BRUNSWICK SKYWARN
When severe or tropical weather threatens Brunswick County, the Brunswick County
Skywarn® Emergency Coordinators (ECs) will activate the Skywarn® spotters in
Brunswick County via the GroupMe app. Per the revised spotter reporting procedure
from ILM NWS, the spotters will report to the ECs the weather event information. The
ECs will enter the spotter’s report in the NWS chat system (The NWS system is called
‘SLACK’). This method is currently being used nation-wide by NWS.
This procedure was put in place by NWS and speeds up the reports to NWS, it utilizes
current technology which has proven to be more effective in getting reports into NWS
promptly. Spotters can also self-activate if conditions are warranted in their area. The
Brunswick County ECs are Dean (N4TYS) and David (KN4UKU).
Reporting from the spotters to the ECs can be done using the groupme app as a
primary communication method. This has proven to work well for reporting and
transferring photos.
Also in development is the VARAC HF mode and the Winlink HF mode. Both modes will
use the frequency 10.135 as primary and 7.087 as secondary. The VARAC mode allows
Skywarn® to continue to operate and communicate in the event that all infrastructure
goes down (power, cell towers, internet). As the VARAC and Winlink framework is
currently being developed and deployed, Brunswick Skywarn® will use the groupme
chat room, or a phone call to one of the ECs (as an additional method of reporting to
the ECs as long as those methods are available)
The Brunswick Skywarn® GroupMe chat room (download the GroupMe app for your phone or on a pc www.groupme.com ) Search for Brunswick Skywarn® and ask to join the chat room. Or contact an EC and they will send you a link to join the chat room.
ECs will alert spotters what mode to use at time of activation.
📰 What to report:
What/When/Where (must have this information in your report)
Funnel cloud, tornado, or waterspout
Rain rate 2+ in/hr.
Winds over 40 mph
Damage to buildings and/or trees
Hail of any size (include a photo with a coin laying next it)
Flooding - describe if standing or flowing
Any weather-related injuries or fatalities
🖼️ Photos are encouraged as part of a spotter report.
To join Skywarn®
You must be registered as a spotter with the Wilmington NWS office and have training completed spotter training. To do this, contact one of the Skywarn® coordinators.
CONTACT INFO
N4TYS Dean ☎️910-233-0389
KN4UKU David ☎️910-616-6163
Brunswick County Skywarn works in close synchronization with the National Weather Service (NWS) to provide critical ground-truth verification when severe or tropical weather systems threaten our region.
Skywarn® and the Skywarn® logo are registered trademarks of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, used with permission.