2020 Linn County Iowa Storm Spotter Training

The annual Linn County Iowa Storm Spotter Training session was again held this year at St. Mark's Lutheran Church at 8300 C Avenue in Marion, Iowa on Saturday afternoon, March 7. The Linn County event has been held at this location since 2009. Emergency management, fire fighters, law enforcement, meteorologists, media, ham radio representatives, experienced spotters and novices attended this event, which drew 351 people--a new record for participation. The session--free and open to the public--was a mix of interactive discussion and visual presentations. Above, spotter training presenters gather before the start of the event.

KCRG TV9 meteorologist Kaj O'Mara (right) discusses his station's procedures during severe weather events at the beginning of the spotter training session. Listening at left is Linn County ARES (Amateur Radio Emergency Services) Emergency Coordinator R. Scott Haney (N0GUD).

Hydrologist Jessica Brooks explains Outlooks, Watches and Warnings.

NWS Quad Cities Warning Coordination Meteorologist Rich Kinney talks about thunderstorms.

I was honored with the NWS Quad Cities using many of my submitted still images and videos as visual examples for the training. The above image, which shows Jessica Brooks explaining updrafts and downdrafts, and the following images below are some of my material used in the presentation.

Brooks plays a wall cloud video captured from the rest area just south of Cedar Rapids, Iowa in May, 2017.

Brooks plays a downdraft video example captured in Benton County Iowa in May, 2017.

A shelf cloud (panorama) video example from Clayton County Iowa in July, 2017 played by Brooks.

Warning Coordination Meteorologist Rich Kinney discusses a wall cloud and rain free base from a Delaware County Iowa image captured in June, 2013.

Kinney displays a wall cloud and funnel cloud image from Johnson County in May, 2019.

Kinney and a tornado image from Linn County in September, 2018.

Kinney plays short tornado video from Johnson County in May, 2019.

Kinney shows a tornado "look-alike" image (steam plume from the Duane Arnold Energy Center) in January, 2014.

A shelf cloud example is played by Kinney.

Incoming storm video captured from Benton County in May, 2017 is played by Kinney. Nikon D7200 DSLR camera. POSTSCRIPT: The NWS Quad Cities cancelled further 2020 in-person spotter training sessions effective Friday, March 13 because of the coronavirus pandemic, so this was the last session to be presented for 2020. A virtual (online) training session is offered as an option.