MARATHON COUNTY, WI (WSAU-WAOW) — After an EF1 tornado touched down in Marathon County last week, many were wondering just how the tornado warning system is operated in the county.
Bert Nitzke with the South Area Fire and Emergency Response District (SAFER) tells Newsline 9 that firefighters are encouraged to be trained to spot severe weather.
“Most fire departments are encouraged to attend a national weather spotter training that’s held by the National Weather Service each year,” he said. “Sometimes, people watching the sky is a lot more important to the weather service than the radar itself.”
Newsline 9 Meteorologist, Mike Bruenling, says that warnings can only be issued by the National Weather Service in Green Bay.
“I can look out the backdoor of the Channel 9 studios and if I see a tornado, I can come back into the studio and broadcast that I see a tornado. But, I really cannot issue a tornado warning. That’s up to the National Weather Service,” said Bruenling.
Once a warning is issued the National Weather Service can control the sirens for most cities. Some rural areas may have to sound their sirens manually. Wisconsin is set to hold a state-wide tornado warning on Thursday. If there is severe weather on that day, the drill will be moved to Friday.
