National Weather Service seeks storm watchers

NORMAN, Okla. (AP) _ The National Weather Service in Norman is looking for volunteers to watch storms. <br/><br/>A workshop is March 13th in Norman at the Moore Norman Technology Center for anyone who

Wednesday, March 1st 2006, 1:03 pm

By: News On 6

NORMAN, Okla. (AP) _ The National Weather Service in Norman is looking for volunteers to watch storms.

A workshop is March 13th in Norman at the Moore Norman Technology Center for anyone who would like to become a severe weather spotter. The workshop is free and no equipment or registration is required.

Wednesday was the start of the four-month period that's the most active for tornadoes in Oklahoma and meteorologist Rick Smith says the spotters are the last line of defense in reporting weather conditions.

Spotters are trained to recognize severe storms and assess hail and wind damage.

The last confirmed tornado in Oklahoma was last October. There were 27 confirmed tornadoes in the state last year down from a yearly average of 54.