| (a) The Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS or the
department) and the National Weather Service (NWS) have entered into
a cooperative program of tornado and severe weather warnings. National
Weather Service forecasts for general areas where severe weather or
tornadoes may develop are transmitted to DPS offices in the forecast
area and to the emergency operations center in the department state
headquarters. Department personnel, local police agencies, and local
officials are notified to be on the alert should conditions become
threatening. When suspicious cloud formations appear on the NWS radar,
the NWS will request the department to make visual observations at
the location indicated and report the findings of the observer to
the NWS through established communications channels. This request
for visual observation will be made to the nearest department office.
When the visual observation corroborates the radar finding that severe
weather exists, an appropriate warning is issued by the NWS to local
officials in all communities in the affected area.
(b) When the NWS requests visual observation of a suspected
severe weather area, department personnel involved will comply with
the request and report findings. On occasions when no severe weather
forecast has been issued nor a sighting made on radar, and locally
severe storms (damaging hail, high winds, flash floods, or tornado)
occur in an area or community, it is the responsibility of the department
personnel to report such occurrences to state headquarters as soon
as practicable through proper channels and by the most expeditious
means of communications. Address this information to the regional
commander, highway patrol captain, and state and district coordinators
in the region and district where such weather occurred. The message
shall contain, as a minimum, the following:
(1) kind of storm;
(2) location;
(3) number of casualties and fatalities, if any;
(4) extent of damage with special reference to schools,
hospitals, public utilities, and public property; and
(5) action being taken.
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