SKYWARN, founded in 1976, is made up of a group of trained, dedicated volunteer amateur weather enthusiasts who work in conjunction with the National Weather Service by observing and reporting adverse weather conditions to promote public safety and minimize property damage. In the advent of Doppler Radar, and other technologies, the art and science of weather forecasting has made great strides, but even with all the technology, the National Weather Service still is in need of ‘ground truth’ observers. It is through training that the National Weather Service teaches interested volunteers to be safe, effective and accurate weather spotters who provide them with the needed ground truths.
Rice County Skywarn spotters are dispatched out of the Rice County Emergency Operations Center, located at 118 3rd Street NW in Faribault. Spotters provide accurate and detailed reports of wind, hail, tornadoes, and damage to personnel at the Emergency Operations Center, who in turn make a decision to sound warning sirens for Faribault and the surrounding lakes regions.