Assessing the Impacts of a Weather Decision Support System for Oklahoma Public Safety Officials

Abstract

Oklahoma’s First-response Information Resource System using Telecommunications (OK-First) has been used for many years to provide education, training, connections, and follow-up support for public safety officials with emergency management responsibilities in Oklahoma. Public safety officials use OK-First training and Mesonet tools to plan and make decisions to save lives and property. However, like most public systems, little is known about user interactions with tools, decisions made, and estimated savings using a weather decision support system. This study used a mixed approach of instruments and methods to collect and analyze data from three key sources to assess the perceptions, beneficiaries, and applications of weather support systems for public safety officials. Results showed that a diverse set of tools were needed and used by public safety officials to make decisions in hazardous weather conditions. OK-First tools resulted in estimated self-reported cost savings of over $1.2 M for 12 months. This study provides a crucial step in determining user interactions with tools, training, and services to better understand weather decision support systems used during hazardous weather.

Listening to Stakeholders II: Adapting Research Products on Subseasonal to Seasonal Heavy Precipitation Events by Exploring Options with Users

“…Communications with local NWS Forecast Offices were also important to emergency managers, and often NWS briefings were used to identify which areas might experience the largest impacts during a predicted event. Consistent with prior literature (e.g., Na-Yemeh et al 2022;Hoss and Fischbeck 2016;Baumgart et al 2008;Morss and Ralph 2007), trust with forecasters gained through these briefings was instrumental in participants' decision-making processes.…”

Smart Installation Weather Warning Decision Support

“…Decision support systems prove valuable in times of crisis. According to Na-Yemeh et al [16], Oklahoma's OK-First weather DSS helped through generating $1.2 million in self-reported cost savings for 12 months. Research studies have developed user interfaces to support decision-makers with statistical summaries [17] and probabilistic forecasts [18] for rapid responses to weather conditions.…”