A program, that began in the amateur radio community in Windsor 30 years ago, continues to provide critical advance warning of severe weather.
Environment Canada meteorologist Geoff Coulson was at the Sarnia Yacht Club Thursday night to kick off a series of CANWARN training sessions across the province.
Coulson says CANWARN is a network of volunteers that provides on the ground eyewitness weather information to assist forecasters.
"Really what we're talking about at the CANWARN training is very specific types of severe weather, certainly when damage is starting to occur," says Coulson. "And when people identify, either through social media, email or the special phone line we use for these spotters as being CANWARN trained, it's giving the reports more credibility."
Coulson says amateur radio is still a big part of the network, but emergency responders and the general public are becoming increasingly interested in weather and helping to protect their communities.
The training emphasizes safety with program members being told they're storm spotters, not chasers.
Coulson says there are tornadoes each year, but the signature severe weather event in 2017 was the massive flash flooding in Essex County in August, caused by slow-moving thunderstorms.
Lightning, however, is always the greatest threat.
We're advised to go indoors when thunder roars.
