A Day In The Life Of A NWS Meteorologist: Incident Meteorologists (Day 13 of 14)

Given the large amount of forested area across eastern Kentucky, fire weather is a major topic here at the NWS Jackson, KY. While all of the NWS Jackson meteorologists are trained in issuing fire weather forecasts for our land management partners and county emergency managers, our office also employs two specialized fire weather forecasters called IMETs (Incident Meteorologists). The NWS has about 80 of these IMET positions nationwide. IMETs are available to be deployed at a moment's notice to assist as an on-scene meteorologist for large wildfires, oil spills, and other natural disasters or large events. The two Jackson, KY IMETs have a combined 14 years of experience, and have assisted in fires in many states across the country, including Alaska, Washington, Texas, and Florida.

Day 12: Monitoring Social Media

Day 11: Participating In Outreach

Day 10: The NOAA Weather Radio

Day 9: Creating The Weather Story

Day 8: Dual-Pol Radar Checks

Day 7: Aviation Forecasting

Day 6: River Monitoring

Day 5: Training

Day 4: Issuing Severe Weather Warnings

Day 3: Analyzing Weather Data

Day 2: Weather Observations

Day 1: Introduction