Ohio University’s recent tornado-expedited weather notification service was recognized last week with a “StormReady” designation.
The designation, awarded by the National Weather Service, indicates that OU has equipment and trained employees prepared to respond to severe weather.
The StormReady recognition is a victory for OU’s chapter of the American Meteorological Society, which tried for several years to place severe-weather warning radios around campus but received funding to do so only after a tornado swept through Athens county a year ago.
“(The StormReady designation) signifies that we care,” said Kyle Clem, a senior studying meteorology and president of the OU American Meteorological Society chapter. “We’re no longer living with our backs turned to the fact that severe weather won’t happen to us. We now realize that severe weather can happen anywhere, at any time.”
OU’s chapter of the American Meteorological Society oversaw the setup of 20 severe warning radios in high-traffic areas around campus this spring and trained the employees at those areas how to use the radios and to respond in weather-related emergencies.
The radios cost $35.99 each, and the funding for them came from the provost’s office, Clem said.
Officials from the National Weather Service came to OU and tested random areas around campus to see if the emergency equipment was functioning and the staff was trained for emergency responses.
“It was all flawless,” Clem said. “Every weather radio worked. The staffs were perfect. They were all working, and everyone knew what to do.”
OU is one of only three StormReady designated universities in Ohio; the others are Wright State University and Xavier University.
rm279109@ohiou.edu
