[EAS] concerning the request for new weather Event Codes

[Sean Donelan]

On Thu, 7 Jul 2016, Alexander Tardy - NOAA Federal wrote:
> In case someone missed the prior discussion, each office actively
> works to reduce the length of any 'warning' or the actual issuance of
> a polygon in consideration of interruptions and the two minute limit.

I don't know if its definition change, climate change or better weather 
technology.  The historical data from the Storm Prediction Center 
http://www.spc.noaa.gov/wcm/
shows an upward trend line in the number of tornadoes and reports
of tornadoes.

>From 2003 to 2013, there have been dramatic spikes in the number of 
reported tornadoes compared to 1950-2003.  Its not clear from the
data if there are more tornadoes, or just better detection and
reporting of more tornadoes.

The reporting spikes may account for some of the warning fatigue.  In 
several parts of the country, the weather service had needed to create a
new type of warning, a tornado emergency.

Although the NWS knows how many EAS alerts it issues every year, there
is not reliable national data about how many (or even which types of) EAS 
alerts are relayed by broadcasters and cable systems to the public. 
Even if a state or local EAS plan recommends broadcasters and cable
systems relay weather and local EAS alerts, they do not have to.

So we have anedoctal reports about stations no longer carrying
weather alerts, but not necessarily accurate data.