Severe Weather and Amateur Radio Field Day Coordination Message #3 – Friday Evening 6/23/17-Saturday PM 6/24/17 Severe Weather & Heavy Rainfall Potential

Hello to all..

..The following is the third in a series of messages on Amateur Radio Field Day Weekend and providing information on the weather during this period. This is a tradition spanning over 15 years for Amateur Radio Operators involved with Field Day and the NWS Taunton SKYWARN Program..
..Severe Thunderstorms impacted portions of Middlesex and Essex County Massachusetts with damage to trees and power lines from high winds and damage from lightning strikes. Several Amateur Radio Field Day sites in these areas had to take cover from these severe thunderstorms..
..Thunderstorms with heavy rainfall and frequent lightning are likely to continue across much of the NWS Taunton coverage area Friday Evening into early Saturday Afternoon. There remains the potential for isolated strong to severe thunderstorms in these areas with a strong to damaging wind and hail risk as well and the Storm Prediction Center (SPC) has continued Western and Central Massachusetts and North-Central Connecticut in a marginal risk for severe weather and expanded that into Northeast Massachusetts..
..Amateur Radio Field Day Weekend is an annual event where Ham Operators across the United States setup at Emergency Operations Centers, field locations, home locations etc. to operate and test their equipment and skills and make as many radio contacts as possible during the weekend. Many locations can be visited by the public and Amateur Radio Field Day can be a form of outreach to Ham and non-Ham Operators. It is also noted that several states have given proclamations to Amateur Radio/Ham Radio Operators for either an ‘Amateur Radio Day or Amateur Radio Week’ during the month of June or an ‘Amateur Radio Month’ for this month. It is both a fun/preparatory event for Ham Radio Operators for Emergency Communications scenarios..
..SKYWARN Self-Activation is likely with Ops at NWS Taunton possible tonight through early Saturday Afternoon for isolated severe weather, thunderstorm and flood potential in the region. NWS Taunton Lightning Safety Awareness Week information, as this year’s Amateur Radio Field Day weekend is coinciding with that awareness week, can be found near the bottom of this coordination message..

Severe Thunderstorms impacted portions of Middlesex and Essex County Massachusetts with damage to trees and power lines from high winds and damage from lightning strikes. Several Amateur Radio Field Day sites in these areas had to take cover from these severe thunderstorms as the clearing and heating of the day allowed for instability to take advantage of sufficiently strong wind shear profiles despite other limiting severe weather factors to cause a cluster of severe thunderstorms in interior Northeast Massachusetts. The NWS Taunton Local Storm Report, the WX1BOX Amateur Radio log of storm events recorded and the WX1BOX Facebook Photo Album of damage photos can be seen at the following links:

NWS Taunton Local Storm Report:
http://kamala.cod.edu/offs/KBOX/1706232022.nwus51.html

WX1BOX Amateur Radio Report Log:
http://beta.wx1box.org/local/reports_6_23_17.txt

NWS Taunton Facebook Album:
https://www.facebook.com/pg/wx1box/photos/?tab=album&album_id=1605848489449163

There are a large number of Amateur Radio Field Day sites across the NWS Taunton Coverage Area and adjacent NWS Coverage Areas. Here are some links to information on these Amateur Radio Field Day Sites from across the region:

Amateur Radio Field Day Information: http://www.arrl.org/field-day
Amateur Radio Field Day National Locator: http://www.arrl.org/field-day-locator
Eastern Massachusetts Field Day Home Page: http://fd.ema.arrl.org/

The commonwealth of Massachusetts has declared Saturday June 24th, 2017 Amateur Radio Day in honor of the ARRL Field Day event. The details can be seen at this link:
http://ema.arrl.org/node/2241

As of 700 PM EDT Friday Evening, the radar was quiet over Southern New England. Expanding the radar view out to New York and the Mid-Atlantic states, shower and thunderstorm activity was scattered across portions of Western, Central and Southeast New York and into Northern Pennsylvania and Northern New Jersey. This activity will move into Southern New England later this evening and overnight Friday through Saturday Morning and possibly extend through early afternoon. Heavy rainfall and frequent lightning are the main threats with thunderstorms and heavy downpours organizing and moving into the area but an isolated severe thunderstorm risk remains across much of interior Southern New England with a strong to damaging wind risk and possibly hail. SPC has continued the marginal risk across portions of interior Southern New England and expanded it into Northeast Massachusetts in the last update. Any Field day sites camping out overnight or looking to setup Saturday Morning should continue to monitor forecasts and warnings as there will remain the risk for lightning in any thunderstorms and an isolated severe thunderstorm risk with strong to damaging winds and hail as well. There is a slight chance for a more general heavy rainfall with embedded thunderstorms over the area during the overnight into early Saturday Afternoon timeframe but current expectations are for more scattered activity with heavy rainfall in isolated to scattered locations based on the current setup and this will be watched closely.

