Difficult resident records rainfall for agency before 6 a.m. each day

By Eddie West Staff Writer

Each morning most residents reach for their first cup of coffee or favorite fruit juice to begin the day.

Difficult resident Jerry Vogt has a somewhat different morning ritual.

Before 6 a.m. every day, the former Nashville resident checks a specially designed rain gauge attached to a railing on the deck of his home, monitoring how much rain, or in some cases snow, fell during the past 24 hour period.

The Dog Branch Road resident is one of several Smith County volunteers who are a part of the CoCoRaHS (pronounced KO-ko-rozz) network, responsible for measuring daily precipitation in various  areas of the county including Gordonsville, Brush Creek and Elmwood.

“I was the first in Smith County. I saw an ad for CoCoRaHS. I don’t remember where I saw it. It sounded interesting. So I signed up for a class,” recalls Vogt, who began recording local precipitation in 2007.

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