R.S.W.S.

R.S.W.S.                                                           Since 2005                                                                                                                        R.S.W.S.                                                                       Since 2005


Movies & TV Shows List
Local Radar Super Resolution Base Reflectivity
Kids Moves
Adult Moves
Supernatural The Animation Season 1 Episode 1-22
Severance Season 1-2 Episode 1-19
Supernatural Season 1-15 Episode 1-327
Stranger Things Season 1-4 Episode 1-42
The Boys Season 1-4 Episode 1-32
Terminator The Sarah Connor Chronicles S1-2 E1-30
Good Omens Season 1-2 Episode 1-12
American Gods Season 1-3 Episode 1-26
Timeless Season 1-2 Episode 1-27
The Invisible Man Season 1 Episode 1-45
Almost Human Season 1 Episode 1-13
Reboot Season 1-4 Episode 1-47
Bill Nye the Science Guy Season 1-5 Episode 1-100
Star Trek The Next Generation Season 1-7 Episode 1-176
Star Trek Picard Season 1-3 Episode 1-30
Firefly Season 1 Episode 1-14
Des Moines Co Public Safety
 
Des Moines County Public Safety

scanner radio app FREE
 

Des Moines County CERT team to dissolve at end of the year
 Sep 23, 2025 Updated Sep 23, 2025

------
Members of the Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) of Des Moines County pose for a photo in May 2025. Des Moines County Emergency Management announced on Tuesday the CERT will dissolve at the end of the year. (Des Moines County Emergency Management)

Des Moines County Emergency Management
----

Des Moines County Emergency Management (DMCEM) has announced that the Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) will be officially dissolved as of Dec. 31.

“There has been a noticeable decline in active membership and participation in recent years, largely due to the natural aging of our dedicated volunteers and the challenges of recruiting new members,” DMCEM said in a press release issued on Tuesday.

“Despite numerous outreach efforts, sustaining the level of involvement needed to keep the program operational and effective has become increasingly difficult.”

The CERT program, a national initiative supported by FEMA, was designed to train volunteers to assist in disaster response, provide support during emergencies, and promote preparedness in their communities.

“Des Moines County’s CERT team has proudly served the area for nearly 20 years, supporting local events, emergency exercises, and natural disaster response efforts,” DMCEM said.

“This decision has not come lightly,” DMCEM Coordinator Shannon Prado said in a statement.

“Over the years, the dedication, resilience, and selflessness of this team have been nothing
Their unwavering commitment to preparedness and public service has played a vital role in supporting Des Moines County during emergencies, public events, and times of need.

“From disaster response training to assisting during severe weather events, their contributions have made a lasting and positive impact on our community.

“With fewer new volunteers stepping forward and many of our long-standing members reaching retirement age, the program is no longer sustainable in its current form.”

“Officials recognize the important legacy the CERT members leave behind,” DMCEM said in their release.

“Emergency Management extends its deepest gratitude to every individual who gave their time, training, and compassion to help keep the community safe.”

Although the CERT program is coming to an end in Des Moines County, residents who are passionate about community service and emergency response are encouraged to continue their involvement in other meaningful ways.

Des Moines County residents can explore a wide range of volunteer opportunities, including emergency response and disaster recovery, through the GivePulse Volunteer Hub offered by the United Way of Southeast Iowa. This online platform connects volunteers with organizations that need help — from assisting with food distribution and shelter support to participating in disaster relief activities.

To sign up or browse available opportunities, visit the United Way of Southeast Iowa’s GivePulse Volunteer Hub at

“While the CERT program may be ending, the spirit of service remains strong in our community,” said Prado. “We hope to see that same dedication continue through new volunteer channels.”

For questions about the dissolution of the CERT team or local emergency preparedness resources, please contact Shannon Prado, EMA Coordinator at (319)  or by email at
 

Des Moines County SKYWARN volunteer weather-spotting program disbanded
 Mar 31, 2023 Updated May 4, 2024

----------
A Des Moines County SKYWARN severe weather spotters course at the Capitol Theater in Burlington on March 12, 2018. (Des Moines County CERT/SKYWARN)

Des Moines County CERT/SKYWARN
---------

The Des Moines County Emergency Management’s SKYWARN weather-spotting volunteer program has been disbanded.

