Representative Keith Elliott has been working on securing funds for a Doppler radar unit that people in Oregon County can see. When a storm comes, we can watch it west of us; then it disappears and reappears after it has caused damage east of us. This radar is for our help.
Funds
Rep. Elliott pushed hard to secure $2 million in state funding for a new Doppler weather radar tower in Van Buren, with an additional $396,000 from the Delta Regional Authority.
Location
In the middle of nowhere, for use by as many people as possible, the radar will be installed near Van Buren, Missouri. A suitable site near Eastwood has been identified, and the City of Van Buren is working to acquire the property and prepare to seek proposals from qualified radar providers.
Once operational, this tower is expected to improve weather coverage for approximately 329,000 people across southeast Missouri. It will help meteorologists track dangerous storms and identify signs of tornado development, giving our communities better information and more time to prepare. That matters to every one of us, whether we live in Van Buren or miles down the road.
Timeline
There’s still work to do before the radar is up and running, but we are moving in the right direction. Rep. Elliott looks forward to seeing this project through. We can’t keep a storm from coming, but we can work to give our people a better chance to prepare when it does
