At the same time, some of you may have questions regarding why you may not have received a call even though a warning was issued for your county or the sirens were going off near you. Remember, what makes this system so unique and valueable is because it only warns you when your address is in the path of the severe storm. The National Weather Service now uses a polygon system for warnings and not counties. Therefore, if a storm is on the othe side of the county from where you live, you will NOT receive a call because at the time you will NOT be in the path of the storm. However, if your address falls within the warning polygon, then a Weathercall will be placed to you. Some counties sound the sirens when a warning is issued anywhere in the county, but just because you hear the sirens doesn't mean the storm is headed towards you. The sirens are there tell you that a warning is issued for somewhere in your county, but a Weathercall will be placed to the phone numbers you have chosen only if you are in the part of the county where the storm is located.

  Also, Weathercalls are placed for warnings only, not watches. Watches are issued to alert you to the possibility of severe weather, warnings are when it is already occurring. But don't worry, we always have all watches and warnings on Newschannel 8.

   If you get your first call you must say something when you answer it in order to activate the message. If you pick it up and wait for a warning without saying something the system won't be activated for your address.

   All addresses receive Weathercalls even if you live in a rural area or the corner of a county, however p.o. boxes don't count.

   If you know someone who wants Weathercall, but doesn't have a computer, you can have them contact us via voicemail and we will send them an application and address to sign up.

   Only the telephone numbers and warnings that you chose will receive Weathercalls. There must be a severe thunderstorm, tornado warning or flash flood warning for your address in order to receive a call. You may hear thunder, heavy rain, gusty winds and even small hail, but unless there is a threat to your life or property as in a severe storm, tornado or flooding, you will not receive a call.

   What makes this service so unique is it's precision. You will have peace of mind and maybe even a good night's sleep in knowning that your phone will ring ONLY if you have severe weather headed towards your home.

   I hope this answers some of your questions.