COMMUNITY EVENTS

Spring clean-up set

Pea Ridge Spring Cleanup is from 7 a.m. – 7 p.m. Tuesday, April 8, through Friday, April 11, and from 7 a.m. – 5 p.m. Saturday, April 13. The city will not provide curbside pick-up.

Dumpsters will be at the city property behind Village Hardware.

All participants need to bring a form of identification and proof of city residency, for example, current paid water bill.

Helping Hands will have a truck at the cleanup from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday, April 11.

There is a maximum of three trips per household.

Items not accepted for disposal include household trash, construction material, anything containing freon or items too large to fit in the dumpster.

Community Storm Spotter Training set

Meteorologists and emergency management officials are preparing for what may fall from the sky this spring. Trained citizen storm spotters are a critical part of their preparations.

Pea Ridge area residents can receive free storm spotter training from 5News meteorologists Joe Pennington and Garrett Lewis at 5 p.m. Saturday, March 15, in the Pea Ridge High School Cafeteria/ auditorium. Additional subjects like community weather emergency plans will also be covered.

Many people think storm spotting is something done by emergency personnel and amateur radio operators. The truth is that they are only part of a wide network of citizens who can provide valuable information through trained observations.

The upcoming training is for all citizens, from those affiliated with storm spotting organizations to those who just want a better understanding of what’s happening around them when skies turn dark. It includes information on how severe storms form and what they look like, and statistics on severe storms and the damage they cause.

Attendees will also learn to discern between storm systems that have severe potential from those that only have menacing-looking clouds. Storm spotters play a vital role in identifying dangerous conditions where lives are in jeopardy.

During severe weather events, emergancy officials and the National Weather Service office in Tulsa receive information from many sources. Citizens with storm spotting knowledge and access to communications such as a telephone or the internet are an important part of reporting conditions in real time.

While significant advancements have been made in identifying and reporting potentially dangerous weather, it still takes trained people on the ground to confirm what is really happening in the sky.

There is no need to sign up for this class. Just show up and learn! Anyone can learn to be a storm spotter, even kids, so bring the family and enjoy.

For information, contact Pea Ridge City Hall 4511122 or NWA Wx Watch by emailing nwawxwatch@ yahoo.com.