Severe Thunderstorm Watch #549

A Severe Thunderstorm Watch has been issued for parts of southeast/east Missouri and southern Illinois.


Severe Thunderstorm Watch is in effect until 8pm CT Saturday.

Storms are expected to move east at approximately 40mph. Large hail and damaging winds are the main threat.

Remember that you can look at the radar (along with watches and warnings) anytime by clicking on the "Radar" tab at the top of the page.

- Posted from my iPhone

Saying Goodbye

It is over. I am no longer a meteorologist at KFVS-TV in Cape Girardeau, Missouri. Today was my final day on-air. My last newscast was Heartland News at Noon. I know some of you may not have been able to watch so here is a little bit of the ending of the show.

Thank you Lauren Keith for not making it too sad.


My former weekend co-workers also gave me a surprise Sunday night on the air. I didn't expect them to put a little piece together of many of my newsroom co-workers. The people in the video (in order): Christy Hendricks (Internet Content Director, Kathy Sweeney (News Anchor), Jeff Cunningham (News Anchor), Mike Smythe (General Manager) and Crystal Britt (Weekend News Anchor).



Again, thank you to everyone for watching over the years. I hope this doesn't mean you will stop checking out my blog and keeping up with the weather.

4,277 Days Ago

Hard to believe that today is the day. My last day at KFVS-TV.

My first day at KFVS was October 6, 1999. I started as a 24-year old out of college ready to forecast my way through winter and spring storms. Who would have thought that I endured my way through tornadoes, hail, flooding, flash flooding, ice storms, snow storms, heat waves and blizzards?! I have seen a lot during my time at KFVS.

If you read my blog much you probably know I like numbers. Here's a number for you... 4,277. That is the number of days I worked as an employee of KFVS. That is 32.2% of my life!

I have enjoyed my time at KFVS. There is a rich history at the station. Yes, the television building and transmitter have stood for many years but it is really the employees of KFVS that make it what it was in the past and what it is today. What it is today is much more than when I started.

When I first arrived at KFVS it was just a television station. Now it operates three television stations (KFVS, WQWQ - The Heartland's CW, The StormTeam Weather Network), three websites (kfvs12.com, mykfvs.com and hyper-local county-by-county microsites), four iTunes video feeds and soon to be, two mobile applications. It is amazing the amount of content that is being pushed out of the building in downtown Cape Girardeau.

There are a few people I need to thank. A special "thank you" to Samantha Farris for keeping me grounded and making my time in Cape Girardeau enjoyable. You helped make this time go by quickly. I can't thank you enough!

Thank you Chad Fryman for being a good friend, letting me stay at your place until I found an apartment and introducing me to the news director that eventually hired me.

I can't thank everyone I have worked with over the years, but there are a few I would like to give a special "thank you" to all of the current and former members of the Heartland StormTeam (Bob Reeves, Brian Alworth, Jordan McCollum, Jason Lindsey and Laura Wibbenmeyer). I have spent many, many, many hours working besides the above mentioned group. I am going to have fond memories of sitting in the Weather Center with Bob. Not so much talking weather but talking about all kinds of topics under the sun.

I would also like to thank you, the viewers, for letting me in to your homes every night, afternoon and morning. Sorry for the times I cut off the end of your favorite television show, golf tournament or basketball games. I really didn't intend to wipe out the ending.

Everyone in the "Heartland" (southeast Missouri, southern Illinois, western Kentucky, northwest Tennessee and northeast Arkansas) has been very welcoming to me since I arrived and I truly appreciate that.

Although my time at KFVS is over, I am not finished. I am going to continue this blog. I will continue to forecast weather for the KFVS viewing area, especially during big storms. I am planning on going back to providing live streaming coverage of storms, especially at night. You are also likely to see a few new features as well over time.

Storms Possible Later Today

Eyes are looking at the possibility for severe weather later this evening and again Wednesday.


The Storm Prediction Center has the KFVS viewing area, along with a large part of the midwest, in a "Slight Risk" area for severe weather through 7am CT Wednesday.

A surface low pressure system is forecast to move east across the Mississippi River valley over the next 48-72 hours.

The surface low should stay north of southeast Missouri and southern Illinois so that should stay out of play. However, a cold front will be passing through and that will be the lifting mechanism to spark thunderstorms.

The nose of a jet streak will be rounding the upper-level low. The nose of the jet stream will also aide in lifting parcels of air.

All of the above combined with surface moisture (dew points) in the 70°'s and we have the potential for some strong storms.

Right now it appears that the main threat Tuesday evening will be from discreet cells. These could produce large hail and damaging winds.

