The extremely dangerous heat wave continues across the East Coast and much of the South-Central U.S. today. Record high temperatures are expected for some areas especially across the Mid-Atlantic where extreme heat risk conditions reside. There is a Slight Risk (level 2 of 5) of severe thunderstorms today for the northern Mid-Atlantic into portions of southern New England. Read More >
Strengths: (1) Immediate alert and receipt of warnings. (2) Service is free (text message charges do not apply). (3) Service is automatic. There is no need to sign up for the messages, although you can opt out by contacting your service provider. (4) The system allows you to receive warnings for your location anytime, anywhere.
Weaknesses: (1) Warning messages originate from cell towers that are located within a warning area. Any phone within range of a tower can be alerted, so some customers outside of a warning area may receive alerts. (2) Some older mobile phones may not be equipped to receive the messages. (3) These alerts are only being created for certain types of warnings.
Figure 25. Example of a warning alert from a smart phone application utilizing National Weather Service “warning polygons” along with the smart phone’s GPS functionality. This particular application alerts only if the phone is located within the “warning polygon,” illustrated by the black box on the display screen at the lower right.