Weather Flash: What do the various severe weather warnings mean?

Brittany Ward
·2 min read
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WASHINGTON (DC News Now) — The winter season is slowly coming to an end, and with that, spring will be knocking at our door.

As warmer temperatures rolls, so does more chances for severe weather.

During the warmer months, on active weather days, you often hear meteorologists say a “severe thunderstorm watch has been issued” or “the National Weather issued a tornado warning for these locations.” But what is the difference between a watch and a warning?

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Let’s start with a tornado watch. When a tornado watch is issued, that means there is a possibility that a tornado could happen.

When the National Weather Service issues a watch, there are a few things that you want to make sure you do to keep you and your love ones safe:

  • Make sure you are prepared.

  • Know your emergency plan, meaning you must know you need to go in order to stay safe if a tornado were to pass through

  • Stay away from windows and doors

  • Make sure you have all of your electronics charged so that way you can have ways to get the last weather updates and know when it is safe

  • Make sure that your emergency kit is somewhere close by to you

Now, when a tornado warning is issued, you should go and take cover immediately. That means to head to your safe place and act on your emergency plan. When a warning is in effect that means a funnel was spotted or a tornado indicated on the radar.

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According to the National Weather Service, a severe thunderstorm watch is issued when storms are likely to turn severe. It is important for you to stay aware of the changing weather. Severe thunderstorm watches tend to cover a large area.

When the National Weather Severe issues a severe thunderstorm warning, it is time for you to take action and find shelter. When radar or trained weather spotters indicate a severe storm, this could mean the storm could produce hail, strong winds and possibly a tornado. Warnings tend to cover a smaller area.

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