Your Library Connection
 

River Levels and Weather Information at Your Fingertips!
News and Weather Resource Links

I know that we have all heard and seen more than we ever wanted to about flooding, hail, tornadoes, and severe weather in the past month.  More rain falls and it does more than dampen our spirits…it frays our nerves and takes an emotional toll.  Even though we don’t want to hear or see any more of it, it is a necessity when the river is rising and your backyard becomes riverfront property without the benefits.  Not to mention making plans or preparations in case your home, business, or that of a loved one are affected by flooding, tornadoes, high winds, hail, etc.  Quick and up-to-date access to this information becomes more crucial than ever. 

Each of the websites noted in this article are links on the library website, www.indylibrary.org.  River level websites are under New on the homepage.  Weather links are found by going to the bottom of the homepage, clicking on Web and Reference Resources, then clicking on News/Weather Resources.  I can’t begin to cover or pretend to know all the features of each of these websites, but I will highlight what I think of as the best features on these sites.  I have to credit my husband, Mark, for much of this information.  He is a bit of a weather geek and is the expert in our home when it comes to outdoor conditions. 

Under New on the library home page www.indylibrary.org, there is a NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) site and a Rivergages site.  They both contain information about the current Wapsi river levels and predicted levels.  The NOAA site has record levels of flooding over the last 60+ years.  The direct link to the Rivergages site on the library homepage will go to Independence, however, you can link to other river basins or choose parameters to get the data for which you are searching.

Is there a hailstorm or tornado that appears to be on its way towards you or loved ones?  One great place to find out specifics about what is happening is Weather Underground.  The Nexrad radar feature is excellent.  You can zoom into the area of interest and see what is happening.  Click on Storm Tracks to see the direction the storm is headed and to get specific information about a storm like the chance for hail and the speed it is traveling.  There are personal weather stations in Independence and many of the surrounding communities for Weather Underground.  I’ve placed a link on the library website’s weather links called Independence Station – Weather Underground.  Click on that and get real-time readings for everything your home’s weather guru ever wanted to know about current local weather.  If you scroll halfway down the page and click on the link on the right hand side that says Full Screen RapidFire Flash View, you will receive constantly updated information about temperature, wind speed, wind direction, barometric pressure, rainfall, humidity, etc.     

Intellicast has a great 10 day forecast and broad national radar.  There are many national radar choices… storms, temperatures, wind, precipitation, humidity, etc. Each brings up a map of the U.S. with the particular feature highlighted.  

Local television station, KCRG, has local radar plus severe weather watches and warnings.  You can sign up for e-mail notifications, text messages, etc. to keep you in the loop.

The weather channel has interactive maps.  You can change the opacity of the radar itself in order to see the ground underneath.  This shows you more clearly where the storms are.

Information like this can help you to be prepared.  Unfortunately we have all seen, heard about, and some have experienced the terrible results of the natural disasters that have been plaguing our state over the last several weeks.  Though the information can’t save your home from a tornado or flood, hopefully it will help raise people’s awareness and keep people safe .  All the links are found on the library’s website, www.indylibrary.org, either under New on the homepage or under Web and Reference Resources and then News/Weather Resources. 

News and Weather Resource Links

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