New Hampshire
Refresher Course: Why do we have the National Weather Service?
Every other Tuesday, the team behind Civics 101 joins NHPR’s All Things Considered host Julia Furukawa to talk about how our democratic institutions actually work.
Wherever you go to get the latest weather update – be it your phone or here on NHPR – that information comes from the National Weather Service. But like many other federal agencies, the National Weather Service has been the target of deep cuts and significant changes by President Trump’s administration and DOGE.
Civics 101 senior producer Christina Phillips joins Julia to talk about the role of the National Weather Service and how its work affects public safety, food production and even national security.
Transcript
First, can you tell me more about the work and research of the National Weather Service?
Yeah. So the National Weather Service is a government agency that is the foundation of meteorology and weather modeling in the United States. So it manages and collects data from satellites and other weather instruments. It synthesizes and studies that data, and then it shares that data with local and federal government agencies, private companies and the public. And the National Weather Service is also the epicenter for responding to severe weather, such as hurricanes and tornadoes. They track it best and they share that information with everyone else.
Okay, so how does that work exactly intersect with other agencies and interests at the federal level?
Yeah. So if you think about it, understanding the weather is essential for everything from farming to national defense, to trade, to travel, as you said. So as a result, agencies like the Federal Aviation Administration, the military, FEMA, the Department of the Interior, the Department of Agriculture, they are all in constant communication with the National Weather Service, and they depend on information they get from them. It’s also worth mentioning that there are dozens of regional offices around the country that provide information to local governments and the media, and there’s an international component, too. So the U.S. is part of the World Meteorological Organization, where 193 countries share data and research with one another.
As we said at the top, the Trump administration has made some significant cuts to the National Weather Service, including firing staff. Are we seeing the politicization of weather? What’s been the fallout there?
Yeah, I think we’re still in the early days to know exactly how this might affect us. But in the short term, we’ve seen several things, which is the loss of expertise when the administration fired those career scientists. We’ve had an interruption in communication about weather events. For example, the National Weather Service ended a contract with a company that translated weather alerts into Spanish. And [we’ve had] an interruption of regular weather monitoring, such as the launch of weather balloons. I think the idea that you can maybe move this to a more private industry, it’s definitely a political lean here. But I think it’s a little difficult to imagine, because weather science has never existed without government investment, what it would look like if it moved more private.
What’s really at stake here, Christina?
Yeah. So the equipment that collects this information is expensive. And I spoke with one scientist who said that if the government doesn’t pay for it, who would? The National Weather Service is designed just like it sounds. It’s a service for everyone. That includes other agencies. It includes the public, and it includes private companies. So less resources and staff at the federal level means a loss of expertise and data and less preparedness for extreme weather. And I think on a more day to day level, it could impact the ability of, say, an airport to safely get airplanes on and off the ground, or for a hiker to know whether or not it’s safe to hike in the White Mountains, or a ski slope to monitor avalanche risk. And here’s one final example I want to leave you. It could also impact the ability of towns and cities to adjust their building codes, or where they put things because they have less of an understanding of rising flood waters or how severe storms could affect infrastructure.
New Hampshire
N.H. lawmakers to vote on increasing tolls, civil rights, and k-12 education – The Boston Globe
One proposal (Senate Bill 627) would generate more than $53 million per year in estimated revenue for turnpike projects by essentially doubling what certain cars pay on the state’s toll roads.
The cash fare for Hampton’s main toll booth on Interstate 95, for example, would jump from $2 to $4 for cars and pickup trucks. The toll wouldn’t increase at all for motorists who use New Hampshire’s E-ZPass transponders.
“Surrounding states already have the same in-state discount structure in place,” Democratic Representative Martin Jack of Nashua wrote on behalf of a House committee that unanimously recommended the bill.
A potential hitch: Governor Kelly Ayotte. She’s expressed opposition to the whole toll-hiking idea, and proven she’s not afraid to use her veto pen.
Modifying civil rights standard
Another proposal (Senate Bill 464) would add a few words to the state’s Civil Rights Act. Instead of addressing conduct that is merely “motivated by” a legally protected characteristic, the proposed revision would address conduct that is “substantially motivated by hostility towards the victim’s” protected characteristic (such as their race, color, religion, national origin, ancestry, sexual orientation, sex, gender identity, or disability).
The prime sponsor, Republican Senator Daryl Abbas, an attorney, testified the change was small and aligned with the law’s intent. But the attorney who oversees the Civil Rights Unit at the New Hampshire Department of Justice, Sean Locke, testified in opposition, saying the proposal could reduce protections, especially since the meaning of “substantially” is somewhat vague.
The House is also weighing a proposed amendment that would add a few more words than Abbas’s version, potentially narrowing the Civil Rights Act’s applicability a bit further.
Open enrollment for K-12 schools
A third proposal up for a vote on Thursday (Senate Bill 101) would make every K-12 public school in New Hampshire an “open enrollment” school. That way, students could freely choose to transfer to a district other than the one where they live.
