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Article: Cutbacks Mean Turbulence For Forecasters; Weather Service Faces Tight Budget Squeeze
- Article from:
- The Washington Post
- Article date:
- April 28, 1997
- Author:
CopyrightThis material is published under license from the Washington Post. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Washington Post. (Hide copyright information)
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In the World Weather Building at Camp Springs, just off the
Beltway, the government's meteorologists move from computer to
computer, tracking the nation's weather patterns.
It's there that Marine Prediction Center forecasters warn
Atlantic and Pacific sailors of impending storms and high seas. Down
the aisle, at the Hydrometeorological Prediction Center, specialists
track clouds, rain and snow and predict weather trends three to five
days in advance. The center's forecasters warned the Midwest about
spring flooding, including the North Dakota flood.
But for the National Weather Service, 1997 is shaping up as
the year of the big squeeze. The agency is struggling with a $41
million ...