Press Releases

Press  >  April 4, 2006 Release

WeatherBug® Community Responds to Weekend Tornadoes and Hail with Startling Videos, Blogs, Testimonials, Photos and Outreach

Germantown, MD – April 4, 2006 – WeatherBug®, the leading provider of live, local weather information services, today announced that the WeatherBug Community responded to the recent flurry of tornadoes and hail storms with startling videos, blogs, testimonials, photos and outreach. Participatory journalism continues to build within the WeatherBug Community. Weekend website activity doubled and blog activity hit record levels, as people shared their harrowing experiences and support for one another.

Days after WeatherBug launched Storm Chase 2006 with storm chaser J.R. Hehnly, a series of deadly tornadoes and storms spouting tennis-ball sized hail ripped through Missouri, Illinois, Arkansas and Tennessee. With his fully-equipped Storm Chase SUV, Hehnly tracked, photographed and blogged extensively about the torrents.

Before taking shelter, users captured terrifying images of tornadoes as they leveled property and lives, sharing them with the WeatherBug Community. Once a visitor enters their zip code at the bottom of www.weatherbug.com, they can view these stunning images in the “Photos” section or “Video Gallery.” Survivors and supporters shared their poignant stories of strength and survival on the WeatherBug blogsites, where visitors can view and/or post their comments (after entering their zip code on the WeatherBug home page).

Rev. Thomas Wenndt’s Sunday night meeting at St. John’s Lutheran Church in Green Valley, IL, reported his meeting was short when his WeatherBug program alerted him to a tornado warning posted by the National Weather Service at 6:26 PM. “We got the people to the basement as we saw an approaching funnel cloud. Indeed, it was another three minutes before the National Weather Service radio alarm went off, and another five minutes before the local sirens went off. By then we were all safely sheltered, and got through the storm just fine.”

Many in the storm’s paths turned to WeatherBug for safety tips and also to WeatherBug broadcast partners to track the storms’ progress and view the aftermath. WeatherBug’s TV broadcast partners along tornado alley, including provided live coverage of tornadoes as they occurred throughout the viewing area, including severe weather alerts and advisories to help keep viewers informed and safe.

For the thousands who lost power and phone service during the storms, mobile service and weather alerts were their only means of communication. WeatherBug Mobile delivered the NWS alerts, warning the public to take immediate shelter. With the advent of mobile communications, alerts via Smartphones, Java applications and/or SMS text alerts have proven to be real lifesavers, working even when weather radios or power-dependent programs are unavailable. People are more mobile than ever before and rely on their mobile devices to keep them informed and “in-touch” via voice, text, photos and video images. Weather conditions can greatly differ in intensity over a few miles distance, so WeatherBug precision and accuracy is important to mobile users who rely upon their wireless service as their lifeline for accurate, on-demand weather information. Consequently, weather is now the second most frequently accessed information by mobile users surfing the Internet.*

WeatherBug has established a variety of ways for consumer and business users to access its rich, proprietary weather information. This includes free and premium versions of its downloadable software application WeatherBug, as well as SMS alerts, a Windows Mobile® Smartphone application, and on-air distribution through broadcast partnerships with over 100 local television station affiliates.

Each year about a thousand tornadoes touch down in the U.S. Only a small percentage actually strike occupied buildings, but every year a number of people are killed or injured. The chances that a tornado will strike an individual or buildings are slim. Preparation is the best prevention, as the most injuries and deaths occur to those who are unaware and uninformed. Only the National Weather Service (NWS) can issue severe weather alerts, and WeatherBug is the largest distributor of such alerts in the U.S. Through professional, desktop and mobile applications, WeatherBug issues audible and visual “alerts” that advise the user in time to take protective measures to protect property and lives. Because tornadoes can occur during off-peak hours, WeatherBug advises users to keep the application running on their computers during times of severe weather.

NWS incorporates data from WeatherBug’s nationwide, real-time weather sensor network. WeatherBug data will be used as part of NWS’ expanded surface observation network to improve weather forecasting and ensure timely severe weather warnings.

People need reliable weather data relevant to their location. WeatherBug is often the only weather source that can provide truly local data at the neighborhood level. Alternative sources are based upon computer modeling from hourly airport data. Tornadoes can differ greatly in intensity and appear or disappear at a moment’s notice, so this precision and accuracy is crucial when people are confined to their homes or have evacuated and are trying to determine whether their neighborhood or residents are in harm’s way.

WeatherBug’s commitment to quality content and user experience has established its consistent ranking as one of the top news and information properties on the Internet* and a fiercely loyal and engaged customer base with an extraordinary, 93 percent satisfaction score.* To subscribe to WeatherBug, go to www.weatherbug.com.

About WeatherBug^®

WeatherBug ensures that individuals, schools, businesses and government agencies receive the most precise live weather information, the most relevant weather reports, and the earliest weather warnings to safeguard property, lives and to plan with confidence. With 8,000 WeatherBug Tracking Stations and over 1,000 cameras primarily based at neighborhood schools and public safety facilities across the U.S., WeatherBug maintains the largest exclusive weather network in the world. The live, local weather conditions are delivered to millions of consumers via the Internet and mobile devices, more than 100 state and local government agencies including the National Weather Service, and to broadcast television stations, schools, and businesses. As such, WeatherBug is the #1 distributor of severe weather alerts to the public. WeatherBug data is unique as it is the only live, neighborhood weather available anywhere. WeatherBug is a brand of AWS Convergence Technologies, Inc.

Press Contact:

Debra Eisenburg
WeatherBug
301-250-4017
deisenburg@weatherbug.com

Alyce Menton
WeatherBug
301-250-4127 - Office
amenton@weatherbug.com