WARREN — There's no such thing as small talk about the weather when it comes to Jerry LaRoche. Mr. LaRoche, 66, a grandfather of five, is a backyard weather forecaster and life-long Warren resident.

Using an array of weather-tracking instruments and radar readings, Mr. LaRoche forecasts the local weather every day and posts his reports online and in emails. Neighbors might gently rib him about rainy weather, but Mr. LaRoche, a man with a sunny disposition, takes it all in good fun.

"'Hey, I thought it was supposed to be sunny today, Jerry,'" they'll say," said Mr. LaRoche, of his neighbors, laughing. His most ardent fans are his nieces and nephews and various other family members. If a special event is coming up they will call and ask for a forecast.

Jerry LaRoche,66, of Warren, gathers data from his outdoor weather station for his daily weather forecast. Behind him is a rain collector, wind anameter, barometer and weather transmitter. Mr. LaRoche is the founder of weatherfun.com and sends his forecasts all over the country.

Mr. Laroche first became interested in the weather as a teenager when Hurricane Carol hit Warren in 1954. In 1997, his interest was renewed when he joined weather groups on the Internet. Discussions, often revolving around weather patterns in members' areas and extreme weather occurring in other parts of the country, fueled his passion for the weather.

During the same time period, he was contacted by WPRI, Channel 12, and meteorologist Tony Petrarca invited him to become a backyard weather forecaster.

"There was a group of us, and Tony Petrarca knew we had weather stations at home. He would call me at quarter past five for the six o'clock news and say, 'You're going to be on tonight, will you have a report ready?'" Mr. LaRoche would call the station with his report and it would air on TV alongside his photo.

"Jerry has been terrific ... he is my 'go to guy' when it comes to neighborhood weather reports — especially during storms," stated Mr. Petrarca in an email. Thunderstorms are Mr. LaRoche's favorite type of weather. "Whether it's snowfall totals after a big storm or damage reports after a severe thunderstorm, Jerry helps me add local data. His passion and love for weather is obvious."

In 1998, Mr. LaRoche started his own website, weatherfun.com. He wanted a place where "people could learn something, send out their daily reports, talk about the weather and the effect it might have had on their community — and have a little fun doing it." Today, his website has approximately 135 members from all over the country including Texas, Mississippi, Florida, Virginia and New England; Mr. LaRoche, who is known among members as the site's "Official Weather Nut," has six moderators that assist him in its operation and a webmaster that lives on Long Island.

There is a sense of camradarie among members and he has developed many close friendships.

"When my father died, a group of them made the trip to his funeral. Also, when I was in the hospital with health problems and had to have my leg amputated, they were there to support me. We've formed into a family," he said. The group is planning a reunion in Somerset, MA this summer.

In addition to his website, Mr. LaRoche and his wife, Susan, also report severe weather conditions directly to the National Weather Service located in Taunton, MA.

Part of Mr. LaRoche's weather station is located in, not surprisingly, his backyard: a rain collector to measure precipitation, a wind anameter to gauge wind speed and two barometers. A transmitter sends all of the data to a receiver inside his home that displays each devices' readings. Inside his home, Mr. LaRoche employs an electronic device that detects lightning within a 40-mile radius, and, on his two computers, doplar radar, which is used for tracking regional weather systems. He filters all of this data through his knowledge and years of experience for his daily report.

If you would like to get Mr. LaRoche's daily forecast, go to weatherfun.com, select "Click to Subscribe to WeatherFun," then answer a few questions to register. Mr. LaRoche includes a photo of the weather with every daily report he sends out. The site and registration is free.

Rob Merwin

rmerwin@eastbaynewspapers.com