NWS Announces That Special Weather Statements and Advisories Won't Be Used Again by 2024

 The National Weather Service today announced that advisories for weather events like wind, flooding, and winter weather will not be used again(exception: Tsunami and Small Craft Advisories), and this also includes special weather statements. This is some really big news to hear since this will change the way weather forecasters predict and the whole system of the NWS forever. In this post, I will be going over:

- Why this is happening

- What will be happening in the future

- My opinion

You can also read the whole document that the NWS made at:

https://www.weather.gov/media/notification/pdf2/pns21-12_haz_simp_headlines.pdf

Why This is Happening:

But why is this happening in the first place? Well, it's because research done by the NWS shows that Advisory headlines cause confusion within the general public, who don't understand the weather alert system that well. The term itself is often misunderstood and is often compared to a Watch(meaning that dangerous weather may be happening soon). This misunderstanding can lead to confusion of the forecast and may hinder the preparation of people trying to get ready for the weather, usually for the worse. The NWS wants to make it more obvious about the weather hazard and wants people to have less confusion and misunderstanding.

What Will Be Happening In the Future:

All of the advisory headlines that are in the NWS' "Watch, Warning, and Advisory" system will be discontinued. Most of them will be replaced with "plain-language headlines" that will be made in an effort to clearly announce and state the nature of the hazard. They will still have the "Valid Time Event Code" (VTEC) as we do right now. All special weather statements will be discontinued, however, they will have a computer-readable VTEC and will be placed in a "What, Where, When, Impacts" type of format. The exact language used in those headlines is yet to be determined but will be determined in the next couple of years. Everything else would be either watches or warnings. Some advisory-level events might become warning or watch criteria. For example, 4-5 inches of snow(still technically advisory level right now) could become a winter storm warning once these changes are implemented.

My Opinion:

My opinion about this decision is that it's good, but I don't agree with implementing this everywhere. Why? First of all, we have been using this system for a very long time; maybe even since the NWS was founded! It is going to take a long time for everyone to get adapted to this whole system, and this will create more confusion. And my worry is that with these "plain-language headlines" that people will have even more confusion! There is already a lot of confusion between watch and warning, and I feel like removing advisories would cause a little bit more confusion. Since I don't have much experience forecasting weather that isn't winter-related, I am not sure how it will work with other weather, but I have enough information about winter weather to make an educated opinion. Winter weather advisories should be there in the DMV. Maybe not for areas like New England and the Midwest, but since our winter-weather events are generally on the smaller side, we should still have advisories, because like I said, people will take it less seriously if there isn't one. I agree with the decision to remove special weather statements though, they don't really do much. Overall, I think it is a good decision, but some changes need to be done to it.

I will be giving more updates to this decision as I get more information. And I know, I haven't been posting too much recently, because of the boring weather pattern. However, winter is not over until its really over. Models are showing an interesting pattern for mid-March. I will make a post on Saturday/Sunday explaining it when I have more details and information. I told everyone that in La Nina winters, something usually comes up in March, even if that winter so far was bad. And well... there you have it! Something came up! Winter isn't over until its TRULY over. Don't throw away the thick, winter coat just yet. The weather will be really nice next week, and some areas could get into the 70's!