BILL PROENZA ASSIGNED TO NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SOUTHERN REGION

The NOAA administrator announced today that Bill Proenza will be assigned as Director of the National Weather Service’s Southern Region beginning September 23, 2007. Proenza is returning to a position he held for nine years before becoming director of the Tropical Prediction Center in January.

Proenza, a 40-year veteran of the National Weather Service, requested this assignment to the Southern Region.

“Bill Proenza has a record of outstanding performance while director of the National Weather Service’s Southern Region,” said retired Navy Vice Adm. Conrad C. Lautenbacher, Jr., Ph.D., under secretary of commerce for oceans and atmosphere and NOAA administrator. “Having him return to the region is the best way for NOAA to continue to benefit from his skills.”

“I’m gratified to continue serving the American people in my chosen profession,” Proenza said. “Throughout my career, I’ve been honored to serve alongside the dedicated men and women of the National Weather Service who have so effectively delivered our protection of life mission.”

Lautenbacher added that Edward Rappaport, deputy director of the Tropical Prediction Center, will continue to serve as acting director. NOAA intends to launch a nationwide search for a permanent director for the Tropical Prediction Center in the near future, Lautenbacher said.

The Southern Region, one of six designated regions of the National Weather Service, encompasses a quarter of the continental United States from New Mexico, Texas and Oklahoma through the coastal gulf and southern states, including Georgia, Florida and in the Caribbean, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. It includes an area of the United States that is vulnerable to severe weather such as flash floods, lightning and hail, tornadoes, droughts, fire weather, and landfalling hurricanes. The Southern Region area is served by 47 National Weather Service offices and over 950 professionals.

NOAA is dedicated to enhancing economic security and national safety through the prediction and research of weather and climate-related events and information service delivery for transportation, and by providing environmental stewardship of our nation's coastal and marine resources. Through the emerging Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS), NOAA is working with its federal partners, more than 70 countries and the European Commission to develop a global monitoring network that is as integrated as the planet it observes, predicts and protects.