After Tornadoes Strike With No Warning, National Weather Service Gets New Equipment

GRAND RAPIDS (WWJ) What happens when a tornado strikes and no one knew it was coming? The National Weather Service gets new equipment.

The National Weather Service in Grand Rapids is hoping to learn from this week's wild weather, which included their office missing two tornadoes that touched down in that area.

Senior forecaster Bob Dukesherer says their office is getting a new radar system that forecasters say would have done a better job in spotting those twisters. Residents in Kentwood, where one of the tornadoes hit, were frustrated that no tornado warning was issued there.

Dukesherer says he  understands why people in Kentwood are upset about the lack of warning.

"A tornado warning is the highest headline we issue, so when we miss one of those, it's tough on us," he said.

How will the new radar system help? Dukesherer explained that instead of the current two scans, the new system offers four. "And we might have had a chance to have a little bit of lead time of some of that damage path."