Tornado season has arrived, and the National Weather Service has started its annual training sessions for Skywarn spotters.

Jackie Anderson is the warning coordination meteorologist at the NWS forecast office in White Lake Township. She says the information spotters provide is crucial during tornadoes, severe thunderstorms, and flooding rains.

“When we’re issuing warnings, we’re looking at what’s going on with radar,” she said. “Our spotters really provide us with that ground truth as to what severe weather is actually happening in their area.”

Anderson says meteorologists says spotter reports help keep the public informed during bad weather.

“We can actually update our warnings to say trained spotters have confirmed one inch hail, 60 mph winds, tornadoes,” she said.

What do spotters learn?

A typical spotter training session lasts up to 90 minutes. Anderson says NWS staff use that time to review the previous year’s severe weather.

“We talk about different events that have impacted southeast Michigan,” she said. “We talk about what to look for, and then how you can report it to us.”

Spotters learn how to identify the early indications of a severe thunderstorm or tornado, such as the difference between wall clouds and shelf clouds.

Southeast Michigan saw a few tornadoes in 2024, including one that struck Livonia without warning in June, killing a 2-year-old boy. A rare February twister touched down in Grand Blanc, and a weak tornado spun up briefly in Holly in November.

Safety comes first

Spotting storms does not mean chasing them. Anderson encourages spotters to be careful.

“While we want to know what’s happening and get that ground truth information, the safety of all our spotters is the most important thing,” she said.

The White Lake office trains about 100 people a year and offers classes in several counties. Anderson says they do not need any background in meteorology to become a spotter.

More: NWS seeks winter weather spotters in Detroit

“We welcome anybody who’s interested in helping us provide that ground truth information,” she said. “People can also attend if they’re just generally interested in severe weather safety information.”

Spotters are always needed

Anderson cannot comment on recent layoffs at the National Weather Service, but she says spotters — who are not paid — are vital to the agency.

“We always rely heavily on spotters regardless of the time of year, whether it’s winter or severe weather season,” she said. “Having that ground truth support really helps us in the warning process.”

More: Local meteorologist says NWS layoffs risk public safety

The agency has several spotter training sessions coming up. You can find one here.

March 16-22 is Severe Weather Awareness Week in Michigan. NWS will conduct a statewide tornado drill at 1 p.m. on Wednesday, March 19.