Weather alert radios broadcast more than weather updates

NOAA Weather Radio All Hazards (NWR) is a nationwide network of radio stations broadcasting continuous weather information directly from your local National Weather Service office.

But NWR broadcasts more than just official NWS warnings, watches and forecasts. NWR works with the Federal Communication Commission's (FCC) Emergency Alert System making it your one-stop source for real-time weather and emergency information 24 hours a day.

Cooperating with Homeland Security, Federal, State, and Local Emergency Managers and other public officials, NWR also broadcasts warning and post-event information for all types of hazards including:

Weather alert radios can be programmed to receive only alerts affecting your area

Certain Midland weather alert radios can be programmed to receive only the alerts you want only from the counties you choose. Weather alert radios without the county programming feature will receive alerts for all surrounding counties. Midland’s WR300 model allows you to program the types of warnings you receive. For example, inland Florida residents can set a WR300 weather alert radio to receive alerts for their county only, plus disable alerts for marine warnings that affect coastal counties.

Some emergency alerts do not originate from the National Weather Service. NWS activates the system for non-weather related emergencies at the request of local and/or state officials. You’ll receive an alert over your weather alert radio only if your community uses the system as a means to alert the public. Recent examples of local authorities relying on NWR to distribute information include a chemical spill in Kentucky and a police stand-off in Tulsa.