Weather spotters prepare for worst.

Byline: Susan Palmer The Register-Guard

When the 70 mph winds of Feb. 7, 2002, began yanking trees out of the ground and flinging road signs around like Frisbees, the National Weather Service's radar and satellite equipment didn't take notice.

A local weather spotter did, calling up the agency to report 10-inch-diameter trees crashing down on streets and homes.

"Quite honestly, we missed that event," said Tyree Wilde, the warning coordinator at Portland's National Weather Service office.

And that's why the federal agency needs as many eyes and ears on the ground as it can get.

Tyree and two other Portland meteorologists take time every fall and spring to train volunteer weather spotters throughout Oregon. A recent session in Eugene drew 26 people.

The new spotters will join a loose network of about 450 throughout the state who regularly call in their observations when the weather gets wild.

Spotters may get plenty of work, given the long-term forecast. Meteorologists believe we're in for the kind of fall and winter when extremes are possible. Pacific Ocean temperatures - which drive weather patterns here - are near normal, but that doesn't always translate into an average season, Wilde said.

Weather records show that during such years, Mother Nature is as likely to dish up extremes as she is to follow the norm, he said.

And it's during the extremes that the National Weather Service most needs people.

Radar can alert meteorologists to the presence of thunderheads, but spotters tell them where the golf-ball-sized hail is falling.

Satellites can show the clouds, their temperature and moisture content, but it takes a spotter to see the wall cloud forming beneath the anvil shape of a thunderhead that often precedes a tornado - the last one in Lane County hit Creswell in 1999.

Spotters give "ground truth" to high-tech observations, Wilde said, and sometimes they see things that sophisticated equipment misses.

The 2002 windstorm, for example, blew in from the south at Winchester Bay on a day when there were no ships nearby to radio in alerts and few weather buoys in an area that Wilde calls "a data void."

Such storms usually take 12 hours to build, last 24 to 36 hours and generally hug the coast rather than moving inland, Wilde said.

But this one blew in off the ocean, gathered steam in Coos and Douglas counties, roared through Lane County and spent itself at the foot of the Cascades in Linn County in a mere three hours.

Oregon sees its share of storms

While other parts of the country may see more violent weather - hurricanes along the East Coast and tornados that level whole neighborhoods - Oregon's extremes can wreak havoc as well.

The 2002 windstorm injured several and left well over $6 million in uninsured damages in its wake.

The floods of 1996 killed four Oregonians, forced thousands to evacuate and decimated communities in California, Oregon, Washington and Idaho with damages in the hundreds of millions of dollars.

At the training sessions, spotters learn how to recognize and describe the extremes they see. Anyone can be a spotter, said Wilde, although people who do a lot of work outdoors are often in the best position to observe the weather.

Eugene resident Bob Cluster showed up for last week's training, even though he has been a spotter for the National Weather Service for 18 months. The session was a good refresher, he said.

Cluster, a volunteer with the Lane County sheriff's search and rescue, has seen plenty of violent weather.

Several years ago, while he was on a training outing near Oakridge, a downburst ripped a 20-by 20-foot tent off the ground.

Downbursts - out-rushing air from thunderstorms that slam into the ground and can exceed 100 mph - can do plenty of damage.

Cluster and other volunteers were asleep in the floorless tent, with about 1,200 pounds of their gear hanging inside to weight it down, he said.

"It had been pouring all night and then there was this dead silence. It woke me up, it was a very odd change. Then there was the sound of a freight train coming," he said.

Next thing the tent flew over a cliff, its aluminum poles sheered off, not even bent, he said. No one was hurt, but the team had to rappel down the cliff to retrieve their gear, he said.

A nearby fire lookout later reported 85 mph wind gusts, he said.

Cluster, who is an amateur radio operator with a small weather station on his roof, has already called in a few high-wind reports, one with a gust clocked at 47 mph, he said, a wind capable of ripping shingles off roofs.

Cluster became a spotter because it fit with his amateur radio interest. The state's ham operators maintain a weather information network, he said.

It doesn't hurt that he's drawn to big weather.

He has experienced 80-mph winds at the coast. He has videotaped lightning and thunderstorms. During a thunderstorm last summer, he watched a lightning bolt strike right across the street from his house.

"A big storm is one of my favorite things," he said.

Outdoor enthusiasts are key

People who work or play a lot outside tend to be more conscious of and more fascinated by the weather, said veteran spotter Roger Ray, a retired Federal Aviation Administration investigator and former air traffic control supervisor.

"Rural people or people who appreciate the outdoors always seem to be more in touch with the weather, he said.

That description fits a lot of Oregonians, he said, but he's found the same weather fascination all over the West.

Ray attended the training even though he's been a spotter since the mid-1980s.

Eugene spotters play a crucial role because the town is midway between National Weather Service radar equipment in Portland and Medford. Because of the distance, the radar doesn't "see" weather below about 9,000 feet, making local spotters that much more important, Ray said.

Spotters on the coast often see a lot of action. They clocked winds at 65 mph last week, Wilde said. "We've seen 29-foot seas out there, and it's only October," he said.

WEATHER ONLINE

The National Weather Service Web site offers plenty of in-depth information. Listed are some of its most popular sites.

Real-time images: Satellite - www.wrh.noaa.gov/Portland/satellite.html. Radar - www.wrh.noaa.gov/radar/latest/DS.p19r0/si.krtx.shtml

Forecast discussions: www.wrh.noaa.gov/cgi-bin/Portland/afd?PDXAFDPQR

Next spotter training: Today in Newport at the Lincoln County Courthouse at 7 p.m. In the Eugene-Springfield area, next spring. Check the Web site for details - www.wrh.noaa.gov/Portland/skywarn.html

WEATHER WATCHING DEFINED

Weather spotters report Mother Nature's extremes. Here's a list of what they look for:

Strong breeze: 25-31 mph; large branches in continuous motion, whistling sound in power lines, umbrellas used with difficulty.

Near Gale: 32-38 mph; whole trees in motion, difficulty walking.

Gale: 39-46 mph; small twigs break off, wind impedes walking.

Strong gale: 47-54 mph; chimney covers, roofing tiles blown off, television antennas damaged. Ground is littered with many small twigs and broken branches.

Whole gale: 55-63 mph; considerable structural damage occurs, especially on roofs. Small trees may be blown over and uprooted.

Storm force: 64-75 mph; widespread damage occurs. Larger trees blown over and uprooted.

Hail: 1 inch in diameter - the size of a quarter; 1 3/4 inches - the size of a golf ball; 2 1/2 inches - the size of a tennis ball; 4 inches - the size of a softball.

Severe thunderstorm: Produces hail three-quarters of an inch in diameter and/or wind gusts of 58 mph or more

Downburst: A strong downdraft during a thunderstorm with an out-rush of damaging wind that can reach 100 mph on or near the ground.

Flash flood: A rapid rise in water, usually within 12 hours of a period of heavy rain.

Precursor to tornado: Towering clouds with sharp, cauliflower definition and at the top a spreading anvil shape with another bubble of cloud above the anvil.

The National Weather Service alerts:

Outlook: The possibility of severe weather in the next few days.

Watch: A moderate to high risk of severe weather but the timing is uncertain.

Warning: Severe weather with threat to life or property is imminent.