Severe Weather Alert

I'm used to seeing severe weather alerts.  Growing up in Wisconsin, the winter is full of them, but they usually involve feet of snow or ice headed our way.  Even the spring and summer have their fair share of severe weather alerts and warnings.  They mostly consist of thunderstorms with the occasional tornado watch.  

Since moving to the East Coast, I have come to expect that little red bar when I look at my weather widget.  We always have severe weather.  Usually the alert is to inform us that we may be getting an inch of snow sometime in the next couple of days or that a lot of rain is coming.  Their idea of severe weather is so different than what I was raised with.

Perfect example is today's severe weather alert, which is as follows...

CECIL-KENT MD-QUEEN ANNE'S-TALBOT- CAROLINE- INCLUDING THE CITIES OF... ELKTON...CHESTERTOWN...CENTREVILLE... EASTON...DENTON 413 PM EDT WED MAR 19 2008

...HIGHER THAN NORMAL WATER LEVELS... BUT NO PROBLEMS EXPECTED...

THE TIDE AT HIGH TIDE THIS AFTERNOON AT CAMBRIDGE REACHED CLOSE TO MINOR TIDAL LEVELS BEFORE STARTING BACK DOWN. HIGH TIDE WAS AROUND 3 PM...AND NEXT HIGH TIDE WILL BE AROUND 3 OCLOCK IN THE MORNING THURSDAY. THE HEIGHT SHOULD BE COMPARABLE TO THIS AFTERNOONS HIGH TIDE. HIGH TIDE AT TOLCHESTER OCCURS AT 6 OCLOCK THIS EVENING AND AGAIN 615 AM THURSDAY. THE WATER LEVEL WILL ALSO REACH NEAR MINOR TIDAL FLOODING...BUT NO PROBLEMS ARE EXPECTED.

A COLD FRONT WILL SWEEP ACROSS THE CHESAPEAKE BAY EARLY THURSDAY MORNING AND MAY CAUSE SOME MINOR OVERWASH AT THE TIME OF HIGH TIDE ON THE EASTERN SHORE ESPECIALLY AROUND SUNUP ON THURSDAY. WINDS ON THE CHESAPEAKE BAY COULD GUST TO 35 TO 40 MPH.

I love how the first line says: "...HIGHER THAN NORMAL WATER LEVELS... BUT NO PROBLEMS EXPECTED..."

Phew!  That was close.  I thought for a second there we were going to have problems.