Severe weather can be particularly dangerous and life threatening at night. If you don't have a NOAA Weather Radio with a battery back-up to provide overnight warnings for your area, but you do have a smartphone, please check your "app store" for a relevant tool.
If you have an iPhone, you might want to take a look at the iMap Weather Radio app. It functions just like a traditional weather radio, only better. It uses GPS technology to track your exact location and alert you only to watches and warnings that are issued for that particular area.
I have only begun to evaluate the app this evening as severe weather is threatening my area. So far I am impressed. When a Tornado Watch was issued a short while ago, the app alerted me even a few seconds before my NOAA Weather Radio did.
You can set the app to alert you based on your GPS-fixed location, or you can enter up to 5 additional locations manually (to keep an eye on friends, relatives, etc.). Once your location(s) are set, the app will alert your via live audio as well as an on screen text alert (the photo below is only an example):
I will continue to evaluate this app tonight and will provide a detailed review very soon.
If you have a Blackberry, Android or are using any other mobile platform, please check this link for possible weather alert apps. I have not yet evaluated any of these apps in any way - so I cannot personally comment on their performance at this time.
I'm not here to "endorse" a particular app, but to make sure that you choose some method of receiving severe weather warnings at night for your area. A NOAA Weather Radio with battery back-up is still my favorite choice for now, but smartphone apps are beginning to run a close second.
If you enjoy reading 'The Original Weather Blog', please be sure to "like" our facebook page!
If you have an iPhone, you might want to take a look at the iMap Weather Radio app. It functions just like a traditional weather radio, only better. It uses GPS technology to track your exact location and alert you only to watches and warnings that are issued for that particular area.
I have only begun to evaluate the app this evening as severe weather is threatening my area. So far I am impressed. When a Tornado Watch was issued a short while ago, the app alerted me even a few seconds before my NOAA Weather Radio did.
You can set the app to alert you based on your GPS-fixed location, or you can enter up to 5 additional locations manually (to keep an eye on friends, relatives, etc.). Once your location(s) are set, the app will alert your via live audio as well as an on screen text alert (the photo below is only an example):
I will continue to evaluate this app tonight and will provide a detailed review very soon.
If you have a Blackberry, Android or are using any other mobile platform, please check this link for possible weather alert apps. I have not yet evaluated any of these apps in any way - so I cannot personally comment on their performance at this time.
I'm not here to "endorse" a particular app, but to make sure that you choose some method of receiving severe weather warnings at night for your area. A NOAA Weather Radio with battery back-up is still my favorite choice for now, but smartphone apps are beginning to run a close second.
If you enjoy reading 'The Original Weather Blog', please be sure to "like" our facebook page!
2 comments:
Dangit...does that mean I'm actually going to have to GET a "smartphone"?? Mine's still a "dumb phone" that only makes calls, takes/sends photos, and can send a text. I simply refuse to pay the extra money to have a phone that takes the place of my laptop that I paid a butt-load of money for when I got IT!
My NOAA radio is my best friend...but I AM disappointed at the *delay* there seems to be from the issue to the message going out. Maybe that's some thing that can be worked on?!? My biggest gripe, though, is the DELAY between the issue and it showing-up on my TV!!!! My weather radio will go off, THEN I can see it on my computer (which is slow), THEN it will show-up on my television after a minute or two. THAT disturbs me!! In those two to three minutes there could be homes destroyed if they don't have any other type of warning system....and TV's just not a great system!! The few times I've fallen asleep before a storm gets here...it's already here when I wake-up from the noise and I HATE that!!! I don't know what we need to do to give advanced warning to those who don't have all the fancy equipment of "modern technology" or who are asleep...but we need to figure it out!!
Sorry for the long post...but it's bothered me *forever*!
I have an NOAA weather radio i.e Midland WR120. It has SAME technology. The SAME feature can be very handy as it gives alerts based on zones(County). Simultaneously, it elucidates all the factors approximately related to wind and temperature that relatively affects the weather of any place. The device monitor comprehensively covers 7 channels aired on the NOAA.
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