trying to find a weather text site that will work on my phone.

[Pam G.]

I know, I know text is dying in some sites. But I thought I will need on but can't find it. especially when I losing my hearing. I notice I need it when I was going with my mother and daddy to a family member house in down the road past Huntsville. It really hard to have wifi on your phone when the parent don't have it in their car with no weather warnings. Yes I did sign up to one alert text system but it has not shown any alerts when I had a storm yesterday. We had a severe Thunder-storm and no alerts came on my text. Well I got it on tv and wifi because I was home. Do you know of a way to get text that work on a comsumer cellular phone that is local please in Madison County and Alabama? Thanks in advance.

 

[WesL]

Hi @Pam G.

Did you have a Severe Thunderstorm Warning yesterday? Most services won't notify you unless a warning is actually issued. Let me check around and see if we can help you out. What kind of phone do you have?

Wes

 

[Pam G.]

About two days ago. But you explain most will do that so maybe it was a choice by the weather people and thanks.

 

[Pam G.]

Hi @Pam G.

Did you have a Severe Thunderstorm Warning yesterday? Most services won't notify you unless a warning is actually issued. Let me check around and see if we can help you out. What kind of phone do you have?

Wes

Forgotten to tell you I using a comsumer cellular type phone.

 

[Mike S]

Try the Alabama SAF-T-Net. Click here.

It is a free service, though if you are charged for text messages then those charges do apply. You can also sign up for automated phone calls as well.



This is from their "about" page:

Alerts include:

• NWS Tornado Warnings
• NWS Severe Thunderstorm Warnings
• Baron-exclusive Twisting Storm Alerts
• Baron-exclusive Dangerous Storm Alerts
• And more

A few highlights from their Frequently Asked Questions page:

What is Alabama SAF-T-Net?
Alabama SAF-T-Net is a free weather alerting service for the residents of Alabama. It works with smart phone apps, text messaging, email and automated voice calls.
Alabama SAF-T-Net technology focuses on the worst of each storm, not the storms as a whole. This means the weather notifications you receive are more accurate, and specific to your selected locations. In addition, you receive exclusive notifications up to 15 minutes before the storm arrives.

How do I receive Alabama SAF-T-Net weather alerts?
Alabama SAF-T-Net weather notifications can be received several ways:

• The Alabama SAF-T-Net app (iOS and Android devices)
• A text-capable mobile device
• Through your email account
• Additionally, if you don’t have a cell phone, mobile device or email account, you can choose to receive automated phone calls on landlines.

What weather events will trigger an Alabama SAF-T-Net alert?
You can choose to receive notifications for any of the following instances. With the exception of Emergency Management alerts, all these are optional.

• National Weather Service Tornado Warnings (storm-based)
• National Weather Service Severe Thunderstorm Warnings (storm-based)
• National Weather Service Flash Flood Warnings (storm-based)
• Only with Alabama SAF-T-Net: Storms are entering your area.
• Only with Alabama SAF-T-Net: Notifications when a storm capable of producing hail, damaging winds OR flooding rains is approaching one or more of your alert locations. Each alert is accompanied with a Baron Tornado Index ranking of the storm’s tornado potential.
• Only with Alabama SAF-T-Net: Notifications when a storm containing potential tornadoes is approaching one or more of your alert locations. Each alert is accompanied with a Baron Tornado Index ranking of the storm’s tornado potential.
• Custom messages containing alert or safety information from local participating Emergency Management officials

 

[Pam G.]

Try the Alabama SAF-T-Net. Click here.

It is a free service, though if you are charged for text messages then those charges do apply. You can also sign up for automated phone calls as well.



This is from their "about" page:

Alerts include:

• NWS Tornado Warnings
• NWS Severe Thunderstorm Warnings
• Baron-exclusive Twisting Storm Alerts
• Baron-exclusive Dangerous Storm Alerts
• And more

A few highlights from their Frequently Asked Questions page:

What is Alabama SAF-T-Net?
Alabama SAF-T-Net is a free weather alerting service for the residents of Alabama. It works with smart phone apps, text messaging, email and automated voice calls.
Alabama SAF-T-Net technology focuses on the worst of each storm, not the storms as a whole. This means the weather notifications you receive are more accurate, and specific to your selected locations. In addition, you receive exclusive notifications up to 15 minutes before the storm arrives.

How do I receive Alabama SAF-T-Net weather alerts?
Alabama SAF-T-Net weather notifications can be received several ways:

• The Alabama SAF-T-Net app (iOS and Android devices)
• A text-capable mobile device
• Through your email account
• Additionally, if you don’t have a cell phone, mobile device or email account, you can choose to receive automated phone calls on landlines.

