National Weather Service in Boulder not concerned after reaching Twitter posting limits

Jonson Kuhn, Daily Camera, Boulder, Colo.
·2 min read

Jul. 5—Storm spotters for the National Weather Service in Boulder were unable to utilize Twitter Tuesday night during heavy storms due to new site limitations, but the weather service said it caused no hindrance in their ability to receive important weather updates or alert the public.

NWS issued a flood advisory for areas including Boulder and Broomfield as well as a weather statement for all of Boulder County Tuesday night as storms moved through the area.

An announcement was made via Twitter at 8:13 p.m. Tuesday that volunteer storm spotters were unable to receive all messages sent over Twitter "due to issues with Twitter rate limits."

But Warning Coordination Meteorologist Greg Heavener said Twitter is only one of many means used to exchange information internally, as well as to the public.

"Twitter is really more of just a way for us to data mine," Heavener said. "It's just one tool in our tool chest but it doesn't affect our operations whatsoever."

NWS often uses Twitter to receive messages from storm spotters regarding incoming weather warnings, but due to the large number of reports sent through, fees will apply for unverified accounts after reading 600 posts per day, one of the changes implemented after Elon Musk's $44 billion purchase of the popular social media platform.

NWS storm spotters have been trained through workshops to assist meteorologists in monitoring extreme weather and are required to call in any potentially life-threatening situations as opposed to relying on social media. In fact, phone calls and emails are preferred when it comes to "really nasty weather water events," Heavener said.

In addition to utilizing phones, Heavener said that NWS employs emergency alert systems through television broadcasts and also relies on dedicated radio frequencies through the NOAA Weather Radio All Hazards, all of which automatically alert the public.

"Our communication was never deprecated at all," Heavener said. "Twitter is just one way we get information, but it by no means affected our way of getting out important weather-related information and no one was ever at risk. Having multiple ways to receive the warnings, it ensures that no one misses potential life-saving weather water watches and warnings."