The National Weather Service in Peachtree City posted this radar image of a high-intensity rainfall event today in Heard County which shows that some areas of the county received eight inches or more of rainfall in just a few hours (regions in purple). However, the CoCoRaHS network has only one observer in Heard County, in an area to the north of the core of heavy rain. The UGA station at Roopville is also to the north of the storm. The only National Weather Service coop station in Heard County, at Franklin (right near the middle of today’s storm), closed in 2005. Without radar imagery, no one would be able to see the extent of the precipitation. But observers on the ground are needed to make sure that the radar calibration is accurate, especially in high-intensity rainfall events like this one. If accurate rainfall measurements are important to folks in your county, particularly for insurance claims, then encourage them to consider joining a volunteer group like CoCoRaHS and making their own precipitation measurements. Or do it yourself! It just takes a few minutes a day and can be an invaluable source of information. Go to www.cocorahs.org for more information. County agents in many states are already in the network!
