KNMI working on new system with local, not provincial weather warnings
The Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute (KNMI) is introducing a localized weather warning system that will send alerts shortly before severe weather reaches specific areas and later replace province-wide color codes with smaller geographic zones. According to NOS, the institute is also extending how far in advance warnings can be issued from 24 to 48 hours. The institute also reportedly plans to begin sending alerts about severe conditions such as heavy rain and thunderstorms roughly 15 minutes before they arrive in affected areas.
Notifications will be delivered through the KNMI app and will function similarly to NL-Alerts, where only people in a specific area receive warnings.
According to KNMI meteorologist Rob Sluijter, the current provincial system often produced warnings for areas that were not actually affected. Under the old approach, a severe thunderstorm or hail warning had to cover an entire province even if only a small part experienced dangerous conditions.
The shift follows a legal change that took effect on May 20, allowing KNMI to publish radar-based forecasts that project future weather conditions. Several commercial weather companies argued that the move created unfair competition and asked a court to block KNMI from offering local forecasts and radar projections. A judge rejected the request, and radar forecasts are now available through the KNMI app.
Despite earlier legal disputes, meteorologist Sluijter said cooperation with private weather companies remains essential. “We want, as a public institution, to work well together, and we also share our data with those parties and consult with them. It is important to coordinate, because it cannot be that one party says dangerous weather is coming while another says nothing is happening."
