Oakland County was designated by the National Weather Service (NWS) as a StormReady community in 2004. StormReady is a nationwide volunteer community preparedness program that started in 1999 in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Oakland County has always taken a pro-active approach to hazardous weather operations, however, this designation lets residents, business owners and visitors know that we are committed to safety and preparedness.
Being able to notify the citizens in Oakland County that hazardous weather is imminent is the major component of Oakland County's Early Weather Warning Program. This is done through the Outdoor Warning Siren System which is comprised of 275 sirens and the Tone Alert Receiver System which is an indoor warning system that provides detailed, updated and all-clear hazardous weather information to schools, hospitals, businesses, citizens, media, police, fire, etc.
Per statistics from the National Weather Service, we Americans live in the most severe weather-prone country on Earth. Each year, Americans cope with an average of 10,000 thunderstorms, 2,500 floods, 1,000 tornadoes and an average of 10 deadly hurricanes. Over 90% of all presidentially declared disasters are weather related, leading to around 500 deaths and over $23 billion in damage per year.
Oakland County was the 4th county in Michigan and is the 5th largest community in the United States to obtain the StormReady designation.
For additional information on the StormReady program, visit NOAA/NWS's StormReady Program Website.