Linn County Storm Spotter Seminar

The annual Quad Cities National Weather Service severe weather spotter training seminar for Linn County in Iowa was held at the St. Mark's Faith and Life Center in Marion Saturday afternoon, March 5, 2011. Leading the visual/discussion session was Warning Coordination Meteorologist Donna Dubberke (standing at center background). An audience of about 250 people, including fire fighters, law enforcement personnel, amateur radio operators and the general public were in attendance. Those who volunteer as spotters are part of the NWS-sponsored program known as SKYWARN, the eyes and ears of both the warning forecasters and the local public safety networks. This year's training session of just under two hours put emphasis on accurate identification of wall clouds and rotation.