Posted by: Jim Stefkovich, Meteorologist, Birmingham, Ala. National Weather Service

When the majority of your entire 30+ year career stretches between Georgia and Texas, you unfortunately see a lot of damage, destruction and death from severe weather.  You see so much of it that it can become numbing, humbling and saddening.

Still, nothing prepared me and National Weather Service (NWS) Birmingham for the events of April, 2011 and the weeks that followed.  The story actually begins on April 15, 2011, when 45 tornadoes occurred across Alabama along with 7 fatalities.  As a state, we all were still recovering when we realized a major and devastating outbreak of tornadoes would occur during the last week of April.

For almost a week prior to April 27th, NWS Birmingham, as well as other NWS offices, predicted this significant weather event, and by April 25th, provided numerous products and services forecasting the potential for several waves of severe weather, including violent, long-track tornadoes.  Some of these services included working with local TV stations and conducting radio interviews, numerous Emergency Management briefings on the statewide 800 MHz radio system, and providing high impact web graphics and multimedia presentations.

Within the office, plans were made to provide extra staffing on the 27th from 4 AM through the end of the event, as well as provisions for storm damage survey teams in the days after the event. The office electronics staff and Information Technology Officer (ITO) were also scheduled strategically to ensure any problems with communications or computer systems could be addressed and resolved as quickly as possible.

As a result, prior to the most intense activity on the afternoon of April 27th, key decision makers and the general public alike were alerted to the potential for a significant severe weather outbreak.  Based on information and forecasts provided by our office, numerous schools across the County Warning Area were either closed for the day or closed early, and Government agencies and businesses closed early.  By mid-morning, Governor Bentley signed a declaration of emergency in anticipation of the expected outbreak, and the Alabama State Emergency Operations Center was activated at the same level as a landfalling hurricane.

Shortly after midnight on the 27^th, the first of three waves of tornadic storms occurred.  Another wave around noon.  Then the final wave during the late afternoon into the late evening.  Almost 20 straight hours of severe weather with 62 tornadoes.  Over 250 souls lost, with hundreds more injured.  Incredible, widespread damage.  109 total tornadoes in April alone, which exceeded the all-time record for an entire year!

At the NWS Birmingham office, everyone knew the stakes on April 27^th.   We were focused and driven to put out the best warning and additional information to everyone.  As the third wave unfolded and it became apparent that multiple tornadoes were on the ground and people were dying because of them, some of the staff were overwhelmed with emotion and needed to be relieved for a few minutes to regain composure.  And, they did.  We became even more focused until the entire event ended.

For months after April 2011, before every severe weather event, numerous people would ask how the upcoming event would compare to the 27^th.  I told them that comparisons were impossible, but just one straight line wind event, one tornado or one flash flood causing death and destruction is their and your April 27^th.

You see, we at the National Weather take our role of providing life-saving information very seriously.  I get great satisfaction knowing I helped someone, and am greatly saddened when people don’t bother or care to know about impending danger. Our best forecasts and warnings mean nothing if YOU don’t do something with this information.  So, please join us.  Take this week to learn about the threats.  Learn how to receive hazardous weather alerts and updates.  Finally, develop a plan to protect yourself and others before hazardous weather strikes.  The life you save may be your own!

Posted by: Scott Hart, Neighborhood Emergency Response Team, Rowlett, Texas

Early last April, North Texas was hit by serious thunderstorms and tornadoes. A single line of storm cells with tornadoes triggered extreme damage across at least 4 counties. In Lancaster, in southern Dallas County, far more than 300 houses have been broken by the tornadoes.&nbsp Regional resources were rapidly overwhelmed. Neighborhood Emergency Response Teams (CERT) from the North Central Texas Region responded to the contact for added aid.

Rowlett sent a team that consisted of both CERT volunteers and youth members of Rowlett Explorer Post A single (Post One includes members of a youth program chartered by way of Boy Scouts of America’s Finding out for Life Applications). The team went door to door, operating with residents to identify debris that required to be moved. Right after they identified the debris, the teams assisted in moving the debris to the street, which permitted City crews to promptly eliminate it.

CAPTION: Rowlett, Texas, April five, 2011 — Volunteers from the Rowlett Neighborhood Emergency Response Group and Explorer Post One get rid of tornado debris.&nbsp Explorer Post One particular is a youth system chartered via Boy Scouts of America’s Understanding for Life Applications that receives disaster response instruction.

Rowlett CERT and Explorer Post A single contributed around 345 service hours in help of the Rockwall County and City of Lancaster tornado responses.

The City of Lancaster expressed their appreciation stating,

The success of this CERT callout validates the value of our CERT programs and regional partnerships. Please pass along this appreciation to your CERT members.&nbsp

Responding to a community’s want is nothing at all new for Rowlett’s Explorer Post One. The post is closely aligned with FEMA’s new direction to develop upon the Teen CERT program. Members have been trained to help offer vital help by giving immediate help to survivors, supplying damage assessment information and organizing other volunteers at a disaster internet site. Even so, in contrast to most Teen CERT programs, the Rowlett Explorer system training goes far beyond the college atmosphere and standard education. Member education consists of CERT, Amateur Radio, CPR/AED/First Aid, climbing, rappelling, ropes/knots, National Association of Search and Rescue coaching, National Incident Management System courses, Incident Command, and other skills.

