Here’s What Oklahoma Residents Need to Know Before Severe Weather Strikes

Every year, Oklahoma's stormchasers and meteorologists play an important role in reporting live weather updates to the community. Although they do their best to report as much information as possible, there are a few ways that Oklahomans can help make their work more efficient in a time of need.

One of the questions that news stations get most during live weather reporting is some variation of "will the storm hit my area?" Regardless of who you're asking, forecasters only have limited time to report coverage as it's happening and make it relevant to those who are being directly affected first.

Local storm chaser encourages Oklahomans to learn simple information about where they are during storm season.

Stormchaser Mark Slavin urged Oklahomans to do their part in the smallest way that can help every weather reporter out there do their job even more efficiently.

Comments have been edited for clarity.

"During severe weather," he said, "we can't always answers questions about 'is it going to hit my town?' We will always break it down by towns as events unfold, but it makes it so much easier on you if you know where you are on the map."

If folks understand where they are on a map, they can gain a better understanding of hwo the storm will affect them without meteorologists needing to report on their area specifically - an issue that many Oklahomans face currently.

Weather reporting in Oklahoma may not always include your area.

News stations generally cover wide ranges of areas in Oklahoma. For example, KSWO reports information regarding both north Texas and southwest Oklahoma. KFOR news covers the majority of north, central and even southern Oklahoma.

While watching meteorologists report on weather, they may not be discussing your area; but, you can still determine how it will affect you by understanding the maps and terms they may be using. But even these facts are just the start of what Oklahomans should know before severe weather strikes.