Severe Weather Watch & Warning

lthough they’ve been few and far between, there have been some signs of the season ahead, including warm temperatures and a few thunderstorms on the South Plains. These signs point to the spring season which means: THUNDERSTORMS. They can appear like big cauliflowerlooking clouds or dark blue/grey and can produce heavy rain, intense lightning along with hail, and even tornadoes.

Over the next few months, you’ll hear and see the terms Watches and Warnings. Storms are limited in March but increase in April through May and peak by mid-June.

Watch and Warning is common terms in storm season. There is a very important difference between the two. A WATCH means literally ‘watching’ for storms to develop. Watches are usually issued for a 4 to

A6-hour period, alerting you of storms that may produce large hail and high winds that lead to tornadoes. There are two types of Watches: Thunderstorms and Tornado. A Tornado Watch means an unstable atmosphere that favors the development of tornadoes from thunderstorms.

There are also two types of Warnings: Thunderstorms and Tornado. A Thunderstorm Warning is issued when ‘severe’ weather is imminent or occurring because the storm is or could produce hail larger than ¾ inch and winds at or above 58 mph. Most Warnings are issued by the Lubbock National Weather service office. While the storm may be very intense and produce small hail and winds of 50 mph it must either produce or have a strong potential to produce the wind and hail criteria that are classified as ‘severe’.

A Tornado Warning is issued when a funnel cloud or tornado is sighted by emergency personnel or Doppler radar indicates that a tornado is or has developed from a thunderstorm. Tornado warnings are usually 30-45 minutes in length, depending on the thunderstorm.