There's a chance you heard severe weather sirens going off in your community today. It's a part of Severe Weather Awareness Week here in metro Detroit.
Today's tornado drill took place at 1 p.m.
The National Weather Service is also conducting Skywarn storm spotter trainings this month and next month.
Skywarn spotters are everyday citizens trained to observe and report severe weather in their communities.
Some of the things spotters watch for when conditions are right for a tornado include: A beaver's tail -- that's a smooth flat cloud band coming from the edge of the cloud base, a wall cloud -- this comes about 10 to 20 minutes before a tornado, and of course, the notorious condensation funnel.
You can learn more in spotter training conducted in person or online. Classes will teach you the elements of severe thunderstorms, how to report your observations and severe storm structure.
