Anita in NC Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 If you don't are you in an area where you should have one? I finally ordered one from Amazon. The tornado that hit NC a month ago passed within 1 mile of our house. All the trees just down the road are gone. All the tornadoes on news make me nervous so I order the weather alert radio. You can program the counties that you want alerts for. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LidiyaDawn Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 What's the difference between a "weather alert radio" and a regular radio? Won't the regular local radio stations broadcast emergency information or whatever? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abidnginhim Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 We finally got one. We live too far out in the country to hear any sirens and our tv goes out when it storms so a radio is really the only way we have to hear alerts and warnings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MariannNOVA Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 yes - we actually have two of them. they provide a fair amount of peace of mind. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shellydon Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 Yes. We keep batteries around just for it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tammyla Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 Yes, we have a new one -$28, and live in the Midwest; the newer one doesn't go off all the time like the older +$50 model did. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrsBasil Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 I've been thinking about getting one. We don't have that many tornadoes, the last one that did damage was 2 or 3 years ago this week. Our town doesn't have sirens and I don't keep the TV or radio on all the time, so it would be peace of mind to have some type of alert system. Particularly at night. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tammyla Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 They turn themselves on with an alarm if there is an emergency weather advisory. What's the difference between a "weather alert radio" and a regular radio? Won't the regular local radio stations broadcast emergency information or whatever? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anita in NC Posted May 25, 2011 Author Share Posted May 25, 2011 What's the difference between a "weather alert radio" and a regular radio? Won't the regular local radio stations broadcast emergency information or whatever? With a regular radio it would have to be on for you to hear any alerts. With a weather alert radio it will sound an alarm and then announce the alert - flooding, tornadoes, severe storms, etc... Plus they are programmable so you get alerts just for the county that you live in. Here's a link to a detailed description: http://www.amazon.com/Midland-Consumer-WR-120B-Certified-Trilingual/dp/B00176T9OY/ref=sr_1_cc_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1306328600&sr=1-1-catcorr Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GoVanGogh Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 What's the difference between a "weather alert radio" and a regular radio? Won't the regular local radio stations broadcast emergency information or whatever? A weather alert radio goes off with an alarm when bad weather is predicted for your area. We have one. I decided last year to not use it anymore. :tongue_smilie: We had one of the earlier models that you can't program. I got tired of it going off a dozen times a night for flash floods two counties south of here. I am always super-aware of storms and am a very light sleeper. If bad weather is forecast, I am always up anyway. We may get a new one that we can program with our zip code and what alerts we want woken up for. Or I may go with the $2/month app for my cell phone. I haven't decided yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hsbaby Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 We are in Middle TN. We have a weather radio and a storm shelter in the garage. People thought we were crazy when we put in our shelter, but the peace of mind knowing we have somewhere safe to go is worth every penny to me! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LidiyaDawn Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 Okay wow, wildly different! ~ I had no idea such a neat thing existed! Very cool. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JFSinIL Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 With a regular radio it would have to be on for you to hear any alerts. With a weather alert radio it will sound an alarm and then announce the alert - flooding, tornadoes, severe storms, etc... Plus they are programmable so you get alerts just for the county that you live in. Here's a link to a detailed description: http://www.amazon.com/Midland-Consumer-WR-120B-Certified-Trilingual/dp/B00176T9OY/ref=sr_1_cc_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1306328600&sr=1-1-catcorr Thanks for the link - I just ordered one!!!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gooblink Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 Yes, we have a NOAA scanner that was going crazy last night due to severe t-storms in the area. We have a pocket version that we take on road trips and camping. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KnitWit Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 Yes, we have S.A.M.E. radios in the house and shop. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
olan719 Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 We are in Middle TN. We have a weather radio and a storm shelter in the garage. People thought we were crazy when we put in our shelter, but the peace of mind knowing we have somewhere safe to go is worth every penny to me! Yep, same here. A Midland weather radio and a safe room in the garage. The peace of mind is completely worth it. ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momtotkbb Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 Yes, Dh got me one a couple years ago. I need to read the manual though and re-program it bec he programmed it for several counties around us - including two different bordering states. I guess he wanted me to prepared:) I grew up in the mid-west (OK, TX and MO) and we had sirens to alert us - here in SC we have nothing. I like the weather radio especially for the middle of the night. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momofkhm Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 You can program the counties that you want alerts for. I may have to get a new one then. The one we have is old and we never turn it on anymore. We also live in Wake Co. We don't need to know when there is an alert for Person Co. Orange, Durham and Chatham counties maybe. Then the weather will probably be here soon. The one we have went off so often for things we didn't need to worry about that we've turned it off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SweetMissMagnolia Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 yes have had one for a few years now....we live in MS and have had several bad tornados this year--and I've personally come through some that have hit close to home so I'm very jumpy when they mention tornado weather....I used to have something on my phone where an alert would call my phone but it hasn't worked lately so I guess that service isn't available anymore....I got mine at Walgreens-our local tv station had a deal through the drug store where if you came during a certain week and got one it was like $10 less than regular price..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elise1mds Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 I should have one. We do have one in the tornado shelter, and we did have one in the house at one point. The problem is we live right on the cusp of two different areas and the radio would frequently get confused. Then it quit picking up any signal altogether. I probably should get a new one, but I have discovered that hearing that alarm freaks my kids out way more than watching me pack bags and haul them down into the shelter, so owning one may be more trouble than it's worth. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abacus2 Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 Yes, I bought one at Radio Shack a few years ago. It is programmed to only go off for events in the two counties we frequent. We rarely watch the news and there are no sirens in our area, so it is really nice to have that emergency information right when it's needed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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