who has contributed to my spotter training, Kelly G. He wrote:

When a spotter report is received, we take that report into consideration when evaluating the need for a warning. We'll also look at the latest radar data and compare the report to that image... A funnel cloud needs to be exhibiting strong rotation... Submitting a funnel cloud report won't necessarily prompt a tornado warning, especially if the spotter indicates that the funnel cloud is not persistent (which I did). In many cases, if the funnel cloud dissipates or is intermittent, a tornado warning will not be issued. If you continue to observe the funnel cloud and see it continue to rotate and move toward the surface, a follow up call with this information would be very helpful. The warning process is very complex and we have a lot of tools at our disposal, including reports from spotters to make our decision.

I appreciate Kelly's thorough response, and I can see where it wasn't fair to say that "no warning" was issued. That was my mistake, and it was inaccurate. There was a Severe Thunderstorm Warning issued for this cell. I see also that the one area of rotation that we popped in under should have been called in as an area of persistent rotation, but I did not. I will be certain to do that next time. I think the guys in Tallahassee do a great job with forecasts and warnings, and I plan to continue my spotter reports during severe weather events and let them take care of the rest. It's not an easy job they have being responsible for lots of lives... Don't believe me? You try it...

Cold day in south Georgia, as I woke up to temps in the mid-20's that dropped as the morning progresed in the pre-dawn hours. Brr... I'll be glad when spring gets here!

Have a great day!
~Dewdrop