…you might want to read Frank Heinz’ article for NBC News Dallas/Fort Worth.
Here are the key excerpts:
The National Weather Service shared a timeline of alerts sent ahead of catastrophic flooding in Texas after an NYT report questioned whether staffing shortages may have made it harder for forecasters to coordinate responses with local emergency management officials.
The NWS said that on the morning of July 3, the office in Austin/San Antonio held forecast briefings for emergency management and issued a Flood Watch that afternoon. The NWS said Flash Flood Warnings were issued on the night of July 3 and in the early morning of July 4, “giving preliminary lead times of more than three hours before warning criteria were met.”
NWS Meteorologist Jason Runyen said the National Weather Service office in New Braunfels, which delivers forecasts for Austin, San Antonio and the surrounding areas, had extra staff on duty during the storms.
Where the office would typically have two forecasters on duty during clear weather, they had up to five on staff.
“There were extra people in here that night, and that’s typical in every weather service office — you staff up for an event and bring people in on overtime and hold people over,” Runyen said.
Bottom line: this horrific tragedy was, depending on your beliefs, an act of god or nature. It had NOTHING to do with staffing at the National Weather Service.
The Democrats and the media venues blaming President Trump for the results of these flash floods are not just wrong. They are disgusting, disgraceful, despicable pigs, trying to score political points on the tragic deaths of innocent people.
I would say they should be ashamed of themselves, but I disbelieve anyone who does this has the capacity for shame.
