Rick Smith

Thank you!

Thank you! Will do!

Wow! I hate to hear that. What a run!!!

Not sure, but I would’ve guessed the same as Tim.

I don’t think so. Just one NWS account

The @nws.noaa.gov account will begin posting here on Monday. www.weather.gov/media/notifi...

*so* much

Definitely involved during an event, but do much goes on before. I always tell people we’re a strange combo of sales and marketing, customer service, external affairs, suggestion box, complaint department, PIO, liaison, consultant, interpreter.

Not saying this never happens, but it is not routine and not a defined part of our jobs. (And, shockingly, we also don’t coordinate all the warnings)

Local officials facing questions over lack of preparations in the years and hours before deadly Texas floods | CNN As Central Texas reels from flash floods that killed over 100 people this weekend, questions are sharpening about whether officials could have done more to avert the tragedy – both in the decades lead...

"A review of... communications from a real-time messaging system operated by the NWS showed that no emergency manager from Kerr County was sending messages or interacting with NWS staff on the platform, even as emergency officials from other counties were doing so."

www.cnn.com/2025/07/07/u...

Kerr County averages 2.67/year (2020-2025)

Cuts to NOAA increase the risk of deadly weather tragedies » Yale Climate Connections The Trump administration's budget plan for 2026 would eliminate the lab that developed a key flash flooding tool.

Proposed NOAA cuts would destroy the basic infrastructure for weather research–including hurricane and flash flood forecasting–and take decades to recover from. “It’s like blowing up a dam and trying to rebuild it by gluing the pieces back together. It won’t work. You have to start from scratch.”

Who's ready to celebrate this team?? Thunder Nation is invited to the 2025 Champions Parade in downtown Oklahoma City, starting at 10:30 a.m. Tuesday.

Check out the parade route and fact sheet. www.okc.gov/Home/Compone...

www.okcparade.com

Same people who use half dollars? 😉

📣 Exactly this
It takes 3-6 mths JUST to get hires on station. Then mths of training before they can make meaningful contributions. (training also takes time from forecasters keeping ops afloat)

Good to see NWS staffing going in the right direction, but minimal help before hurricane season.

Of all the weird stuff that goes on around here in the spring and summer, heat bursts are some of the most amazing.

This is an EXCELLENT read - thank you @mattlanza.bsky.social

Kentucky NWS office in Jackson was staffed amid severe weather, despite shortages The National Weather Service Forecast Office in Jackson, Kentucky, was fully staffed overnight as tornadoes descended on London and Somerset, despite staffing shortages.

Contrary to some narratives out there, the NWS office in Jackson, KY was fully staffed Friday (May 16th) to deal with the forecast #SevereWeather/#tornado outbreak.

www.wkyufm.org/2025-05-17/k...

Safe travels!

EXACTLY what I was thinking!

Hope you enjoyed it!

Forecasters fear job cuts in severe weather season could be devastating In Tornado Alley, meteorologists say the Trump administration’s efforts could endanger the warning system residents rely on for safety.

WaPo article on cuts at the National Weather Center and affiliated offices - full text here:

wapo.st/4jBaFhl

Stand Up for NOAA Research – The Time to Act is Now The AMS is a global community committed to advancing weather, water, and climate science and service.

NOAA Research introduced and is redeveloping our national Doppler radar network. It provides the radar observations used to keep you safe in severe weather (the same ones seen on TV & your phone).

NOAA Research faces elimination. Learn more: www.ametsoc.org/ams/about-am... #SaveNOAA

What a bunch of nonsense. They just strung a bunch of buzzwords together to sound smart and authoritative.

The administration is gutting NOAA and weather forecasts are suffering. What's "disrespectful" is cutting life-saving services out of spite.

BalancedWx Special: Perspective on the NOAA budget passback A proposed sea change to the US meteorological science enterprise

Thanks to @edwardsanthonyb.bsky.social and SFChronicle for sharing the full NOAA FY26 budget passback. After a detailed reading, think it is important for people to really understand just what massive changes are planned for US weather forecasting and research.

open.substack.com/pub/balanced...

National Weather Service buyouts will leave gaps as storm season ramps up Some meteorologists and public officials warned that reductions, which leave the agency nearly 20 percent smaller, could have deadly consequences.

“The Post spoke with 10 employees across the Weather Service …. Concerned with leaks to the media, the administration is installing monitoring software on NOAA employees’ devices to track their communications, two current employees said.”

Reporting by Scott Dance…

wapo.st/44sg8lC

Another moderate risk. At some point the Memphis NWS office is going to start taking this personally.

Nearly half of National Weather Services offices have 20% vacancy rates, and experts say it's a risk Data obtained by The Associated Press shows that close to half of the local National Weather Service forecast offices have 20% vacancy rates as severe weather chugs across the nation’s heartland.

Nearly half of the local weather service offices are down by 20% after DOGE cuts, according to data obtained by AP apnews.com/article/doge...

Major shoutout to local National Weather Service offices who have issued literally hundreds and hundreds of tornado / severe thunderstorm / flood warnings in just the past 36 hours alone. Most offices are doing this amid staff shortages.

SPC / WPC teams doing amazing work, too.

Scientists matter.