Weatheradio Canada ?

[Mobby1-Kenobby]

Does anyone still listen to these broadcasts on a dedicated weather radio receiver anymore ? No one seems to even know about this system anymore. We did have a transmitter for this area that was particularly funded by the local municipal government but they decided that it was a waste of tax payer funds and cut funding for the transmitter. Fire chiefs from surrounding communities protested but were ignored by the municipality. None of the municipal administration were even familiar with the weather radio station or why it was being funded. They told the local fire chief that the cellular smartphones have made the weather radio system totally obsolete so there is no need to fund the local weather station anymore. It stopped broadcasting weather information recently. I guess I can toss my radio in the trash this week or send it to the recycling folks.

 

[harryshute]

Odd the Environment Canada stations are still working well here in the Edmonton area. Years back when an alert was sent out it took about half an hour before it appeared on social media. Now sometimes the alert comes on my phone first. In any event if you're in an area without power, like parts of Manitoba now, there are wind up radios that receive the signal.

 

[Mobby1-Kenobby]

The local station is off air now. My radio is the power by crank version. The local weather transmitter never had a backup GenSet or even battery backup so when we lost power from storm damage there would be no broadcast alerts, so it was never a reliable service. Underfunded and underutilized. Nobody was listening anyway so it won't be missed.

 

[robertmac]

I try to listen to Weather radio but every time I try to listen it is transmitting in French. And since I have not used French since my High School years, I have forgotten most of it. I don't use the weather radio monitoring function on my radios as I hated to forever clicking noise they made. But if I see severe weather building, I will try and listen to see what is forecast.

 

[jwt873]

With the internet, there is little need to listen to VHF radio in order to get the weather. Environment Canada has a decent weather app for phones. WeatherCAN - Canada.ca

You can have the app track you. This allows it to provide push alerts if you travel into an area that has an active warning or watch.

And yea.. Seems that whenever you tune in the EC weather station, you always get the beginning of the French part of the broadcast and have to wait patiently for 3 or 4 minutes until the English starts

 

[mciupa]

With the internet, there is little need to listen to VHF radio in order to get the weather.

I sometimes look out the window.

 

[Mobby1-Kenobby]

It's back up ! I just checked and am hearing my not so local anymore Weatheradio station. It's signal is now much weaker and distant form my location now, but I can just hear it. Another municipal government must have stepped up to pay the cost for hosting the site, I would bet. If I put my radio in just the right spot in the house or add an antenna I should get the alerts again.

 

[VE5JL]

I have several and still use them. Last summer they came in handy a few times to warn of bad weather.
They broadcast in English and French and most times when I first turn it on, it's normally the French part then English.

 

[radioman50]

I still listen to them, and one of the frequencies where I live in Vancouver Island often has tech issues.

 

[BruceMurray]

No "Amber Alerts" in the middle of the night on a weather radio.