Possible hot weather and decreased air quality later this week

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From our partners at the National Weather Service. Be careful out there, volunteers!
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A Period of Hot Weather and Possible Decreased Air Quality

 Appears Increasingly Likely For Thursday through Saturday

Hello,

This message is intended as an informational briefing for public safety decision makers. We ask that you continue to monitor latest information using the resources listed below. You are welcome to share this message with others in your organization. Please do not respond to this email. If you need to contact the office, please use the links and information below.

SYNOPSIS:

A period of hot weather is becoming increasingly likely Thursday through Saturday in Western Washington. Record high temperatures are possible in Seattle on all three days, and temperatures at night will only cool into the 60s.  There is the potential that maximum temperatures will be higher than currently forecast across the region. 

HEADLINES:

None at this time.

FORECAST SPECIFICS:

Offshore flow will strengthen on Thursday as high pressure develops over British Columbia. Air compressing as it comes down off of the Cascades and Olympics will gradually heat the air mass up starting early Thursday and continuing through early in the weekend. Temperatures on the coast and away from the water will likely peak on Thursday, while temperatures in the interior lowlands will likely peak on Friday. Temperatures in the interior on Saturday will likely only cool a couple of degrees from Friday's hot values.  Hot temperatures on Thursday will be accompanied by low relative humidity and breezy conditions -contributing to increased fire danger. Air quality may degrade somewhat on Friday and Saturday as a thermal trough moves into the interior lowlands and reduces circulation.                       Seattle                  Bellingham            Olympia Day             Hi/Lo/Rec/Yr         Hi/Lo/Rec/Yr       Hi/Lo/Rec/Yr Thu 8/18      88/60/88/1991        87/56/86/1965     90/54/94/1981  Fri   8/19      91/62/89/2015        86/58/84/1950     93/56/94/1961 Sat 8/20       89/63/87/1966        81/59/83/1958     88/56/92/1982

IMPACTS:

A prolonged period of warm to hot weather across the region will mainly impact people in urban areas who are in poor health. People living in high rise buildings without air conditioning will be most impacted.  Any fires that start on Thursday could grow rapidly in the hot, dry and breezy conditions.   A decrease in air quality Friday and Saturday could affect unhealthy individuals. At this time, impacts are expected to be moderate.

CONFIDENCE:

Confidence is high that a period of hot weather will develop on Thursday and will persist into Friday. Confidence is moderate that hot temperatures will persist in the interior into Saturday. Confidence is moderate that the combination of hot temperatures, low relative humidity, and breezy conditions could contribute to a high fire danger across much of Western Washington. Confidence is moderate that air quality will degrade somewhat starting on Friday and perhaps persist or worsen Saturday or Sunday.

iNWS: Smart phone app for the emergency management community to monitor the latest forecasts, warning information and conditions - register at http://inws.wrh.noaa.gov

Web Site: http://www.weather.gov/seattle

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/US.NationalWeatherService.Seattle.gov

Twitter: https://twitter.com/NWSseattle

Thank you,

National Weather Service, Seattle WA

Last Minute Reminders

Hey guys, just want to remind you of two VERY close upcoming events: the Meadow Rover Brunch on Saturday in Tacoma and the National Weather Service Weather Spotters Training on Monday at the Tahoma Woods Education Center.

The Meadow Rover Brunch is taking place this Saturday, May 9 at the Mountaineers Tacoma Branch Clubhouse. The doors open at 8:00 and food will be served by 9:30. You can find more information on the original post here.

The NWS Skywarn Weather Spotters Training is taking place on Monday, May 11 at the Tahoma Woods Education Center. It's going from 6:00 PM - 9:30 PM. The class is open to the general public, and there is still space available. More information can be found here.

So don't miss out on these two great events. I'll see ya there.

