National Weather Service Employees Work Without Pay During Government Shutdown

[admin]

BAY COUNTY, Fla. - The government shutdown impacts roughly 800,000 federal workers. Among those are National Weather Service employees, who are deemed essential and are still working around the clock.

Meteorologists and emergency management officials across the country will agree, the National Weather Service provides critical weather information.

"I look at their forecasts, I look at their decision making processes, what they come up with, and they are an important aspect of what I do each day," said News 13's Chief Meteorologist Justin Kiefer. 

The weather never stops and neither do the more than 4,000 National Weather Service employees forced to work without pay during the government shutdown.

"We work 24/7, 365, holidays, so I think that adds a little stress too because we can't pick up a second job as easily as some other people can," said Tallahassee Representative for the National Weather Service's Employee Organization, Lauren Nash.

Nash said while their day to day operations continue throughout the shutdown, the timing of the year couldn't be worse. 

"This is a time when we try to make everything better this year and that's really getting behind right now with the shutdown," said Nash.

She said things like training, outreach, research, and technological improvements are all put on hold. 

"How can we improve the weather models, how can we do better, how can we message better, how can we help other offices with what we learned from Michael, and none of that is happening right now," said Nash.

Nash said their dedication is what shines through the tough times. 

"We are very motivated. We like what we do, we are passionate about the job, and we are trying to have a good time with each other as much as we can," said Nash. 

Tuesday marks day 32 of the government shutdown.