SKYWARN Self-Activation is likely with Ops at NWS Taunton possible tonight through early Saturday Afternoon for isolated severe weather, thunderstorm and flood potential in the region. Below are links to the Storm Prediction Center (SPC) Day-1 Convective Outlook, NWS Taunton Hazardous Weather Outlook and NWS Taunton Experimental Enhanced Hazardous Weather Outlook:

SPC Day-1 Convective Outlook:
http://www.spc.noaa.gov/products/outlook/day1otlk.html

NWS Taunton Hazardous Weather Outlook:
http://kamala.cod.edu/ma/latest.flus41.KBOX.html

NWS Taunton Experimental Enhanced Hazardous Weather Outlook:
https://www.weather.gov/box/ehwo

Amateur Radio Field Day sites are still encouraged to bring a NOAA All-Hazards Weather Radio, monitor various cell phone weather apps where Amateur Operators may have those available and have a dedicated Ham Radio that can monitor their local SKYWARN Frequency for their area as a best safety and preparedness practice. Also sites that have mobile Internet capability can utilize that capability as a way to monitor for weather information. With Mobile Internet capability, utilizing Echolink to monitor the New England Reflector system on Echolink Conference *NEW-ENG3* Node: 9123/IRLP 9123 would be helpful as well. Please see the link below for the latest SKYWARN Frequency information for the region:
http://beta.wx1box.org/node/37

During setup and takedown of Amateur Radio Field Day sites and even while operating, be sure to drink plenty of fluids and eat accordingly. Also having a jacket or sweatshirt during evenings as conditions cool etc. may also be useful while operating this year’s Field Day. The link below features information on Heat Safety:
http://www.nws.noaa.gov/os/heat/index.shtml

This year’s Amateur Radio Field Day weekend is coinciding with Lightning Safety Awareness Week and NWS Taunton is issuing Public Information Statements on Lightning Safety. Lightning Safety tips and information can be seen at the following link:
http://beta.wx1box.org/local/lightning_safety_awareness_PNS_6_23_17.txt

The next complete Severe Weather/Amateur Radio Field Day coordination message will be posted by 1000 AM Saturday Morning. A shortened coordination message regarding Ops at NWS Taunton will be issued if time allows and Ops at NWS Taunton are necessary.

Respectfully Submitted,

Robert Macedo (KD1CY)
ARES SKYWARN Coordinator
Eastern Massachusetts ARES Assistant Section Emergency Coordinator
Home Phone #: (508) 994-1875 (After 6 PM)
Home/Data #: (508) 997-4503 (After 6 PM)
Work Phone #: 508-346-2929 (8 AM-5 PM)
Email Address: rmacedo@rcn.com
http://ares.ema.arrl.org
http://beta.wx1box.org
Like us on Facebook – http://www.facebook.com/wx1box
Follow us on Twitter – http://twitter.com/wx1box

Hello to all..

..The following is the third in a series of messages on Amateur Radio Field Day Weekend and providing information on the weather during this period. This is a tradition spanning over 15 years for Amateur Radio Operators involved with Field Day and the NWS Taunton SKYWARN Program..
..Severe Thunderstorms impacted portions of Middlesex and Essex County Massachusetts with damage to trees and power lines from high winds and damage from lightning strikes. Several Amateur Radio Field Day sites in these areas had to take cover from these severe thunderstorms..
..Thunderstorms with heavy rainfall and frequent lightning are likely to continue across much of the NWS Taunton coverage area Friday Evening into early Saturday Afternoon. There remains the potential for isolated strong to severe thunderstorms in these areas with a strong to damaging wind and hail risk as well and the Storm Prediction Center (SPC) has continued Western and Central Massachusetts and North-Central Connecticut in a marginal risk for severe weather and expanded that into Northeast Massachusetts..
..Amateur Radio Field Day Weekend is an annual event where Ham Operators across the United States setup at Emergency Operations Centers, field locations, home locations etc. to operate and test their equipment and skills and make as many radio contacts as possible during the weekend. Many locations can be visited by the public and Amateur Radio Field Day can be a form of outreach to Ham and non-Ham Operators. It is also noted that several states have given proclamations to Amateur Radio/Ham Radio Operators for either an ‘Amateur Radio Day or Amateur Radio Week’ during the month of June or an ‘Amateur Radio Month’ for this month. It is both a fun/preparatory event for Ham Radio Operators for Emergency Communications scenarios..
..SKYWARN Self-Activation is likely with Ops at NWS Taunton possible tonight through early Saturday Afternoon for isolated severe weather, thunderstorm and flood potential in the region. NWS Taunton Lightning Safety Awareness Week information, as this year’s Amateur Radio Field Day weekend is coinciding with that awareness week, can be found near the bottom of this coordination message..