Skywarn Weather Spotter Trainier at Mount Rainier on May 11

Here's a great way to contribute as a volunteer from your own back yard! Join us May 11 to learn how to keep track of basic weather data, contribute to our understanding of weather and climate around Mount Rainier, and help make our forecasts more accurate and effective:

SKYWARN WEATHER SPOTTER TRAINING ANNOUNCEMENT
by the National Weather Service

Where: Tahoma Woods Education Center – Mt Rainier NP
Date: Monday, May 11, 2009

When: 6:00—8:30 PM
Who: Open to all interested citizens, amateur radio, CERT, citizen corps, emergency responders, transportation, public works, park staff

RSVP: Barbara Nelson, Pierce County Emergency Management 253-798-2168 or bnelso1@co.pierce.wa.us

This is your opportunity to learn how to look for and report significant weather events. Use of powerful visual media and group discussion make this class fun! You can play an important role in identification of area hazardous weather events. Spotters are needed, especially in rural parts of Pierce and Lewis Counties, as well as those who have weather instrumentation, such as an anemometer. Class capacity is 35, so sign up early!

Volunteers needed to review pocket guide and collect weather data

Two unique volunteer projects have come across my desk today:

Mount Rainier Pocket Guide
Damian Fagan, a freelance author in Bend, Oregon working with the Globe Pequot Press contacted me looking for someone who could review the text of a "Pocket Guide" he's putting together about Mount Rainier National Park. He suggested that maybe some of our volunteers could look it over and proofread it. I think that's a great idea, so I'm passing the project on to you. Here's a link to the DRAFT text of the guide. Download it, look it over, and then send any feedback or corrections you have to me. I'll compile the responses and send them on to Mr. Fagan. Please respond by February 17 if possible. Here's the complete request:

I am a freelance writer working on a project for the Globe Pequot Press about Mount Rainier. GPP is publishing a series of small guides to national parks called "Pocket Guides." About the size of the old Golden Guide natural history books, these introductory books will have 2 oragami-like maps in the front and rear pockets of the book; hence, their name. Patti Wold [our Interpretive Media Specialist] has taken a look at the text and I've made changes based upon her recommendations. I'm writing to you to see if there might be a volunteer who would be interested in taking a more in-depth review of the text. I don't think it would take too long, and I would appreciate any feedback. As a small 'thank you' the reviewers name would be included in the text and I'd make sure that they receive a copy when the book is out. They could make electronic edits and just e-mail the text back to me. I've attached the text so that you can see the length and format. You'll see in the text that there are hours listed for visitor centers, as well as program times and locations. Changes are inevitable and the caveat in the text is for visitors to "Check for current times and locations." Still, I'd like to be able to include current programs the park offers.

For those who contribute, be sure to keep track of the time you spend, and send that to me for tracking in our volunteer database.

Community Collaborative Rain, Hail and Snow Network
I also got an e-mail today from Greg Carstens, passing on a request from the National Weather Service for volunteer weather monitors in the communities around Mount Rainier National Park. Specifically, they want to monitor and study precipitation patterns, in order to improve their ability to predict and respond to flood events. If you're interested in participating in the study, send me an e-mail, and I'll pass the word along to Greg and his contact at the Weather Service. Here is Greg's original request, with more detail about what he's looking for:

Me and Ted Buehner [at NWS Seattle] need some help with a local weather project in and outside the park. Ted has asked me to see if anyone in the park is interested in helping out with this project inside the park as well as outside of the park. He knows like I do that some who work in the park also live right outside of it. Ted Buehner and Jeff Michalski are looking for volunteers interested in measuring local rainfall. This program called the Community Collaborative Rain, Hail and Snow Network will not cost the park itself one penny. That's the best part about it. It does require the volunteer to buy the standard 8 inch manual rain gauge which costs around $30.00. The National Weather Service and University of Washington Office of the State Climatologist sponsor the program. Jeff Michalski at NWS Seattle is the coordinator for the Mount Rainier and surrounding area for the Network. Ted has told me more than once it would be great if we could find at least a few volunteers who perhaps live in or around the communities of Ashford, Elbe, Mineral, Morton, Eatonville, Randle, and Packwood. The Network helps researchers and scientists monitor and study precipitation patterns and it also has a online intense precipitation report that goes immediately to the NWS Seattle office after it is reported. This feature is great to get a handle on flooding events. The website for the Network which originated at Colorado State University in Fort Collins, Colorado is www.cocorahs.org... Ted and Jeff would like to see more volunteers from the Cascade foothills so I told Ted I would write to you to see if we could help in at least some small way. I think the more volunteers in the area there are the better the NWS will have a fix on getting forecasts out for severe flooding. This is one way folks can help out their local community to say safe from severe flooding.