Consumer 6: Digital Weather Radio Coming to a Store Near You

When tornadoes swept through Oklahoma last May, many people tuned to Channel 6 for severe weather information. Many folks rely on KOTV's chief meteorologist Jim Giles to warn them about potentially

Friday, January 14th 2000, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

When tornadoes swept through Oklahoma last May, many people tuned to Channel 6 for severe weather information. Many folks rely on KOTV's chief meteorologist Jim Giles to warn them about potentially dangerous storms. There's also a product available to the general public that can provide a family with an extra storm warning defense.

Itâ€™s the new weather alert radio from Midland Communications. It was on display at this year's Consumer Electronic Show in Las Vegas. "This is the newest type of technology,â€ said Midland Communications Bob Jehle. â€œIt uses a digital decoder."

The digital decoder lets you choose the coverage of a specific area. â€œYou can program it for your county,â€ noted Jehle. â€œIt will warn you if there's a flash flood, hurricane, thunderstorm or high winds. It also has all hazards alert , too. Even if there's a chemical spill in your area, it can also alert you about that as well."

Older weather radio models covered a large area. Many customers complained that the alert sounded too often. The new model won't sound an alert unless potentially dangerous storms are in the programmed area. The weather radio works like an alarm clock. You can turn it on and off.

When it's switched on, the radio gets a signal from transmitters set up by the National Weather Service. It will also work for people who live on a county border or rural area. "If you're on the border of a area or the fringe area, you can put an extra antenna on the radio to get better coverage," Jehle said. KOTVâ€™s Giles says the radio alerts people to the fact that something's happening. â€œWhen you hear the alert sound, donâ€™t ignore it,â€ he said. â€œGet up, turn your television to Channel 6 and find out exactly whatâ€™s happening in your neighborhood.â€

Giles says it is a good option for people who can't always monitor bad weather on TV, especially late at night. "This way they can go to bed, set their NOAA weather radio to sound the alert as the squall line or the storm reaches the county next to where they live,â€ he explained. â€œWhen the radio sounds the alarm, they get up and tune in to Channel 6. They can monitor the storm as it moves through their county and then go back to bed," Giles said.

The new model of the weather alert radio will be available at the end of the January for about $101 at retailers like K-Mart and Wal-Mart. It will also be available on several retailers on the Internet. Older models are now available with prices beginning at $39.