Ambassadors act as “community force multipliers” in weather safety effort

NOAA’s Weather-Ready Nation Ambassador Program celebrates a major milestone, as we introduce our 10,000th ambassador, the Pittsburgh Water and Sewer Authority! Building a Weather-Ready Nation aims to strengthen national resilience to the increasing vulnerabilities to extreme weather, water and climate hazards through greater partnerships across government, non-profits, academia, and private industry to ensure communities across the nation are ready and responsive in the face of any upcoming extreme events.

“It is truly incredible to see how far the Weather-Ready Nation Ambassador initiative has come,” said Louis W. Uccellini, Ph.D., Director, National Weather Service. “We are always looking for ways to extend our community outreach to enhance community response to extreme weather, water, and climate events. The ambassador program is a reflection of how that can be achieved through partnerships and collaboration. Thank you to all of the organizations that have embraced the initiative to create a Weather-Ready Nation -- we cannot do it alone!”

Signing on 10,000 ambassadors is more than just a numerical milestone. It is a testament to the National Weather Service’s ability to positively impact the lives of American citizens across the United States and its territories. The embrace of external organizations far and wide has made it possible for vital weather safety information to reach potentially vulnerable communities in 15 languages – a feat that may not have otherwise been attainable.

“As we see increasing impacts from storms and floods throughout Pittsburgh, it is more important than ever to create partnerships and provide residents with information to make sound weather safety decisions. We are excited about this opportunity to build a Weather-Ready Nation and will work with our partners in Pittsburgh to create a climate-resilient community,” said Robert Weimar, Executive Director, Pittsburgh Water and Sewer Authority.

The extensive reach of the ambassadors has resulted in many noteworthy successes. For example:

• There has been a drop in the number of severe weather fatalities, particularly lightning and storm surge deaths since 2017.
• The sharing of weather safety information has increased, especially during campaigns such as Turn Around Don’t Drown and When Thunder Roars Go Indoors.
• There is a continued interest from a diverse group of ambassadors eager to engage their employees, stakeholders and the general public about weather safety.

This is a celebration for all of the organizations working together to improve the nation’s readiness for extreme weather, as government action alone cannot build a Weather-Ready Nation. We welcome additional organizations to become ambassadors as force multipliers in the weather safety effort.

Ready to sign up as an ambassador? Visit www.weather.gov/wrn to find out how!

Read more about what our first WRN Ambassador thinks about reaching 10,000.