Latest news with #NWS
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Climate
- Yahoo
Tornado and flood watches in effect for southeastern PA, NJ
The National Weather Service issued severe weather watches Friday. A flood watch is in effect for Berks, Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Lancaster, Lehigh, Montgomery, Northampton. The watch is in effect from 7 p.m. unto 8 a.m. Saturday for all but Lancaster County, which ends at 5 a.m. 'Flooding caused by excessive rainfall continues to be possible,' the NWS stated. 'Heavy rain is expected to move in late this evening and then continue overnight. Periods of rainfall with rates of 1-2 inches per hour are possible.' A tornado watch is effect for Bucks, Chester, Delaware Lancaster and Montgomery counties in Pennsylvania and Atlantic, Burlington, Camden, Cape May, Cumberland, Gloucester, Mercer, Ocean and Salem counties in New Jersey until midnight.
Hindustan Times
7 hours ago
- Climate
- Hindustan Times
Maryland tornado tracker: Warnings in Silver Spring, Laurel, Baltimore and other areas
A tornado warning was issued in several Maryland and Virginia areas on Friday. The National Weather Service (NWS) alerted residents in Laurel, Silver Spring, and Baltimore. The Washington, DC area is also under a tornado watch. This comes amid intense thunderstorms sweeping through the Mid-Atlantic. The warnings, part of Tornado Watches 350 and 348, effective until midnight EDT, cover areas including southeastern Howard County, eastern Montgomery County, Prince George's County, and northeastern King George County, with radar indicating potential tornadoes moving northeast at 10–20 mph. Cities like Laurel, Clinton, and King George face immediate risks, with residents urged to seek shelter as flying debris, tree damage, and potential destruction to mobile homes loom. The NWS in Sterling, Virginia, issued specific warnings at 7:23–7:28 PM EDT, pinpointing a severe thunderstorm near Laurel (moving toward Savage-Guilford and Columbia) and another over Clinton (affecting Rosaryville and Marlton). A separate warning for King George County highlighted a storm near Nanjemoy Creek and Dahlgren. These storms, capable of producing tornadoes, carry hazards like damaging winds and hail up to 0.75 inches, with impacts expected to include roof and window damage. The broader Tornado Watch 350, issued by NWS offices in Mount Holly, NJ, and Wakefield, VA, spans 22 counties across Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Virginia, including urban hubs like Philadelphia, Wilmington, and Richmond, as well as coastal waters from Delaware Bay to Chesapeake Bay. Flash flooding remains a critical concern, with up to 1.5 inches of rain already reported and an additional inch possible, threatening low-lying areas. X posts from @capitalweather and @MikeTFox5 underscore the urgency, with flash flood risks extending into the overnight hours and tornado threats confirmed for DC and Baltimore. Residents are advised to take immediate cover in basements or interior rooms on the lowest floor of sturdy buildings, avoiding windows. Those outdoors or in vehicles should find substantial shelter to protect against flying debris.
Yahoo
7 hours ago
- Climate
- Yahoo
Potential record-breaking heat on the way to western Montana
Fisherman are pictured on the Big Hole River near Wise River, Montana. (Jordan Hansen / Daily Montanan) Potentially dangerous and possibly record-breaking warm weather is headed to western Montana this weekend. On Thursday, the National Weather Service Office in Missoula issued a heat advisory from noon to 9 p.m. on Saturday. Temperatures in the upper 80s and 90s are expected for a wide swath of western Montana stretching from the Canadian border down through the Flathead, Missoula and Bitterroot valleys. NWS Meteorologist Jennifer Kitzmiller, based in Missoula, said seeing temperatures in the 90s this early in the year was atypical. Anaconda, Eureka, Libby and Phillipsburg are some of the places that could approach their daily high record mark, if not break it. 'We're looking at setting records for daily high temperatures tomorrow and a lot of places in western Montana,' Kitzmiller said. 'And previous records date back to 1986 … we haven't seen temperatures this warm, this time of year, for like 40 years.' The heat is being driven by a strong ridge of high pressure in the West, according to a NWS national report. Temperatures are expected to dip back down on Sunday. 'It's not going to be hugely different, but it'll cool us back down,' Kitzmiller said. The weather service also issued some recommendations, including drinking plenty of water and staying out of direct sunlight. Warm weather also draws people to bodies of water, especially on a weekend, which can add a degree of danger. May 24 was particularly deadly as a woman drowned near Missoula near Maclay Bridge and a kayaker died near Craig. Additionally, a 68-year old Missoula man last seen on Wednesday is presumed to have drowned near the Lochsa River in Idaho. Lifevests should always be worn when on or in the water, and a close eye should be kept on children. Additionally, alcohol can enhance hypothermia, and cold water can make even experienced swimmers lose muscle control. 'The rivers and streams are still running fast and cold,' Kitzmiller said. 'And there's that extra threat, despite the warm temperatures, for hypothermia.'
