Professional Competency Unit (PCU) # 1 - Optimizing Office Strategies
Karl Jungbluth, Producer
NWS Severe Forecasting and Warning Professional Development Series
A Training Series maintained by the
Warning Decision Training Branch
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I. Introduction National Weather Service Best Practices have shown that an organized severe weather operation greatly increases warning program success. The purpose of a Severe Weather Operations Plan (SWOP) is to define severe weather staffing and duty positions, and to obtain consistency in dealing with severe weather. Essential tasks must be accomplished quickly and efficiently during a severe weather event, and none can be overlooked. At the same time, staff must remain flexible and ready to adjust to a changing weather situation and operational demands. Most SWOPs recommend staffing levels based upon the severe weather type, coverage or intensity. Others identify essential duties which are accomplished by a few staff members in light events, or may need to be split amongst several staff members or teams during severe weather outbreaks. In order to be effective, the SWOP must be carried out at each WFO for every severe weather event, and this responsibility falls upon the Shift Supervisor, or Event Coordinator if assigned. It is up to the Shift Supervisor/Event Coordinator's discretion and experience to determine proper staffing levels and to direct the severe weather operation. Most SWOPs recommend that the Shift Supervisor/Event Coordinator not work at any severe weather position which requires, or may require, sustained dedicated attention (such as warning meteorologist, warning/statement writer, radio operator). Again, flexibility is key within this structure. Some staffs and personalities adjust well on the fly, with little need for direction. Others require strong and consistent leadership from the Event Coordinator. It is up to each WFO to determine the approach which works best for them. This web page will provide a basic outline of staffing recommendations as collected from Severe Weather Operations Plans in use throughout the NWS. It will also include suggested duties for the the Event Coordinator, and a recommendation to use sectorized warning operations for major severe weather events. II. Staffing Strategies Staffing strategies must ensure that all essential tasks are accomplished quickly and efficiently throughout a severe weather event. WFOs often accomplish this by combining related tasks into a severe weather “duty” or "position". For small events, the duties are combined and are accomplished by a small number of people. For widespread or significant events, a large number of people are needed to accomplish the duties. Often, each person is assigned to a specific AWIPS workstation, unless the duties do not require use of AWIPS. Rigid workstation assignment is not necessary, however, since AWIPS workstations are interchangeable and for large events, more than one “position” may end up sharing an AWIPS workstation. All duties must be clearly assigned to some severe weather position, no matter how many people are working the event. All staff must know what is expected of their position, and complete all expected duties. Flexibility is needed as well to respond to changing workload, and all changes in responsibility should be clearly communicated amongst the severe weather team, and ideally assigned by the Event Coordinator. Severe Weather Operations Plans must also undergo continuous evaluation to ensure that each position is not unrealistically “overloaded” with duties. A poorly designed staffing strategy, or failure to complete duties, may cause critical elements to be overlooked (for example warning lapses or non-issuance of Severe Weather Statements). A well-written Severe Weather Operations Plan lets all staff know the duties of each position, and provides recommended staffing levels for Shift Supervisors and Event Coordinators. What follows is a listing of essential severe weather tasks as typically grouped at WFOs. These are aligned under a number of severe weather “positions”. This template should be adjusted to meet local needs, and titles can be changed to meet local preference. The positions are shown first for a significant/large/outbreak event when workload is extremely heavy, and all positions will likely need to be staffed to prevent overload and to ensure quality warnings and information flow. To handle small events, these positions are combined. Typical variations to the alignments will follow the template.