SKYWARN volunteers learned of the decision to end the program in an email from Des Moines County Emergency Management coordinator Gina Hardin on Tuesday.

SKYWARN spotters are volunteers that worked to report information to Des Moines County Emergency Management’s weather operations center at the Des Moines County Communications (DESCOM) headquarters and to the National Weather Service when severe weather hit the area.

In the email sent to SKYWARN volunteers, Hardin wrote that the decision to end the program came after struggles in recent years to maintain membership, staffing, and volunteer availability.

“We’re disbanding primarily because we don’t have enough volunteers to help in the weather operations center and be the field spotters,” Hardin told The Hawk Eye. “Our numbers had been declining, obviously due to COVID, like every other volunteer organization.”

Hardin said she hoped the program would gain more volunteers following the weather spotter class held on March 1, but that they were unsuccessful in gaining more members.

Hardin said the program had about 20 members, but only had four active members available to work at SKYWARN’s weather operation center as of recently, and that those members had limited availability.

“Mid-late-afternoon and late evening is when then storms (typically) come in,” Hardin said. “Unfortunately, we don’t have enough people to make sure that we can run the weather operations center and place our field spotters like we want to...It takes quite a few people to do that.”

Hardin said, ideally, the program needed a total of four volunteers working at the weather operations center when severe weather hits the area. The number of field spotters needed would typically depend on how big and bad a storm was.

“We always tried to send them out in pairs when they’re out doing the field spotting,” Hardin said. “We would like to have 15-20 people for every storm that comes into the county, but we just don’t have the volunteers to do that.”

Hardin also explained that the group was having difficulty getting some volunteers to attend meetings and training sessions on a consistent basis.

The SKYWARN program had been in place for about 18 years and, at its peak, had around 30 volunteer members, Hardin said.

Des Moines County was somewhat unique in having an official SKYWARN team, in that there are only four or five non-emergency responder teams in the state of Iowa, according to Hardin.

Typically, many Iowa counties reply on first responder and law enforcement for their storm-spotting needs

SKYWARN spotters were trained to report on weather conditions, such as wind gusts, hail size, rainfall, and cloud formations that would indicate developing tornados, derechos, or severe thunderstorms.

In doing so, the information spotters shared would then used to inform the public of severe weather and to help advise dispatchers of the potential need to sound the outdoor warning siren system in Des Moines County.

SKYWARN members were also required to attend a National Weather Service weather spotter class once a year, attend monthly training meetings, and participate in activations and weekly radio checks to maintain membership.

“The National Weather Service just likes to have (weather reports from spotters in the field), because it gives them confirmation of what they’re seeing on radar,” Hardin explained.

“Sometimes the way the radar shoots out from (their location in Davenport), with the curvature of the Earth, they can’t see down low as well, so the (field spotter) reports are what we want to get to the National Weather Service. And that’s what SKYWARN was helping do.”

With SKYWARN now disbanded, Hardin says the former SKYWARN volunteers and others in the community who have taken weather-spotter classes over the years can still work as spotters for the National Weather Service and report what they are seeing directly to them.

DESCOM will also still receive weather reports directly from the National Weather Service, Hardin said.

“The general public is not going to see much change at all, if any,” Hardin added.

SKYWARN volunteers that are not a member of Des Moines County’s Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) have been instructed to turn in their SKYWARN radios and badges to the Des Moines County Emergency Management Office and remove the SKYWARN frequency from their personal radios by April 14.

Des Moines County Emergency Agency is still planning to have volunteers help with the monthly siren and hold radio checks. More information on those initiatives will be released at a later time.

Hardin said the SKYWARN program may be revived in the future if enough volunteers become available to consistently maintain the program.

“I just want to say that these volunteers have been incredible over the years,” Hardin said.

“They would watch the storms two or three days out, and keep an eye on what’s happening, and were ready to drop anything, whatever they were doing, and go to weather ops and go out to their weather spotting locations at the drop of a hat.

“They put a lot of time and effort into over the years. It’s heartbreaking that we don’t enough people to keep it going.”
 


Power by http://www.avast.com/index

website uptime

Fiber Internet
Sites Track
Web Counter

This site was last updated Friday, October 10, 2025 10:08:24 PM  By: R.S.W.S.