Weather Alerts/Emergencies

[gesam]

Two questions for this group:

- Have you ever had to quickly depart an area due to a weather emergency?

- If you carry an emergency weather radio, what is your recommendation?

Thanks as always for the feedback.

[AWCHIEF]

While in West Virginia last year with a group of Caravaning AIRSTREAM's we were camped on the Gauley river when the water started rising scary fast. We all made it to high ground but not all the other trailers were so lucky. The small family owned campground ended up under 10 feet of water and was totally destroyed. This all happened so fast that there were no official warnings or even time for it.
No dedicated weather radio but my phone gives weather alerts as long as I can get a signal.

[moosetags]

Yes, we have. Several years ago, we were camped at St. Vrain State Park in Firestone, Colorado which is about thirty miles north of Denver. There were severe thunder storms in the area and a dam had broken further upstream on the St. Vrain River. A Park Ranger came to our campsite and advised us that it would be wise to leave the park as they expected the road into the park to be flooded in the next couple of hours.

We heeded the warning and broke camp. We towed the Airstream north into Wyoming and up to Cheyenne. We found out that night that we had just made it through prior to I-25 being closed due to flooding.

We routinely monitor weather conditions while traveling use weather apps on our smartphones.

Brian

[1973Argosy]

I have left the Alabama gulf Coast because of tropical storms that were inbound, but I had plenty of notice of the storms. Rode one out a couple of years ago that wasn't forecasted to be severe. My threshold for pulling out during that storm was sustained winds of 60mph or more. The winds never topped 55 and my trailer stayed surprisingly steady.

I depend on my smartphone (myweatherradar app and local news websites) and local over the air tv for weather when I'm traveling. I would think for most severe weather emergencies you wouldn't have time to get hooked up and depart if you are depending on the alert from a weather radio. In many cases you would be better off seeking shelter and not putting yourself and rig in harms way. If you are watching a forecast and get a day or two notice of approaching nasty weather then pulling out sometimes makes sense.

[kb0zke]

In 2015 we pulled into a State park, intending to stay a week while Jo Ann attended an LWML convention. As we were getting up (one in the walk-through bathroom, the other in the rear bedroom) the ranger knocked on our door. The river was rising and everyone had to be out by noon. We ate breakfast, stowed everything for travel, and headed out about 8:00. As we left it looked like the river was less than a foot below the level of the road. The river eventually covered the power pedestals.

We were able to find another campground, but at more than twice the cost.

[ctaulborg]

Here's a site I use frequently to find gear/apps useful and related to travel:

http://www.technomadia.com/2015/05/o...for-rv-travel/

There's a section on the page linked above labeled "Stuff Once You’re ‘There’" that has some suggestions on specific weather related apps.

[tjdonahoe]

A radio shack weather radio, works anywhere...

[DreamStreamr]

We started with a dedicated wx radio but it was pretty much a pita. Switched to a vhf ham radio with emergency wx alerts. Very strong reception with antenna mounted on the Airstream's roof, and we keep it on 24/7 to awake/alert us in case of warnings. Been doing this for years and although pretty alarming sometimes, it's a comfort.