Significant, widespread severe weather Event Coordinator - Oversees entire operation, ensures communication and information flow - Allocates resources (staff, workstations) - When multiple warning teams are used (warning area is sectorized), makes sure the respective warning areas are clearly defined. - Maintains situational awareness, adjusts as necessary - Monitors staff for fatigue, ensures duties of positions are being performed - Completes checklists (not specific warning documentation) and ensures that all required actions occur - Primary interface with external groups, including media Warning Meteorologist(s) - Analyzes data from AWIPS and spotters, makes warning decision for assigned warning area - Completes the D2D WarnGen process and sends draft warning/statement to Warning Assistant - Works as a team with a Warning Assistant Warning Assistant(s) - Works as a team with a Warning Meteorologist - Completes warning text from Warning Meteorologist, inserts spotter reports - Creates SVSs using WarnGen, completes statement text and inserts spotter reports - Assists Warning Meteorologist with radar and near-storm environment interpretation - Verbally informs the Communicator of all warnings and statements issued - As time permits, makes outbound calls to solicit reports, give heads up to spotters, EMs, law enforcement, etc. - Sends out severe reports they receive as a Local Storm Report (LSR) Dissemination/Documentation Communicator - Disseminates warnings and watches via NAWAS, metro/state radio - Ensures all warnings and watches are properly disseminated via all other information streams - Completes documentation checklist for all warnings and watches - Conducts briefings on metro/state radio - Assists Report Communicator with answering incoming phone calls, metro/state radio reports Incoming Report Communicator - Primarily responsible for answering phones, 800 Skywarn line, NAWAS, metro/state radio - Assists Dissemination Communicator with dissemination of multiple warnings, briefings - Composes LSR’s, as quickly as time permits, for received severe weather reports Weather Radio - Monitors CRS for proper tone alert and issuance of warnings - Maintains quality broadcast cycle, removes old/duplicate products - May go live HMT - Assists Report Communicator with answering phones - Assists Report Communicator with composing LSRs - Updates WSR-88D environmental and adaptable parameters, changes PRF upon request - Monitors and solicits hydrologic data, issues long-fuse hydrologic products with supervision - Routine duties Severe Weather/Mesoscale Analyst - Monitors mesoscale and near-storm environment and short range trends/forecasts - Briefs warning teams and Short Term Forecaster on current and expected environment - Monitors “big picture” radar trends (acceleration, vortices, deviate motion), briefs warning teams as it relates to near storm environment and warning decision - Utilizes SCAN - Updates HWO as needed Short Term Forecaster - Issues frequent Short Term Forecasts (NOW) providing advance notice and timing of potential severe weather - Issues and clears all watches in coordination with SPC - Updates NDFD grids, text products and aviation products - Assists Severe Weather/Mesoscale Analyst with evaluation of the storm environment Long Term Forecaster - Depending on time of day, issues NDFD grids, text and aviation forecasts, after thorough analysis - Assists all other positions with higher priority duties should the situation warrant Amateur Radio (usually volunteers) - Coordinates communication between Warning teams and Amateur Radio spotters - Receives and records spotter reports from Amateur Radio spotters, passes on to Report Communicator or Warning Assistant - Solicits reports from spotters, or directs spotters to an area, in coordination with Warning teams Flash Flood Warning Team - Should the situation dictate, one or both of the Warning “teams” can be assigned to flash flood duty, or an additional Warning team can be activated - Monitors FFMP, radar rainfall estimates and bucket observations, FFG and NSE - Issues flash flood warnings and statements NOTES/VARIATIONS: - The Event Coordinator is often the Shift Supervisor (Lead Forecaster) as scheduled for that shift, or the Shift Supervisor held over from the previous shift. - Some offices combine the duties of the Event Coordinator with those of the Dissemination/Documentation Communicator, as it is defined here. This works well for routine severe weather, but is not recommended during outbreak events when dissemination/documentation workload is very heavy and the need for situational awareness could go unanswered. - It is recommended that critical duties, such as answering phones, be assigned to only 1 or 2 positions. If the duty is listed under too many positions, too many staff may become engrossed in one duty, leaving other critical tasks undone. - The way that WFOs divide up warning and statement (SVS) duty varies quite a bit. • In some, the Warning Meteorologist draws up all warnings and SVSs for their assigned area using WarnGen, and may even type the text as well. - These offices tend to “sectorize” their warning area frequently, dividing up the real estate to prevent overload on the Warning Meteorologist. Advantage: Warnings and SVSs are issued by a person or team familiar with all details of their assigned area. Disadvantage: With a high warning volume, overload may occur and SVSs may not get issued. Disadvantage: Time must be spent tracking SVSs, and using WarnGen to draw up SVSs, time that may be better spent scouring meteorological/radar data and evaluating storm structure. • Like the plan detailed above, some WFOs operate with warning teams responsible for all or part of their CWA. The Warning Meteorologist uses WarnGen to generate warnings only, and the Warning Assistant uses WarnGen to draw up SVSs. The Assistant finishes off the text and inserts spotter reports into the text for both warnings and SVSs. Advantage: Warnings and SVSs are issued by a team familiar with all details of their assigned area, and the Warning Meteorologist is freed from SVS duties to spend more time on meteorological data/radar interrogation. Disadvantage: Workstation real estate. Warning Assistant must have access to D2D and WarnGen in order to draw up SVSs. • Other offices totally separate the warning and statement functions. - The Warning Meteorologist, possibly with an assistant, draws up and