Weather forecasters are alarmed by two recent deliberate false tornado reports in less than a week, raising the possibility that diverting their attention could make them miss real storms.

FILE/The Associated Press

This 2007 photo of a tornado in Oklahoma was emailed to a Missouri TV station on June 12 by someone claiming the storm was taking place in Bella Vista, Ark.

The matter is serious enough that the FBI and U.S. attorney's office are investigating.FIRST HOAX

Three weeks ago, someone e-mailed to a Missouri television station a photograph of a funnel cloud supposedly moving in on the small community of Bella Vista, Ark., and reported the destruction of a fast-food restaurant. There was a storm, but no tornado, and it took forecasters about 20 minutes to figure that out. The image was actually an Associated Press photo from a March 2007 tornado in Oklahoma.

SECOND HOAX

Three days later, in Charleston, S.C., a caller on a telephone line reserved for National Weather Service storm spotters reported damage in Liberty County, Ga. Radar readings already had caused forecasters to issue a tornado warning, which gave urgency to the reports from the ground, so forecasters sent storm reports to the media.

THE PROBLEM

Such hoaxes make forecasters waste resources looking for a storm that isn't there, time that they could be using to keeping an eye on the real storm system.

TECHNOLOGY HELPS, HURTS

Easy access to near real-time weather information can aid people as severe weather approaches, letting them gauge whether they are in a storm's path, but the same technology can let hoaxers create a credible report.

The Associated Press

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