Yahoo
8 hours ago
- Climate
- Yahoo
Shoal Creek flooding a north Austin park this week actually wasn't a bad thing; here's why
AUSTIN (KXAN) — Shoal Creek flooded on Wednesday evening when Austin was hit by severe storms that brought damaging winds, large hail, and localized flooding to an approximately 10-mile stretch of town. During the storm, part of Beverly Sheffield Northwest District Park was overtaken by floodwaters from nearby Shoal Creek. But that's not a bad thing; it's actually decades-old flood mitigation plans at work. NWS survey team confirms long-track microburst hit Austin metro According to the city of Austin, Beverly Sheffield Northwest District Park serves a 'dual purpose.' 'During dry weather, the area is a district park. During wet weather, the area holds stormwater to reduce flood risk to properties along Shoal Creek,' the city's website explained. When there's heavy rainfall, once the creek's flow hits a certain threshold, water will enter the park near the tennis courts. As water levels rise in the creek, they rise in the park, and as the amount of water in the creek decreases, the water in the park starts draining through two outflow pipes. One is near the duck pond and the other is near the south parking lot by the baseball field, per the city's website. Austin created a warning system after 1981 Memorial Day flood, here's how it works The dam and detention pond at Beverly Sheffield Northwest District Park were built in 1986 following what Henry Price, a supervising engineer with the Austin Watershed Department, called a devastating flood on Memorial Day in 1981. He explained how the park's flood mitigation works. 'If we were just going to make it simple, after a response to a storm event, you know, the spillway starts engaging when we have about 4,000 cubic feet per second of flow in the creek. And so when you think about a cubic foot per second, if you thought about a basketball, and you had 4,000 basketballs flowing down Shoal Creek every second, that's when water would start coming into the park,' Price explained. 'And we anticipate that that happens, you know, like during the 10-year event, or there's a 10% chance that that happens every year.' That detention pond captures and holds water that would otherwise stay in Shoal Creek and likely flood homes and other structures immediately downstream of the park, Price explained. Price said the park sometimes suffers as a result of mitigating flooding, but the trade-off is that residential areas nearby are spared. 'We had a pretty significant flooding event in 2015 on Memorial Day,' Price said. 'Water came into the park, similar to what we saw this week. There were some of the park facilities that were damaged, but it was pretty minor, and the Parks Department was able to kind of get the park back up online relatively soon after that, but it did help spare the downstream neighborhood [from] having water in their houses and things like that.' 'Wall of water': A look back at catastrophic Memorial Day floods in Austin As far as any damage from this week's flash flooding, Price said the city and the watershed department are still assessing the direct impacts. Ivey Kaiser, executive director of the Shoal Creek Conservancy, said via email that conservancy staff are also still patrolling the creek and assessing the damage. Shoal Creek Conservancy is also hosting volunteer opportunities for anyone wanting to help with cleanup efforts. The city's website notes that the dam and detention pond need 'heavy maintenance' and modernization. Price said that's simply because of its age. 'It's been almost 40 years since the city constructed it, as with any type of civil work project asset, like a road or, you know, storm drain pipe or a sewer pipe, we have to maintain and update those from time to time to make sure that they're as effective as they were when they were first constructed,' he said. Price also talked about an ongoing project that the Watershed department is coordinating with some other city departments to modernize the pond and 'harden the infrastructure [and] address some ongoing issues that we've been having there.' According to the city's website, that project includes the following: Adding overtopping protection to the top of the embankment Repairing erosion that has occurred on the creek side of the embankment Removal of woody vegetation on the embankment Protecting the embankment from erosive foot traffic within the park Reinstalling drainage behind the retaining walls Sealing cracks and joints within all retaining walls Reestablishing positive drainage near the tennis courts Reestablishing positive drainage near the duck pond This story came from a ReportIt story tip. Send your own story ideas to reportit@ or through KXAN's ReportIt page. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
11 hours ago
- Climate
- Yahoo
Goodland National Weather Service office exempt from hiring freeze
WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) — With Kansas in the middle of severe weather season, there has been a lot of concern over staffing cuts at the National Weather Service. Friday morning, U.S. Senator Jerry Moran said he has reassured the Goodland NWS office that it can hire more people. 'The Goodland NWS office is short-staffed and has been unable to fill vacant positions due to the hiring freeze, resulting in the office being closed overnight,' he said on social media. 'I spoke with NWS Director Ken Graham about the impact of these vacancies, and next month he plans to implement a temporary, rotating staff to keep the office open 24/7.' Earlier this year, the Trump administration mandated cuts and a hiring freeze that affected more than 1,000 jobs at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Lawmakers in Washington said the layoffs included NWS meteorologists. National Weather Service staffing impacts Kansas KSN's Chief Meteorologist Lisa Teachman has noticed how the cuts have affected the Goodland office. 'The last couple of weeks, due to the staff shortage, they have not been updating certain products like they did, which is the result of the office being closed overnight,' she said. Despite the staff cuts, Teachman said the Goodland NWS did an incredible job on the tornado warnings the day of the Grinnell and Plevna tornadoes. 'Goodland, Dodge City and Wichita all did fabulous jobs of issuing timely and accurate warnings, even with all the staffing issues as seen here in Goodland,' Teachman said. 'We had no deaths and very few injuries. Considering the number of tornadoes and of EF-3 intensities that day, this was a job well done for Kansans under the 'Weather enterprise,' as I call it, including government, media, emergency management, and other safety support entities. This is a partnership built and grown together over decades.' Moran said the Goodland office can begin hiring meteorologists and weather forecasters. Rainfall amounts across Kansas 'While it will take time to re-open these job applications and hire the needed staff, this is a positive step in returning the Goodland NWS Office to 24/7 weather forecasting,' he said. Hundreds of people have responded to Moran's Facebook post. Many applaud the announcement, but others say that the cuts should never have happened and that all of NOAA's staff and funding should be fully restored. For more Kansas news, click here. Keep up with the latest breaking news by downloading our mobile app and signing up for our news email alerts. Sign up for our Storm Track 3 Weather app by clicking here. To watch our shows live on our website, click here. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
