Due to the tragic events of September 11th, a groundbreaking partnership between the National Weather Service and AWS Convergence Technologies was formed to speed the flow of critical, local, live weather information to Emergency Managers and First Responders. The National Weather Service began utilizing data from over 6,000 WeatherNet weather stations located at schools across the country immediately so that it can better respond to homeland security events or disasters. When terrorism strikes or a major disaster unfolds, local officials have precious minutes to make critical decisions that can save lives and property. Real-time weather information such as wind speed/direction and surface temperatures can help shape all of these key decisions to help local officials make more informed decisions.

This presentation will include video clips, slides, as well as an overview of the WeatherNet program, and how television stations, schools, businesses and emergency response facilities can participate and benefit from this unique partnership.