Severe Thunderstorms impacted portions of Middlesex and Essex County Massachusetts with damage to trees and power lines from high winds and damage from lightning strikes. Several Amateur Radio Field Day sites in these areas had to take cover from these severe thunderstorms as the clearing and heating of the day allowed for instability to take advantage of sufficiently strong wind shear profiles despite other limiting severe weather factors to cause a cluster of severe thunderstorms in interior Northeast Massachusetts. The NWS Taunton Local Storm Report, the WX1BOX Amateur Radio log of storm events recorded and the WX1BOX Facebook Photo Album of damage photos can be seen at the following links:

NWS Taunton Local Storm Report:
http://kamala.cod.edu/offs/KBOX/1706232022.nwus51.html

WX1BOX Amateur Radio Report Log:
http://beta.wx1box.org/local/reports_6_23_17.txt

NWS Taunton Facebook Album:
https://www.facebook.com/pg/wx1box/photos/?tab=album&album_id=1605848489449163

There are a large number of Amateur Radio Field Day sites across the NWS Taunton Coverage Area and adjacent NWS Coverage Areas. Here are some links to information on these Amateur Radio Field Day Sites from across the region:

Amateur Radio Field Day Information: http://www.arrl.org/field-day
Amateur Radio Field Day National Locator: http://www.arrl.org/field-day-locator
Eastern Massachusetts Field Day Home Page: http://fd.ema.arrl.org/

The commonwealth of Massachusetts has declared Saturday June 24th, 2017 Amateur Radio Day in honor of the ARRL Field Day event. The details can be seen at this link:
http://ema.arrl.org/node/2241

As of 700 PM EDT Friday Evening, the radar was quiet over Southern New England. Expanding the radar view out to New York and the Mid-Atlantic states, shower and thunderstorm activity was scattered across portions of Western, Central and Southeast New York and into Northern Pennsylvania and Northern New Jersey. This activity will move into Southern New England later this evening and overnight Friday through Saturday Morning and possibly extend through early afternoon. Heavy rainfall and frequent lightning are the main threats with thunderstorms and heavy downpours organizing and moving into the area but an isolated severe thunderstorm risk remains across much of interior Southern New England with a strong to damaging wind risk and possibly hail. SPC has continued the marginal risk across portions of interior Southern New England and expanded it into Northeast Massachusetts in the last update. Any Field day sites camping out overnight or looking to setup Saturday Morning should continue to monitor forecasts and warnings as there will remain the risk for lightning in any thunderstorms and an isolated severe thunderstorm risk with strong to damaging winds and hail as well. There is a slight chance for a more general heavy rainfall with embedded thunderstorms over the area during the overnight into early Saturday Afternoon timeframe but current expectations are for more scattered activity with heavy rainfall in isolated to scattered locations based on the current setup and this will be watched closely.

SKYWARN Self-Activation is likely with Ops at NWS Taunton possible tonight through early Saturday Afternoon for isolated severe weather, thunderstorm and flood potential in the region. Below are links to the Storm Prediction Center (SPC) Day-1 Convective Outlook, NWS Taunton Hazardous Weather Outlook and NWS Taunton Experimental Enhanced Hazardous Weather Outlook:

SPC Day-1 Convective Outlook:
http://www.spc.noaa.gov/products/outlook/day1otlk.html

NWS Taunton Hazardous Weather Outlook:
http://kamala.cod.edu/ma/latest.flus41.KBOX.html

NWS Taunton Experimental Enhanced Hazardous Weather Outlook:
https://www.weather.gov/box/ehwo

Amateur Radio Field Day sites are still encouraged to bring a NOAA All-Hazards Weather Radio, monitor various cell phone weather apps where Amateur Operators may have those available and have a dedicated Ham Radio that can monitor their local SKYWARN Frequency for their area as a best safety and preparedness practice. Also sites that have mobile Internet capability can utilize that capability as a way to monitor for weather information. With Mobile Internet capability, utilizing Echolink to monitor the New England Reflector system on Echolink Conference *NEW-ENG3* Node: 9123/IRLP 9123 would be helpful as well. Please see the link below for the latest SKYWARN Frequency information for the region:
http://beta.wx1box.org/node/37

During setup and takedown of Amateur Radio Field Day sites and even while operating, be sure to drink plenty of fluids and eat accordingly. Also having a jacket or sweatshirt during evenings as conditions cool etc. may also be useful while operating this year’s Field Day. The link below features information on Heat Safety:
http://www.nws.noaa.gov/os/heat/index.shtml

This year’s Amateur Radio Field Day weekend is coinciding with Lightning Safety Awareness Week and NWS Taunton is issuing Public Information Statements on Lightning Safety. Lightning Safety tips and information can be seen at the following link:
http://beta.wx1box.org/local/lightning_safety_awareness_PNS_6_23_17.txt

The next complete Severe Weather/Amateur Radio Field Day coordination message will be posted by 1000 AM Saturday Morning. A shortened coordination message regarding Ops at NWS Taunton will be issued if time allows and Ops at NWS Taunton are necessary.

Respectfully Submitted,

Robert Macedo (KD1CY)
ARES SKYWARN Coordinator
Eastern Massachusetts ARES Assistant Section Emergency Coordinator
Home Phone #: (508) 994-1875 (After 6 PM)
Home/Data #: (508) 997-4503 (After 6 PM)
Work Phone #: 508-346-2929 (8 AM-5 PM)
Email Address: rmacedo@rcn.com
http://ares.ema.arrl.org
http://beta.wx1box.org
Like us on Facebook – http://www.facebook.com/wx1box
Follow us on Twitter – http://twitter.com/wx1box

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