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First Alert Doppler - Part IV
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Source: KOAA
First Alert Doppler: Get the Early Warning
Part IV - "Saving Lives"
Within six months of WLEX-TV building their own live Doppler radar, an F3 tornado ripped through the city of Lexington, Kentucky - the biggest tornado to ever hit the city.
Before the storm produced the tornado, Chief Meteorologist Bill Meck was able to warn people in specific neighborhoods to seek shelter - because of the live Doppler. He tracked the storm all the way through the area; WLEX-TV was the only station to provide any coverage.
"A National Weather Service radar, by its design, does not see things that are live. And, in fact, with our specific tornado instance, it was not really seen ever by the National Weather Service radar," says Meck.
The other TV stations, who still rely completely on National Weather Service radar, never broke into programming and never warned viewers of the tornado. "While we were on telling folks about the damage already being done, they were watching CSI," Meck says of the other stations.
Of his live Doppler, he adds "It's an important tool. It's one that we use on a daily basis, even when the weather is not severe. And we also do coordinate with the National Weather Service to make sure they get the information that we see on our live radar that they can't."
When you click the "Watch Video" button on the right, you'll launch a 2:40 video telling the story of Lexington's F3 tornado, showing the damage, and emphasizing the life-saving potential of truly live radar.
Click here to go to Part I - "Get the Early Warning" with Mike Madson.
Click here to go to Part II - "Truly Live" with Mike Daniels.
Click here to go to Part III - "How It Works" with Craig Eliot.
