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National Weather Service Tabletop Tests SLU’s Severe Weather Readiness

How would Saint Louis University respond if a severe tornado was expected to sweep through campus? That was the scenario SLU’s Critical Incident Management Team worked through during a tabletop exercise on March 10, the last day of this year’s Severe Weather Preparedness Week in Missouri.

A National Weather Service meteorologist presents to a classroom full of people standing in front of a projection screen

National Weather Service Meteorologist Matt Beitscher (A&S Grad ’20) provides an overview of the services NWS offers as part of a March 10 tabletop exercise for SLU’s Critical Incident Management Team.

The exercise was led by National Weather Service (NWS) Meteorologist Matt Beitscher (A&S Grad ’20), who also trains storm spotters throughout the region. Meteorology students from SLU were invited to observe the session, which used actual data from a past tornado event to inform the discussion.  

Become a Storm Spotter

“I want to thank everyone in the room for allowing the students to see some of the inner workings of how public safety is handled on your level,” Beitscher said following the exercise. “I can't think of many organizations that would let that happen. Thank you for being so open to this educational opportunity.”

Beitscher wasn’t the only SLU graduate working at the NWS to participate in the exercise. Molly Gerhardt (A&S ’22) is completing an internship at the organization’s St. Louis office while she pursues her master's degree at SLU. She was also one of the students who helped the University become certified as “StormReady” in 2021.

Read More About SLU Becoming a StormReady Organization

The NWS tabletop was one of the drills and exercises SLU conducts every year to assess and evaluate its emergency plans and capabilities. An annual Emergency Response and Evacuation Exercise was held in December. In June, the University will participate in a citywide exercise led by the U.S. Coast Guard.

“We would like to thank the NWS for leading this very important training exercise,” said Michael Parkinson, SLU’s assistant director for emergency preparedness and Clery compliance. “Our Critical Incident Management Team is better prepared to deal with a significant weather-related event impacting our campus community.  We look forward to continuing to build our partnership with the NWS and becoming an even stronger ‘StormReady’ campus.”

During an emergency, SLU’s Critical Incident Management Team (CIMT) provides operational support and guidance to frontline incident responders involved in crisis response and recovery. Divisions and departments represented on the CIMT include:

Learn More About Emergency Preparedness at SLU