Just purchased a Weather Radio with S.A.M.E.; need help

I like to put in the county I am in and the county just west and southwest of us. Most severe weather in the spring will come from the southwest.

The other day in Des Moines I didn't use the SAME codes and had a sleep deprived night because of it. The radio went off all night, mostly due to rising water elsewhere in the region. The next morning I got up and put Polk county in (we were in the north central part of the county). The radio behaved itself much better that night.