What weather events will trigger an Alabama SAF-T-Net alert?
You can choose to receive notifications for any of the following instances. With the exception of Emergency Management alerts, all these are optional.

• National Weather Service Tornado Warnings (storm-based)
• National Weather Service Severe Thunderstorm Warnings (storm-based)
• National Weather Service Flash Flood Warnings (storm-based)
• Only with Alabama SAF-T-Net: Storms are entering your area.
• Only with Alabama SAF-T-Net: Notifications when a storm capable of producing hail, damaging winds OR flooding rains is approaching one or more of your alert locations. Each alert is accompanied with a Baron Tornado Index ranking of the storm’s tornado potential.
• Only with Alabama SAF-T-Net: Notifications when a storm containing potential tornadoes is approaching one or more of your alert locations. Each alert is accompanied with a Baron Tornado Index ranking of the storm’s tornado potential.
• Custom messages containing alert or safety information from local participating Emergency Management officials

Thank-you.

 

[Mike S]

you're welcome. I hope it is what you are looking for.

 

[WesL]

I looked at that but it appears they no longer allow sms unless there is something I'm missing. I was able to login with my account but there is no way to sign up for a new account. Does it allow you so sign up for SMS via the app? Seems like an odd design if so.

 

[Mike S]

I looked at that but it appears they no longer allow sms unless there is something I'm missing. I was able to login with my account but there is no way to sign up for a new account. Does it allow you so sign up for SMS via the app? Seems like an odd design if so.

Its been a while since I've had it as an app. I didn't dislike it, I just decided to go with one phone app for weather warnings. If they are advertising the SMS service but it no longer works they need to pull it off the website.

31 Weather Call advertises SMS but there is an annual fee of $9.99 http://www.weathercall.net/waay/waay-at-home.html

 

[Pam G.]

Thanks Mike.

 

[Meteorologist Bobby Best]

I use two, one is The FEMA Alerts app.... It is free and GPS based.... The second one I use is; "Weather Alerts" (it has a symbol that is a yellow triangle, with a black exclamation point in the center)... It was like $3.99 or $4.99, not much.... The reason I like it, is because you can place up to 20 pinpoint markers, anywhere you want, and in the setting you can set it so that you'll be notified of weather from within 5 miles to up to 50 miles of that pinpoint, depending on how you set your settings up.... Additionally, you can go into the settings and adjust them, for each individual pinpoint, for exactly what NWS Watch, Warnings, Advisory, (they offer EVERY single message NWS sends, NOT just Warnings, but also like; Area Forecast Discussions and Zone Forecast too) or whatever you want that the NWS issues for each of your pinpoint areas!!!!

It's a VERY useful tool for me personally, being the sole person in charge of; severe, Winter, Tropical, etc. weather for the group of radio stations that I work for and the fact that I am on call 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year......

On my person smart phone, with this app, I have pinpoints set up of coarse for all 10 of our primary covered counties, along with pinpoints set up for counties both West, North, East, and South of us to give me plenty of heads up notice, of anything moving our way, long before it gets into our primary coverage area....

Others, not in the broadcasting/forecasting/warning business, like I am, appreciate this app's use and individual control of it's pinpoint areas, to set specific pinpoints for maybe like; home, work, a family member's home, counties that join them, for heads up notice of anything that is moving their way too...

There are a number of good apps out there, the SAF-T-Net app, mentioned above by Mike S is another good one also, that I've personally heard of.... If FREE apps are what you're looking for, as Mike S. suggested, the SAF-T-Net app has a GREAT reputation and the FEMA Alerts app, I mentioned, I've personally tested it's timing and reliability, and it alarms exactly when the SAME code is fired off, through both The NOAA Weather Radio System and The EAS....

An additional thing that I would suggest though, if you stick with just FREE weather alert apps or a paid app, is that you have more than one on your phone!!! Even the best of the best apps can fail!

Also, of coarse every home should have a NOAA Weather Radio and finally, when you're on the road, you need to know which radio stations offer FULL SERVICE severe weather coverage, INCLUDING for their RURAL COUNTIES too and NOT JUST for their PRIMARY COUNTIES!!!!!

I won't use this as a platform to promote the stations that I personally work for (though we are FULL SERVICE severe weather coverage stations), however I will say; there are VERY few FULL SERVICE severe weather coverage stations, again in particular that COVER the RURAL COUNTIES that they broadcast too EQUALLY as well as they do their primary population centers!!!

Anyway, I hope my suggestions on apps, along with a little additional information too, helps you as well as others, out when it comes to where you can turn for severe weather; Watch, Warning, Advisory, etc. information.....

 

[Pam G.]

Thanks Bobby Best Jr., I will look into the app.