FAIRHOPE, Ala. — Most people know the many potential hazards of living on the Alabama Gulf Coast. Mardi Gras, for example, can bring bellyaches from too much King Cake and too many MoonPies, as well as pulled muscles caused by snatching trinkets from the air during parades.

Spring ushers in pollen, and allergies often kick into high gear that time of year. With summer comes the inevitable sunburn and the ever-present threat of hurricanes.

But, dangerous atmospheric conditions can occur all year long, according to weather officials. That’s why Alabama Gov. Bob Riley declared Feb. 23-27 as Severe Weather Awareness Week.

“Severe weather can happen just about anytime,” said Jeff Garmon, warning coordination meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Mobile. Garmon stepped into the post recently vacated by longtime staffer Gary Beeler, who retired early last month.

Garmon, who had been a senior forecaster at NWS Mobile for the last decade, said, “Our severe weather can be spread out. There’s a myth that the only thing you have to look out for is hurricanes.”

NWS, the Alabama Emergency Management Agency and other organizations want residents to be aware of the many types of severe weather we experience on the coast, and heed the related watches and warnings.

Throughout the week, weather officials will touch on educational topics that will be presented to better inform residents about how to prevent injury or death from tornadoes, damaging winds, flash floods, lightning and hail. Each day of the week brings discussion of a specific severe weather event.

Monday will feature online and broadcast information about severe thunderstorms and damaging winds. On Tuesday, lightning will be the topic. Wednesday’s focus will be tornado safety, and a statewide tornado safety drill will be held sometime between 9 and 9:30 a.m. The dangers associated with flooding and flash flooding will be discussed on Thursday and on Friday meteorologists will address NOAA Weather Radio All Hazards and Emergency Alert System. All are designed to spur action on your part.

“Have a plan beforehand,” Garmon said. “Think about what you’re going to do. You’ll only have a few minutes to take cover.”

Among the severe weather events of the most concern are tornadoes. The violent, rotating columns of air typically cause millions of dollars of property damage each year and take several lives. It’s extremely important to be prepared for nature’s killing machine.

Garmon said, “Know where you’re going to go, and make sure your family knows where they’re going to go. Have a weather radio with Specific Area Message Encoding (SAME) technology on hand, have batteries in it and have it programed.”

The weather radios, available for a relatively reasonable price at many retailers across Baldwin County, are a vital tool to have at your home and business.

“Next week is a good time for people to look around and get that radio and have that warning,” Garmon said. “In the old days, we’d issue a warning for Little River and Bay Minette and the people in Gulf Shores would get it.”

Not anymore, he pointed out. Garmon said by buying an NOAA Weather Radio SAME receiver, you simply program your area code into the radio, and you will receive the 1050 Hz warning alarm tone and visual alert for that area only. You may still receive information for all areas covered by NWS Mobile, however, by listening to the radio in the regular audio mode.

Garmon said he appreciates the help of local agencies and media organizations who aid NWS Mobile in getting out important information when severe weather threatens. He credited such early warnings and community involvement for saving lives.

“I’m always impressed in the knowledge of the common citizen, he said. “Our education and our partnerships are paying off.”

Garmon graduated from Florida State University’s meteorology program in 1991, and then joined the National Weather Service in December of that year as a meteorologist intern at NWS Mobile. He served there until November 1994 when he was promoted to journeyman forecaster at the NWS Forecast Office in Jackson, Miss.

He worked in Jackson until November 1996 until he was transferred to the NWS Forecast Office in Tulsa, Okla., also as a journeyman forecaster. Two years later, he returned to NWS Mobile as a senior forecaster.

For more information about Severe Weather Awareness Week and area weather, visit NWS Mobile online at www.srh.noaa.gov/mob.