The cold front should bring a thin line of strong thunderstorms through the area after midnight Wednesday morning. Damaging wind will be the main threat with the line.

Interest Peeked for Tuesday

Tuesday night and early Wednesday morning still has my attention. The Storm Prediction Center has southeast Missouri and southern Illinois in a "Slight Risk" area for severe weather for that time period.


The surface low is a little further north than I'd like for severe storms but the middle and upper level winds aren't looking too bad for late June. Stay tuned...


- Posted from my iPhone

Severe Thunderstorm Watch #477

The Storm Prediction Center has issued Severe Thunderstorm Watch #477. The watch is in effect until 8am CT Wednesday.


The watch covers parts of souther Missouri, northern Arkansas and parts of southwest Illinois.

The main threat will be damaging wind. Hails is a secondary threat.

Storms are expected to move east at 40mph.

Severe Thunderstorm Watch #472

The Storm Prediction Center has issued Severe Thunderstorm Watch #472 for parts of southeast Missouri and northeast Arkansas. The watch is in effect until 4:00pm CT.


On the air last night I mentioned the "if" forecasting. "If" a complex develops over Missouri it could dive south and move through parts of the KFVS viewing area. Early this morning a complex developed over central Missouri and is now diving south.

The main threat from the storms will be hail and damaging wind.

Don't forget you can check out the radar by clicking the "Radar" link at the top of my site.

A "Little" Relief

Finally, it looks like we will get a little relief from the heat and the humidity.

A cold front is passing through the KFVS viewing area this evening. At 9pm, the front was halfway through the area. The front should be through by morning. You will notice the front has passed as winds will shift around to the northwest/north.

The front is going to allow for some drier air to filter in from the north on the surface winds. This will help drop dew points in to the upper 50's and 60's.


The dew point is a key number to look at. It is a measure of the moisture in the air. With dew points under 60 degrees it feels rather comfortable. If the dew point goes over 60 degrees it starts to feel uncomfortable.

Over the last two weeks we have had dew points in the upper 60's and even lower 70's. That is air typically we have in place by late July and early August.

Be sure to enjoy the drier air. Winds will begin to shift back around to the south by Monday and that will bring moisture back to the area. This means the humidity will go back up, as well the temperatures.

Another interesting note about the cold front... I'm forecasting a high temperature around 84 degrees for Cape Girardeau. If we hit 84, this will likely be the first time in 16 days that we have been at or below normal. I for one wouldn't mind some below normal temperatures.

Winds of Change

I have been offered an exciting opportunity to work for a Fortune 500 company and I have accepted the position. This means I have decided to semi-retire from the television weather business. My last day at KFVS-TV will be Wednesday, June 22.

This decision has been extremely difficult to make and I would be lying if I said I would not miss the television business. I have been involved in television for 22 years and have thoroughly enjoyed it.

I have been fortunate to work at great place like KFVS-TV. I started my tenure at the CBS affiliate in Cape Girardeau, Missouri October 6, 1999. Who would have thought that a young, 24-year old right out of college would have stayed around for almost 12 years?!

I am also going to miss the weather side of television. I have looked at my meteorology career as just not a job, but as a passion and I hope it has come across that way. I have spent countless hours looking over data, putting together forecasts and presenting the forecast on-air and online. It has been fun. However, diving headfirst in to my career has also meant missing time with family and friends over the last 11+ years and I am looking forward to having “normal” hours.

Now, don’t fret. I am not completely leaving weather. I am going to continue my blog, “New at Dis Hour”, and my website. To access it, you will need to visit www.dissauer.com. I will continue to forecast the weather for southeast Missouri, southern Illinois and western Kentucky, especially when it comes to severe weather and winter storms. I will also be branching out and forecasting for the St. Louis metro area, central Indiana and other parts of the Midwest (including live streaming weather coverage during storms). There will be more announced later.

I am still going to be around on KFVS for a few weeks and who knows, maybe somewhere down the road you will see me on your television on the air telling you how many feet of snow will fall.

Storms Today? 6/5

The Storm Prediction Center includes all of southern Illinois, western Kentucky, northwest Tennessee and parts of southeast Missouri in a "Slight Risk" of severe weather through 7am ET Monday.


Also included is the St. Louis metro area along with southwest Indiana.

According to SPC, the main threat is damaging winds.

Today (Sunday) Is my first day back from vacation. To be honest, I haven't looked at much data concerning Sunday. Most likely we could see some pop-up storms in the sweltering heat.

- Posted from my iPhone