Feel they are VERY important.
If you move to new locale, you need to find out exactly where you are and tune the weather radio to match. (At least that is so on our model.)
It can be annoying, thing going off like crazy, course, it is annoying to get hit by a tornado too that you had no idea was coming, or hail, or 60 MPH winds.
We usually use in conjunction with computer and telie weather reports. And, we have been known to turn it off after the 5th alarm for thunderstorm watch, BUT, not if the weather is likely to esculate past that to the dreaded tornado watch/warning stage.
Have turned it of when we got the 5th red wind alert thingy, after 4 inches of rain, two days later they are saying the conditions are so dry that it is a fire hazard. Never did figure that one out, it must be true, but, geeshhhh.
Just remember, if you determine it is safe to turn it off till the storm (or whatever) passes to turn it back on.
Hmmmm, gonna go look at mine right now, I did turn off the other day, flood watches, yep, it flooded 3 miles from here, but, not on my little hill, and was not going to, and I got tired of jumping up every 7 minutes to turn it off, loud, annoying and yorkies sure did not like.
But, would NOT be without one! I have a particular love/hate relationship with ours at 3 AM, love that I have it, hate that annoying piercing alarm sound.