Preparing for Severe WX
It’s that time of year again here in Iowa. Severe weather season is upon us.
I can recall attending tornado spotting classes as a teenager ~25 years ago.
Growing up in Central Iowa (the northern edge of “Tornado Alley�), there’s plenty of reason to keep a mindful eye on the weather from April through July.
For example, here’s a list of things I’ve done or will be doing this spring to get ready for Mother Nature’s worst.
- Storm/Tornado Spotter Training. This year they had a nice Storm Spotter Guide and footage of the EF5 tornado at Parkersburg, Iowa. It’s been several months since I’ve helped with the cleanup of that little tower, but they are still in my thoughts and prayers.
- Buy / install a portable generator. We found a deal on a new 6000 Watt portable generator for $400. 13HP engine, 5000 Watts continuous, 9 hrs of runtime (full load) on 6.6 gallons of gasoline… In an emergency, this generator should keep us going. Last summer, after heavy rains, the power went out for about 5 hours. The sump pumps in our basement didn’t run and we had some water. This year, we’ll be able to power the sump pumps with the generator. It should also work well for Field Day.
- Continued work on ham station lightning protection. More ground rods, etc.
- Field Day. I’m still debating whether I want to make a solo effort in Field Day this year – using the new generator. I have fun with the local club during field day, but as it’s been awhile since I’ve gone solo in Field Day, I’m giving it some thought.
I still have some nice solar panels – but I don’t really have the rest of the equipment to make a full fledged QRP/solar station. I’ll have to think about that one a bit more… for now, it remains in my “someday� list of things to do.
Lots of things going on in my life right now (soccer coach, church board meetings, new Web CRM and Issue Tracking company, etc.) but severe weather won’t wait on me to be ready…
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