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Friday, March 29, 2024

Weather watchers need Wrightsville Beach volunteers

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Meteorologists with the National Weather Service (NWS) are looking for help in the Wrightsville Beach area with collection of weather data and are encouraging locals who keep an eye on the weather to volunteer.

Currently, there are no volunteers for the Community Collaborative Rain, Hail, and Snow network, or CoCoRaHS, in Wrightsville Beach, the NWS said. CoCoRaHS is a nonprofit, community-based network of citizen scientists who measure and map precipitation. The program is ideal for people who show an interest in weather, especially its variations, the organization said.

“North Carolina has one of the most complex climates in the U.S.,” said Dr. Ryan Boyles, state climatologist and director of the State Climate Office, based at North Carolina State University.  “Data gathered from CoCoRaHS volunteers are very important in better understanding local weather and climate patterns.”

Through the CoCoRaHS website, Wrightsville Beach residents can get basic instructions on rain collection procedures and obtain a low-cost rain gauge to collect samples. The data is submitted through the CoCoRaHS website and then used by a wide variety of organizations and individuals, including National Weather Service, other meteorologists, hydrologists, emergency managers, city utilities, insurance adjusters, USDA, engineers, mosquito control, ranchers and farmers, outdoor and recreation interests, teachers, students, and neighbors in the community.

“An additional benefit of the program to the National Weather Service is the ability to receive timely reports of significant weather (hail, intense rainfall, localized flooding) from CoCoRaHS observers that can assist forecasters in issuing and verifying warnings for severe thunderstorms,” said David Glenn, CoCoRaHS state co-coordinator and meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Newport, North Carolina.

CoCoRaHS was established after flash flooding in Fort Collins, Colorado, caught the residents off guard after a storm dumped several inches of rain over parts of the town, while other areas only had modest rainfall. The flood caused $200 million in damages and showed the need for better mapping and reporting of intense storms, leading to CocoRaHS’ launch. In addition to tracking storms, CoCoRaHS is also providing useful scientific data for understanding droughts.

CoCoRaHS programs are now established in all 50 states, with North Carolina joining in 2007. The organization is searching for new volunteers across the state, including locally in New Hanover County.

In addition to the needs for an official 4-inch plastic rain gauge, volunteers are required to take a simple training module online, CoCoRaHS said. The data that’s entered is immediately available for the public to view. The process requires about five minutes a day, and the grassroots organization said the benefits to the community are significant.

Volunteers may obtain an official rain gauge through the CoCoRaHS website for about $30 plus shipping here: http://www.cocorahs.org

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