Disaster prepping boost from storm tracking on dashboard

Disaster prepping has been boosted by a new thunderstorm tracking feature on Moreton Bay City Council’s (MBCC) online disaster dashboard.

Mayor Peter Flannery says the dashboard upgrade is a major step forward in keeping the community informed and is due to a new partnership with WeatherWatch.

“We’re proud to be the first council to introduce real-time thunderstorm risk information into our online dashboard,” he says.

“This new feature clearly shows which areas are most at risk from current thunderstorm activity.

“The system highlights severe thunderstorms and updates every five minutes using radar imagery from the Bureau of Meteorology’s Mt Stapylton station in Brisbane.”

The storm season is due to start in November.

Local Disaster Management Group chairman and Councillor Matthew Constance says the new feature will ensure residents have the best information at their fingertips when they need it most.

“Residents can now simply click on individual storm cells to see their severity and potential impacts at a glance,” he explains.

Cr Constance says ratepayers need to monitor the Bureau of Meteorology website and app for warnings alongside their dashboard updates on local weather, road closures, power outages, evacuation centres and more.

WeatherWatch meteorologist and Managing Director Anthony Cornelius says that having thunderstorm risk information publicly available will help with community readiness.

“Our Storm Intensity mapping combines advanced three-dimensional radar analysis with atmospheric data to identify storms that display the telling signs of severe conditions,” Cornelius says.

“Our goal is to make severe weather information accessible and easy to understand.”

But he adds a note of caution: “Like any weather analysis tool, it’s not a one-size-fits-all solution, which is why we recommend using it alongside official weather warnings for the most complete picture.”