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North Little Rock, Arkansas<\/strong> \u2013 The National Weather Service (NWS)<\/strong> office in North Little Rock<\/strong> is scaling back some of its operations following nationwide staffing reductions<\/strong>. In an email sent Friday to its core partners, the agency confirmed that it is permanently discontinuing two services<\/strong>: the Hazardous Weather Outlook<\/strong> and Agricultural Observations<\/strong>.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The Hazardous Weather Outlook<\/strong>, a product that provided text-based alerts for potential weather hazards over the coming week, is being phased out in favor of a newer, graphic-based format still in development. The Agricultural Observations<\/strong>, once a daily weather report tailored to the needs of farmers, has also been retired.<\/p>\n According to Jimmy Barham<\/strong>, meteorologist-in-charge at the North Little Rock office, both services had become outdated and were receiving little public engagement. He noted that many users now turn to social media platforms like X (formerly Twitter)<\/strong> rather than the NWS website for weather alerts.<\/p>\n \u201cA lot of times when we turn these old archived products off, we don\u2019t get a single phone call,\u201d Barham said in an interview.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n <\/p>\n The changes come as the National Weather Service<\/strong>, under the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)<\/strong>, grapples with a significant loss of personnel<\/strong>. An Associated Press report<\/strong> earlier this week revealed that hundreds of jobs have been cut across the agency. Nearly half of NWS\u2019s 122 field offices have seen staffing drop by at least 20%, and several are no longer staffed 24\/7. Many veteran forecasters and managers have opted for early retirement.<\/p>\n Barham acknowledged that the North Little Rock office has lost staff this year but declined to give specifics. While the office is officially listed as having 21 positions, not all of them are currently filled. Still, he said the team is maintaining around-the-clock coverage.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve had a reduction in staff kind of throughout the spring,\u201d he said. \u201cWhere we\u2019re at now is kind of where we\u2019ve been since April.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n He stressed that the office’s ability to issue severe weather alerts, watches, and warnings<\/strong> remains unchanged.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ll continue to fulfill our core mission of protecting life and property. During major weather events, we\u2019ll always have the staff we need.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n <\/p>\n The Little Rock weather office<\/strong>, which opened in 1874, became a forecast center in 1971, taking over statewide forecasting responsibilities from Memphis<\/strong>. The Weather Bureau, as it was originally known, was founded in 1870 and became the National Weather Service<\/strong> in the late 1960s.<\/p>\n In a statement, NOAA spokesperson Erica Grow Cei<\/strong> said the agency is working to address staffing gaps by sending in temporary help and posting job openings in offices most in need \u2014 despite a hiring freeze across the department.<\/p>\n \u201cThe National Weather Service continues to meet its core missions and is taking steps to prioritize critical research and services that keep the American public safe and informed,\u201d she said.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Besides discontinuing the Hazardous Weather Outlook and Agricultural Observations, additional service adjustments<\/strong> took effect Saturday, July 13<\/strong>.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Twice-daily weather balloon launches<\/strong> will now occur at 7 p.m. and 1 a.m.<\/strong>, rather than 7 a.m. and 7 p.m., to ensure that more staff are available during the launch \u2014 especially important since the balloons are filled with hydrogen.<\/p>\n The office has also suspended all public outreach efforts<\/strong>, including SKYWARN storm spotter training<\/strong>.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The Area Forecast Discussion<\/strong>, previously issued twice a day, will now go out only once daily at 1 a.m.<\/strong>, with updates issued only for major shifts in the weather pattern. Aviation weather discussions<\/strong> will continue to be released with every Terminal Aerodrome Forecast<\/strong> update.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Climate data<\/strong> will be generated only once a day at midnight, with the intermediate afternoon run continuing in automated form<\/strong>.<\/p>\n Graphicast images<\/strong>, which provide visually enhanced weather briefings, will now be created only for significant weather events.<\/p>\n Other regional offices have made similar adjustments. The Shreveport, Louisiana<\/strong>, office \u2014 which covers nine counties in southwest Arkansas<\/strong> \u2014 made service reductions last month. Despite the changes, meteorologist-in-charge Brad Bryant<\/strong> emphasized that the office remains staffed 24\/7.<\/p>\n \u201cThere will be no change to our operating hours. A meteorologist can always be reached 24\/7\/365,\u201d he said in a message to partners.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n <\/p>\n In Tulsa, Oklahoma<\/strong>, where the NWS oversees seven counties in northwest Arkansas<\/strong>, meteorologist Mike Lacy<\/strong> said that while their office also saw a 20% staffing drop, services haven\u2019t been affected, thanks in part to a larger team.<\/p>\n Barham hopes the public won\u2019t notice the difference in day-to-day operations.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ll still be here around the clock. Our watches and warnings will still go out. We\u2019ll increase staffing during severe weather just like always,\u201d he said.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n \u201cHopefully, our public, partners and stakeholders don\u2019t even notice the difference. But we do feel a responsibility to let people know when we\u2019re making changes, and that\u2019s why we sent out the email.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" North Little Rock, Arkansas \u2013 The National Weather Service (NWS) office in North Little Rock is scaling back some of its operations following nationwide staffing reductions. In an email sent Friday to its core partners, the agency confirmed that it is permanently discontinuing two services: the Hazardous Weather Outlook and Agricultural Observations. The Hazardous […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":17,"featured_media":6003,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6002","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\n