Storm lab 'extraordinary' Cole says

The University of Oklahoma's $69 million state-of-the-art National Weather Center is an example of governmental "money well spent," Republican U.S. Congressman Tom Cole said Wednesday.

Cole – back in Oklahoma for the Memorial Day break – Spent about two hours touring the weather center Wednesday afternoon. And he had high praise for the facility."You know there's a common myth that a lot of what we do in government is waste and it's all terrible," he said.

"And there are certainly some things that, boy, if you have a $2.9 trillion budget, believe me there's some waste in that, but you get things like this, too." A facility such as the OU weather center, he said, "would not happen on simple private capital alone.

It's the relationship back and forth," he said, between the private sector and government.

Walking slowly from floor to floor around the five-story, 244,000-square-foot building, Cole — along with several members of his staff — said the center represents a "synergy" between governmental entities. "It's world class," he said. "You're seeing tremendous synergy between the federal sector, the state sector, the private sector, and international cooperation. It's extraordinary. It is a remarkable building; that's what you want to see in Oklahoma."

And that relationship, he said, benefits more than just the weather center. "The possibilities are almost infinite," he said. "Any time you are the leader in the world at something, you attract the best in the world. The applications are pretty extraordinary."

Those applications could include global warming.

"Sadly, or soberingly, maybe is a better way to put it, if we really are in an era, and we are, of global warming this kind of ability, this kind of capability, is going to be very important in minimizing loss and saving lives."

The center's commercial and humanitarian importance, he said, is "pretty phenomenal."

On a more personal level, Cole, a native of Moore, said the center has particular meaning for him.

"With the tornadoes of '98, '99 and 2003, it has extraordinary meaning. My house came within 100 yards of one of those (tornadoes). You think of the lives that can be saved and the forecasting capability and the warnings."

The center, he said, represents an investment that will be paid back "many, many fold."

"We bought to to build more of 'em," he said.

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M. Scott Carter
scarter@normantranscript.com