Huntsville Tornado 1989 Staffing

Huntsville Tornado, Nov. 15, 1989 - Southern Region Disaster Survey

Appendix A

WSO Huntsville Staffing

Staff on Duty:

^*indicates Acting Official in Charge
Name	Position	Grade
Lary Burgett	Weather Service Specialist	GS-1341-11
David Jacobs	Weather Service Specialist	GS-1341-11
Brenda Page	Weather Service Specialist^*	GS-1341-11
Scott Sharp	Meteorologist Intern	GS-1340-09

Hours and Assignments at WSO Huntsville:
Lary Burgett	Observations/Warnings	0800-2000
David Jacobs	Radar	1200-2400
Scott Sharp	NWR/warnings/statements	^**0500-2100
Brenda Page	Severe weather/observations	1625-2400
* * assigned to WSO Huntsville to supplement staff during severe weather threat.

WSO Huntsville staffing

WSO Huntsville is authorized a staff level of 6 people, 5 Weather Service Specialists/Meteorologist Interns and the Meteorologist-in-Charge (MIC). A series of events, including staff illnesses and retirements, resulted in WSO Huntsville being minimally staffed for a period of time prior to this event, and at the time of the tornado, the WSO was two people below target staffing. This resulted in the WSO having limited capability to call in additional staff during periods of severe weather.

Knowing of this limitation, and expecting an active weather day, the Alabama Area Manager coordinated with the Acting OIC at Huntsville around 8:00 am on Wednesday, November 15th, and offered the assistance of one of the Meteorologist Interns at WSFO Birmingham. As a result, Mr. Scott Sharp was sent to Huntsville in the late morning to assist the staff.