Wright-Patt response on Tornado Warning

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WRIGHT-PATTERSON AFB, Ohio --  Wright-Patterson AFB employs highly-trained meteorologists who work around the clock providing weather forecasting support to the base's 24/7 operations, it's over 27,000 personnel, and several multi-million dollar aircraft. They are empowered to issue weather watches, warnings, and advisories independent of the National Weather Service if the need arises to protect critical base assets. Our team uses a Doppler Weather Radar for severe storm interrogation. Last night, one of these meteorologists identified a Tornado Velocity Signature (TVS) pattern in the radar pattern immediately upstream in a cell heading towards WPAFB. Although this cell was rather short lived in duration, it did produce winds of 64 mph on Wright-Patterson's airfield. EF0 Tornados, the lowest and weakest on a scale ranging from EF0-EF5 using the Enhanced Fujita Scale for tornado identification, have wind speeds that start at 65 mph. Our team felt the warning was the prudent thing to do based on the localized conditions around the base, flight-line operations, etc.