More than the past three years, the Post has contributed practically three,900 service hours in education, meetings and help.&nbsp But much more essential than the quantity of hours is the good instance of emergency preparedness the Post sets day in and day out.&nbsp The Explorer Post develops character, self-self-confidence and leadership that is central to the objective of the program. In addition to supporting emergency responders during a disaster, the Explorer system builds strong functioning relationships between emergency responders and the communities they serve. These relationships are crucial simply because effectively responding to emergencies and severe climate needs a group work – created up of the individuals, families, neighborhood leaders, organizations and businesses in each and every regional neighborhood.

The more we train our youth in these critical locations, the much better prepared our neighborhood becomes with dealing with uncommon conditions. We are not only instruction our youth in disaster preparedness, we are preparing tomorrow’s leaders. There is no greater instance of that than Rowlett Explorer Post A single, and I encourage your neighborhood to look at how you can get youth involved in disaster preparedness.

Thanks for reading and letting me share how we are a force of nature in Rowlett!

Editor’s note: This was originally posted on the U.S. Dept. of Labor Blog.

No television image or news report can prepare you for this.

Families without power—unable to shower or wash their clothes for days—huddled together in churches serving as “warming centers” to provide refuge from the stinging cold outside…

Secretary Solis toured a hard hit area of Queens where flood waters and sand took their toll on the neighborhood.

Mounds of displaced sand plowed two stories high in residential neighborhoods, so homeowners could finally get through their front door to survey the damage inside…

Mothers with shopping baskets, and dads holding plastic bags, sifting through donation boxes at makeshift relief centers to find food and clothing to keep their children nourished and warm….

Wine sellers, florists, glass etchers, caterers, printers and other merchants surveying the wreckage of their small businesses, navigating knee-high dirty water to strip off drywall before dangerous mold forms, spreads and creates a health risk….

I spent yesterday in Brooklyn and Queens because the federal government has a responsibility here. It’s not enough to just send our thoughts and prayers.

Secretary Solis chats with a small child while his family collects needed food and clothing supplies.

President Obama told every member of his cabinet to work quickly to deliver critical aid wherever it’s needed. That’s why I exercised my discretion and approved $27.8 million under our National Emergency Grant program to fund 1,400 temporary jobs for New Yorkers to assist with clean-up efforts in the five boroughs. We cut the red tape and approved the funding less than 24 hours after it was requested.

I also approved $15.6 million for cleanup crews in New Jersey and $1.5 million for Rhode Island. As additional requests for assistance come in to the Department of Labor, they will be handled immediately. We also are providing emergency disaster unemployment insurance to affected workers who may not normally qualify, such as part-time and new workers.

During a visit at the Queens Workforce 1 Career Center (One Stop), Secretary Solis met with community leaders and Congressman Gregory W. Meeks to discuss grants to hire workers for clean up efforts.

There has been enough suffering, so we’re communicating the safety precautions for clean-up workers to take as they rebuild. They should assume all power lines are live, and act with appropriate caution. And they should wear hard hats, shoes and reflective vests, and follow proper safety procedures when using ladders, cutting down trees and working near other hazards. The Labor Department’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration officials are on the ground in all of the affected areas, providing training and educational materials so crews stay safe as they restore electricity, demolish structures, clear debris and repair infrastructure.

Even in the face of so much adversity, I also saw many scenes yesterday that left me inspired. I saw that rough-and-tumble New Yorker stereotype give way to countless demonstrations of kindness and sacrifice. I saw people more concerned about their neighbors than themselves.  They were standing elbow to elbow in food lines. They knew there was a finite amount of food, but they waited patiently. No one pushed or jostled. In fact, I saw people at the front of the line passing sandwiches back to the people behind them.

Make the Road New York, one of the groups visited by Secretary Solis has been collecting and distributing donations.

As always, the faith community sprang into action: At Blessed Virgin Mary Parish in Brooklyn, a priest who looked like he hadn’t slept in days delivered comfort to people of every race, religion and background. “I’m going to pray for your strength,” I heard him say. St. Francis de Sales Catholic Church in Queens welcomed Jewish congregants so they could hold Sabbath services Friday night after their temple had been damaged in the storm.

I saw FEMA crews working side by side with state and local officials. Instead of turf wars or acrimony, there was a clear sense of shared purpose. I saw businesses like Lowe’s on sight with hundreds of buckets to help with debris removal. Relief workers brought canned goods. Local grocers supplied fresh fruit and sandwiches. As I was leaving, I saw the Army Corps of Engineers bringing in generators to provide power and warmth.

I will never forget the people I met or the unlikely scenes of hope that transpired in the midst of so much hardship and loss.  Long after the camera crews are gone, the rebuilding will continue. This government—and this department—will be there until the work is complete. In times like this, we are one.