A Little Too Much?

Wow... just saw the NWS Huntsville went with a "winter storm watch" for the northwest corner of the state, and the NWS Birmingham went with a "winter weather advisory" for west Alabama in the general area from Hamilton down to Jasper and Tuscaloosa.

In the winter weather advisory, the text says

"NO SIGNIFICANT ACCUMULATION OF ICE OR ICE PELLETS IS EXPECTED. HOWEVER...SURFACES THAT WILL COOL QUICKLY IN THE COLDER AIR...SUCH AS BRIDGES...ELEVATED ROADWAYS...POWER LINES...TREES...AND CARS...COULD BE AFFECTED. PATCHY ICE COULD FORM...OR ICE PELLETS COULD COLLECT IN LOW SPOTS ON THESE SURFACES. THERE WILL LIKELY BE ENOUGH MOISTURE AND WARMTH IN MOST GROUND SURFACES TO PREVENT WIDESPREAD PROBLEMS. ANY TRAVEL PROBLEMS THAT DO FORM SHOULD BE SHORT-LIVED...AS BREEZY...DRY CONDITIONS AND PARTLY SUNNY SKIES PREVAIL."

I agree totally with this text... but I wonder why a "winter weather advisory" is needed? This has whipped some people into a frenzy in west Alabama... I am not sure everyone will hear the part about no widespread problems. I have e-mail messages coming in from the public, who don't read this site, wanting to know if they need close businesses tomorrow, activate emergency plans at hospitals, etc. It simply isn't a big deal!

And, in the winter storm watch, it says

"AT THIS TIME...TOTAL ICE ACCUMULATIONS SHOULD BE LESS THAN 1/10 OF AN INCH...WITH ONLY A LIGHT DUSTING OF SNOW."

Again, I have to wonder is that really a winter storm? This is out of our market, but I would imagine people up in Muscle Shoals are hitting the bread and milk lines when they hear they are under a "winter storm watch".

I probably need to get some NWS manual and study the criteria for these watches and advisories... I am sure the local guys are just following the guidelines, this is not knocking their work. Again, I agree totally with what they are saying; I just don't understand the need for these messages that tend to make people a little jittery.