issues the text for all warnings in the assigned area. - Statements (SVSs) are generated by the “Statement” position, at another workstation. Advantage: Warning Meteorologist is free to focus upon warning decision. Advantage: May require less sectorizing, cleaner operation. Disadvantage: More difficult for Statement Writer and Warning Meteorologist to communicate on storm characteristics, for example whether the storm is still severe and whether the warning will be reissued. Disadvantage: Statement Writer needs a workstation, preferably in close proximity to Warning Meteorologist. Isolated significant severe weather, somewhat widespread marginal severe weather Event Coordinator/Mesoscale Analyst - Combine the duties of these two positions to preserve situational awareness and keep tabs on the near-storm environment Warning Meteorologist(s) - May employ two warning teams Warning Assistant(s) HMT/Weather Radio - Combine the duties of these two positions Communicator - Combine all dissemination, documentation, phone and radio answering - For larger events, separate Dissemination/Documentation Communicators and Incoming Report Communicators should be maintained Short Term Forecaster Amateur Radio Organized convection, but no widespread or significant severe weather Warning Meteorologist - Combine the duties of Warning Meteorologist and Warning Assistant - Draws up all warnings and SVSs in WarnGen, completes text - Outgoing calls duty shifted to Communicator Communicator - Combine all dissemination, documentation, phone and radio answering - Combine duties of Dissemination/Documentation Communicators and Incoming Report Communicators - Makes outbound calls to solicit reports, give heads up to spotters, EMs, law enforcement, etc. HMT/Weather Radio - Combine the duties of these two positions - Assist Communicator by receiving or making phone calls Short Term Forecaster/Mesoscale Analyst - Combine the duties of these two positions - Usually would also assume the role of Event Coordinator/Shift Supervisor unless delegated Amateur Radio III. SECTORIZED WARNING OPERATIONS A sectorized warning operation, where warning responsibilities are divided up amongst one, two or three warning meteorologists, is highly recommended when: 1) Severe weather is widespread across the CWA. This allows the warning meteorologist to focus on a smaller number of storms and avoid information overload. 2) Significant severe weather is occurring. This allows one warning meteorologist to focus all of their attention upon one or a few particularly dangerous storms. Another meteorologist assures that warning service continues for other storms. 3) When convective types vary geographically across the CWA, for example flash flooding north of a boundary and isolated HP supercells along and near the boundary. This allows each warning meteorologist to specialize on their storm type for the given day. Sectorization can occur: 1) Geographically, for example north half of CWA and south half of CWA 2) By storm or storms. One warning meteorologist takes the tornadic supercell, while another takes the rest of the CWA. 3) By storm type. One forecaster takes the elevated convection over the northeast 3/4th of the CWA, the other takes the more surface-based convection to the southwest. Sectorization requires communication!!! - Warning forecasters need to know precisely which counties and/or which storms they are responsible for. A lapse in communication could result in a lapse in warning service, missed warnings, late warnings or storms left unmonitored. - Responsibility for sector coordination rests with the Event Coordinator, with cooperation and communication amongst the warning meteorologists and teams. - All staff need to be aware of the warning sectors so that severe weather reports can be directed efficiently to the proper warning team, and reports aren’t “dropped” because they were delivered to the wrong team. Sectorized warning operations can directly enhance warning service and should be incorporated into every Severe Weather Operations Plan. Storms that are most life threatening can receive the highest, undivided attention thereby increasing warning quality and SVS frequency and specificity. Other potentially severe storms can also be closely monitored by a second meteorologist operating without the burden of additional storms. IV. Examples of Operations Area Floor Plans Like a kitchen, a WFO operations area must be designed to handle several functions at one time. The day-to-day operational layout must be comfortable and efficient. The severe weather operational layout must enable efficient within-office communication, while accommodating a large number of people, and day-to-day operations. Traffic flow and “work triangles” come into play. The following factors should be considered when designing a WFO Operations Area: 1) Enhance functionality for the Severe Weather Operation first 2) Communication flow is essential to the design of the operations area - The layout must optimize information flow during severe weather: a) Into the office b) Around the office (from the person taking the report to the warning meteorologist and others making critical decisions) c) Back out of the office 3) Spacing. Can the layout accommodate 10 people working at once? - Task areas should be sufficiently close to allow continuous communication, but not so close that people are talking over each other, or so far apart that people are shouting across the room. 4) Traffic flow. People performing essential tasks should not be interrupted by others walking or talking. 5) An L-shaped workstation is the most comfortable for day-to-day use, allowing people to access more than one CRT and keyboard efficiently. 6) Open desktop space is important, especially in day-to-day work areas and where severe weather reports are being logged. 7) The day-to-day operational “triangle” should include the workstations for the long-term forecaster, short-term forecaster and HMT position. These should be close enough to encourage communication, but far enough apart for personal space. 8) The severe weather triangle, oval or square should include two warning workstations, a place to receive and log reports, document warning dissemination, and also should probably include a spot for amateur radio. 9) Combining the two operational zones into an efficient operational area is a tricky task.
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