Naming winter storms

[RosieTR]

The Weather Channel took it upon itself to start naming winter storms this year, claiming that Europe does this and that it would facilitate communication. I have to say I'm already getting sick of it, on "E". I think part of the problem is that their criteria is just...a run-of-the-mill winter storm. It seems as if they were to name storms in the summer but instead of just tropical storms on up, they named every low pressure system that created some thunderstorms. Right now the E storm (Euclid) is supposed to hit the Rockies tomorrow with 6-12 inches of snow. Um, that's NORMAL for the high Rockies this time of year and in fact they should be getting repeated storms of that nature throughout the winter. It seems like they're trying to get people whipped up for each storm but when a real storm comes around people may have tuned it out. We're supposed to maybe get like 3 inches similar to the last storm ("Draco"). This isn't something we need to prepare for and keep updating weather websites for. Either it will snow or it won't, but it's not as if I'm running around checking the batteries in my flashlights and making sure I have ice melt in the garage. In some places the last storm was a big deal and schools were shut down, but it's almost like a different storm if it's a piddly 1.5 inches in Denver but a more serious 15 in Des Moines. The deal with naming hurricanes and the like is that it IS potentially a big deal and they don't happen every week. And other than freakish storms like Sandy, a hurricane that hits N Carolina isn't still called the same name when it snows in Maine. This whole winter storm naming seems like if anything it'll obscure communication because it's so much more about where the storms are more serious than that there's a low pressure system somewhere. Anyway, I'm curious what others think.

[Rosemary]

What it facilitates, in my opinion, is making a big news story and increasing the panic level. And that's what most media is all about.

[bunnys]

What both of you say is completely right. Stupid. The weather channel didn't have a lot of cred for hard-hitting weather journalism to begin with as far as I was concerned. And this decision isn't helping their reputation any.

[IshbelRobertson]

I don't think we name storms in my part of Europe. As far as I know we just have categories.

[KayLR]

ITA with what Rosemary said. Dumb, sensationalist.

[Gregg]

What it facilitates, in my opinion, is making a big news story and increasing the panic level. And that's what most media is all about.

Yup. +1

[JaneV2.0]

But Draco and Euclid? Great names; far too cool for the room.

[bUU]

I hate sensationalism and how people work to exploit the media to drive more attention to their own personal interest than an accurate portrayal of them would warrant.

Having said that, this is an exception. While there is no doubt that the weather "industry" benefits from this, the flip-side of the coin is that far too many non-weather people have consistently been far too nonchalant about taking prudent measures in response to impending risks, and then (a) react to having suffered as a result with outrage at the establishment for "not warning them" and (b) expect society (i.e., the government) to pay the costs that their own, risky decisions and behaviors incurred. As such, I see this more as a matter of helping foster in society as very healthy and constructive sense of urgency that is lacking quite often, perhaps due to how our society tends to desensitize some people to risk, danger, etc.

[RosieTR]

I agree there should be a sense of urgency associated with a major storm. But I haven't seen that all, or even most, of the named winter storms are actually major. A hurricane is more obviously defined, with certain wind speed and storm surge. Winter storms are more dicey to predict (in my area of the country) so people do take with a grain of salt what the weather folks say. I have personally observed a blizzard warning that was a sunny day. OTOH, I've also shoveled "partly cloudy" off the driveway. This is part of the reason I find the naming of winter storms, especially *every* winter storm, to be counter-productive. The same storm (euclid? draco? I don't remember) that showered us with like 3-4 inches of snow, which isn't any big deal here, knocked out power to a good chunk of Arkansas. Folks in AR needed to be aware and have supplies on hand for a big deal snowstorm. I didn't really need to adjust my plans at all for the same storm in N CO a couple days earlier. So I think it creates confusion to call it the same storm even if it is, meteorologically.

[Fawn]

Well, when Draco was moving through and DS#3 (age 14) did not want to wear a coat over his T-shirt...I told him that "Draco was among us and if the storm needed a name....he needed a coat" and bless him he wore a coat to his girlfriend's home, left in in the car and shivered at the door til they let him in. Stupid teenagers!!!!

[bUU]

I agree there should be a sense of urgency associated with a major storm. But I haven't seen that all, or even most, of the named winter storms are actually major.I have seen many winter storms that were major. They just weren't naming them back then.


A hurricane is more obviously defined, with certain wind speed and storm surge.They are easier to pick out on a satellite image yes, but weather science is getting better at isolating and identifying the boundaries of winter storms that aren't so cooperative to present a layperson-identifiable face to camera.

Regardless, compare named winter storms to named tropical storms, not hurricanes.