I didn’t get my warning! Who’s to blame? In a nutshell…you are.

In today’s world there is absolutely no reason to be caught off guard when storms approach. In wake of the last few weather outbreaks here in Lanier/Lowndes County I’ve read where many of you humans seem to be looking for someone to blame because you were caught with your proverbial pants down.

Hurricanes/Tropical Systems often times come our way. We watch them for days sometimes a week or more while they develop out in the Atlantic Ocean just off the coast of Africa. There is no reason for a Hurricane/Tropical System to catch anyone off guard.

Pop-up evening Thunderstorms might catch some of you off guard and rightfully so because they’re sneaky and just kinda pop up.

Tornadoes can be sudden or part of an advancing weather system that already has a history of producing tornadoes.

If a weather system is advancing on your locale then you probably should be concerned about the possibility of a tornado and consider yourself under a self-imposed “Tornado Watch”

I’ve seen the posts and heard the talk about the obsolete siren system here in Lakeland/Lanier County. I understand the desire to feel safe but shouldn’t that be everyone’s responsibility and not just government officials?

I’ve heard people say that they can’t hear the sirens inside their home…well guess what? The sirens are telling people to GO INSIDE and SHELTER not step outside to listen to the siren and gawk at the sky.

The other evening when the weather conditions changed rapidly I got one Tornado Warning and 10-20 seconds later I lost my electricity.

What did I do? I got my humans and their beloved dog Izzy into their safe space, I made a post which simply read “TORNADO WARNING—SEEK SHELTER NOW!! THIS IS NO MONKEY BUSINESS!” I then sent a handful of text messages warning of the coming twister. Then I listened for on oncoming train.

All that happened in a matter of just a couple to three minutes.

My point?

Warnings, Sirens, Alerts, etc…are all good and work best when all are utilized. However, depending on where a funnel cloud is when it dips down and makes contact with the ground and becomes a tornado and where you are when that happens may not leave time for a warning to go out. In other words, your ONLY warning might be the sound of that freight train heading straight for you and your family.

What I’m saying is that you humans need to learn to start showing some personal responsibility for your own well being.

Be alert to your regional weather and forecast for your area.

Buy a weather alert radio. Follow Weather Heads on social media, like Valdosta Monkey, check out Georgia Storm Troopers (GST) on Facebook, listen to your local weather forecast.

If you really want advanced weather alerts you should use “Zello” (an App in the App Store) and join GST there and you’ll get weather alerts before your local TV station has a chance to work them into their lineup.

If you have questions or want to learn more about Georgia Storm Troopers, just search for Valdosta Monkey on Facebook, inbox him and ask to speak with Weather Monkey and he’ll hook ya up with me.

You are invited to “Like” and “Follow” Valdosta Monkey on Facebook