On May 22, South Florida Skywarn Coordinator Don Morris received a 2006 NOAA Environmental Hero Award for outstanding volunteer service during the 2005 hurricane season. Don Morris and his assistants from South Florida Skywarn volunteered more than 100 hours of their time to staff an amateur radio station in the Miami area. The Skywarn volunteers gathered real-time hurricane damage and weather reports, disseminated NOAA National Weather Service information and warnings and verified NWS warnings with on-the-spot information. Along with other Skywarn volunteers and even family members, Don Morris stayed all day and all night when Hurricane Katrina moved ashore near Hallandale Beach and then southwest across Miami-Dade County, constantly operating WX4MIA severe weather net. He did the same thing for Hurricane Wilma, staying all night right through landfall around 6 AM in Collier County and through noon when Wilma finally moved off the Palm Beach County coastline near Jupiter. Through the years, Don Morris has volunteered hundreds of hours as the voice of WX4MIA amateur radio station in WFO operations, soliciting storm reports and disseminating the latest warnings and statements for not only hurricanes but severe storms as well.

Established in 1995, the Environmental Hero award is presented to individuals and organizations that volunteer their time and energy to help NOAA carry out its mission. "On behalf of the 12,500 men and women working for NOAA, I am pleased to present the 2006 Environmental Hero Awards," said NOAA Administrator Dr. Conrad C. Lautenbacher. "The dedicated efforts and outstanding accomplishments of these award winners greatly benefit the environment and make our nation a better place for all Americans."