The proposed policy is controversial, partly because of how schools are funded. Districts rely mostly on local property taxes to cover their costs, as the state government chips in relatively little, and property tax rates vary widely from one community to the next. That generates concern about who will foot the bill when a student transfers.
In light of those concerns, Republicans are offering a compromise amendment to SB 101 that would require the state to provide more money per pupil that a district receives via open enrollment, as the New Hampshire Bulletin reported. Democrats are offering their own amendment to establish a study commission on this topic, rather than adopt the proposed policy now.
Lawmakers have until May 14 to take action on the bills that came from the other chamber, though they have until June 4 to iron out any discrepancies.
Amanda Gokee of the Globe staff contributed to this report.
This story appears in Globe NH | Morning Report, a free email newsletter focused on New Hampshire, including great coverage from the Boston Globe and links to interesting articles elsewhere. Sign up here.
Steven Porter can be reached at steven.porter@globe.com. Follow him @reporterporter.
New Hampshire
Boston MedFlight expands into NH
Boston MedFlight often touches down at the scene of some of the worst tragedies in New England – where minutes can mean life or death for a victim. The critical care transport operation is now expanding with a new base in New Hampshire.
The organization is hosting an open house at the new Manchester location on Thursday.
Boston MedFlight flies a critical care transport paramedic and nurse on every flight. Jaik Hanley-McCarthy says their helicopters and ground vehicles are equipped to handle just about any emergency medical procedure.
“Anything that can be done in the ICU,” explained Hanley-McCarthy. “We have a mobile lab so we can draw blood and run labs in real time.”
Boston MedFlight now has five bases across the region.
“Having a base in Manchester just expands this Boston-level care even further north to the more remote areas of the state,” said Hanley-McCarthy.
Boston MedFlight operates as a network of bases and some of the locations are staffed 24 hours.
Chief Executive Officer Maura Hughes says the nonprofit operation survives on public and private donations.
“We provide about $7 million in free care every year to patients,” said Hughes. “Not every hospital can be everything to every patient. We’re really the glue that keeps the health care system together.”
Heather Young says her daughter, Teighan, is still alive because she was flown for a critical assessment and procedure after falling off a truck and hitting her head.
“She should not be driving and walking and talking and all the things she’s doing as quickly as she is,” said Young.
Teighan just turned 18 and plans to go to college to study the medical field.
“I want to be a nurse and help other people,” she said.
It’s stories like this that keep the men and women who work Boston MedFlight focused on their mission.
“I think we just go call by call and try to do the best we can,” said Hanley-McCarthy. “I think when we stop and truly think about it, I think that weight is pretty heavy.”
Boston MedFlight also has a yearly reunion where patients and the team get together here in Bedford to meet and check in on their progress. It really shows you how connected they are to the people they help.
New Hampshire
Hiker who set out in warm spring weather found dead after snowstorm in New Hampshire mountains
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A Massachusetts hiker who set out in warm spring weather was found dead deep in New Hampshire’s White Mountains after a snowstorm dumped several inches of snow in the area, authorities said.
Kent Wood, 61, of West Roxbury, was discovered Tuesday evening on a remote section of the Kinsman Pond Trail in Franconia Notch, about 5.5 miles from his vehicle, according to New Hampshire Fish and Game.
Wood had driven to Franconia Notch on April 17 for a weekend camping and hiking trip, and set out on a hike the next morning in warm, clear weather, officials said. Family and friends last heard from him Saturday afternoon.
When he failed to return or make contact for two days, officials said relatives reported him missing Tuesday morning, prompting a large-scale search.
HIKER IDENTIFIED, POPULAR TRAIL CLOSED AFTER DEADLY FALL A UTAH’S ZION NATIONAL PARK
An aerial view of Franconia Notch State Park in New Hampshire, where a hiker was found dead on Tuesday. (Joseph Sohm/Universal Images Group, File)
Rescuers quickly learned Wood had packed for mild conditions, not the three to five inches of snow that fell in the area between Sunday and Monday.
Fog hovers over a narrow road through Franconia Notch in the White Mountain National Forest in New Hampshire on Dec. 27, 2021. (Andrew Lichtenstein/Corbis)
Search teams from Fish and Game, PEMI Valley Search and Rescue, and the Army National Guard launched a coordinated effort, focusing on the Lonesome Lake and Kinsman Pond areas.
FAMILY’S SPRING BREAK HIKE TURNS INTO LIFE-OR-DEATH RESCUE AFTER PARENT FALLS 70 FEET OFF UTAH CLIFF
Conservation officers located Wood’s body around 7:41 p.m. Tuesday. Crews carried him out overnight, reaching the trailhead shortly after 1 a.m. Wednesday.
Franconia Notch and the Appalachian Trail are seen in New Hampshire on Sept. 21. (Carol M. Highsmith/Buyenlarge/Getty Images)
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Since Friday, six hikers from Massachusetts have been rescued in the White Mountains, Fish and Game said.
Officials are reminding hikers that winter conditions still grip the mountains, with snow, freezing temperatures and rapidly changing weather.
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