Alert archive / Alabama / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1986

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 97, NWS Birmingham, AL

July 31, 1986Lauderdale County, Alabama

NWS Birmingham, AL issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Jul 31, 1986, 10:54 PM CDT for Lauderdale County, Alabama. It was in force for 51 min.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
Jul 31, 1986, 10:54 PM CDT (03:54 UTC)
Expired
Jul 31, 1986, 11:45 PM CDT
In force
51 min
Issued by
NWS Birmingham, AL
Area
Whole counties

County Lauderdale County, AL

The radar

The WSR-88D network and its archive begin in 1991, so there is no radar volume for this alert.

The nearest sounding before it

Nashville Metro, TN (KBNA), launched 00:00Z, 3.9 hours before the alert went out and 167 km from the middle of its area. This is the routine balloon launch nearest before it, the air the forecaster had in hand, not a measurement taken for the alert.

Skew-T log-pSkew-T log-p diagram, Nashville Metro, TN at 00:00Z on 1986-08-01Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1728 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°0°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Nashville Metro, TN at 00:00Z on 1986-08-01The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 94 square meters per square second.193958Sfc1 km3 km6 km9 kmRMLM
The wind turning with height, colored by layer: ground to 1 km, 1 to 3 km, 3 to 6 km, 6 to 10 km.
Mixed-layer CAPE
1728 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-105 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1622 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
36 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
94 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
196 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.3
Supercell composite
4.5

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.

000 
TTAAOO KHSV 010400 COR
SVRHSV
ALC077-010445-

BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING... CORRECTION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HUNTSVILLE AL
1054 PM CDT THU JUL 31 1986

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
EFFECTIVE UNTIL 1145 PM CDT FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES:

IN NORTH ALABAMA
          ..LAUDERDALE

AT 10:52PM CDT... HUNTSVILLE RADAR WAS INDICATING A POSSIBLE SEVERE
THUNDERSTORM IN EXTREME NORTHERN LAUDERDALE COUNTY NEAR THREET AND
CLOVERDALE. THE THUNDERSTORM HAS BEEN MOVING EAST-SOUTHEAST AT
25 TO 30 MPH.

THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR MARSHALL AND MADISON COUNTIES
IS CANCELLED.  THUNDERSTORMS THAT WERE THREATENING MARSHALL AND
MADISON COUNTIES MOVED EAST AND WEAKENED.  THERE WERE NO REPORTS OF
SEVERE WEATHER FROM THIS PARTICULAR STORM.

THIS IS A DANGEROUS STORM.  IF YOU ARE IN ITS PATH YOU SHOULD
PREPARE FOR DAMAGING WIND IN EXCESS OF 55 MPH, LARGE HAIL, AND
DEADLY LIGHTN$ING.  PEOPLE OUTSIDE SHOULD MOVE TO A SHELTER,
PREFERABLY INSIDE A STRONG BUILDING BUT STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS.

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before this severe thunderstorm warning went out, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Jul 31, 6:31 PM CDT, 4 hours 23 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
630 PM CDT THU JUL 31 1986

THUNDERSTORMS CONTINUE TO MOVE TO THE SOUTH OVER EASTERN ALABAMA AND
THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH IS NO LONGER IN EFFECT FOR THE FOLLOWING
COUNTIES, AUTAUGA...BULLOCK...CHILTON...CLARKE...CONECUH...COOSA...
CRENSHAW...DALLAS...GREENE...HALE...LOWNDES...MARENGO...MONROE...
MONTGOMERY...PERRY...SUMTER...WI
Special weather statement, Jul 31, 6:35 PM CDT, 4 hours 19 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
630 PM CDT THU JUL 31 1986

THUNDERSTORMS CONTINUE TO MOVE TO THE SOUTH OVER EASTERN ALABAMA AND
THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH IS NO LONGER IN EFFECT FOR THE FOLLOWING
COUNTIES, AUTAUGA...BULLOCK...CHILTON...CLARKE...CONECUH...COOSA...
CRENSHAW...DALLAS...GREENE...HALE...LOWNDES...MARENGO...MONROE...
MONTGOMERY...PERRY...SUMTER...WILCOX.

HOWEVER STRONG THUNDERSTORMS CONTINUE OVER A PORTION OF SOUTHEAST
ALABAMA AND A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL
9PM CDT FOR SEVERAL COUNTIES IN SOUTHEAST ALABAMA.
Special weather statement, Jul 31, 7:01 PM CDT, 3 hours 53 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
630 PM CDT THU JUL 31 1986

THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH IS NO LONGER IN EFFECT FOR THE FOLLOWING
COUNTIES, ELMORE...TALLAPOOSA...LEE AND CHAMBERS.

HOWEVER BULLOCK COUNTY WAS MISTAKENLY CLEARED ON THE LAST STATEMENT.
BULLOCK COUNTY WILL BE ADDED TO THE LIST OF COUNTIES THAT CONTINUE
IN SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH NUMBER 442 COVERING SOUTHEAST ALABAMA.
Special weather statement, Jul 31, 7:04 PM CDT, 3 hours 50 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MONTGOMERY AL
700 PM CDT THU JUL 31 1986

...A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH CONTINUES IN EFFECT UNTIL 9PM FOR
SOUTHEAST ALABAMA COUNTIES FROM MACON AND RUSSELL COUNTIES SOUTHWARD...

RADAR SHOWED A BAND IF INTENSE THUNDERSTORMS OVER EAST ALABAMA
AT 650 PM. THE STRONGEST STORMS WERE FROM TALASSEE TO HURTSBORO..
AND MOVING SOUTH AT AROUND 20 MPH.

THE STORMS WILL BE PRODUCING STRONG GUSTY WINDS...INTENSE LIGHTNING...
BLINDING RAIN...AND SOME HAIL.

PLEASE REMAIN ALERT UNTIL THE WATCH EXPIRES IF YOU ARE IN THE PATH
OF THESE THUNDERSTORMS.

DEVAUGHN
Local storm report, Jul 31, 7:12 PM CDT, 3 hours 42 minutes before
STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MONTGOMERY AL
710 PM CDT THU JUL 31 1986

5PM CDT...LEE-CHAMBERS COUNTY LINE NORTH OF OPELIKA...BLINDING
RAIN..HIGH WINDS..MARBLE SIZED HAIL. REPORT FROM LEE COUNTY EMA.

6PM...NUMEROUS TREES DOWN IN ALEXANDER CITY..BLOCKING ROADS...PEA
SIZED HAIL AND TORRENTIAL RAIN. FROM DPS ALEXANDER CITY.

5-6 PM...POWER OUTAGES ALL OVER AUBURN..OPELIKA..ALEXANDER CITY...
AND TALASSEE.

DEVAUGHN
Local storm report, Jul 31, 9:47 PM CDT, 1 hour 7 minutes before
STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MONTGOMERY AL
940 PM CDT THU JUL 31 1986

630 PM CDT IN TALASSEE..ALONG THE TALLAPOOSA-ELMORE COUNTY LINE..
WIND DAMAGE TO THE TOPS OF TWO BUILDINGS...NUMEROUS POWER LINES AND
TREES DOWN.

730 PM...POWER LINES DOWN ALONG THE ALABAMA-GEORGIA BORDER NEAR
EUFAULA.

730 PM...POWER LINES DOWN IN TROY..PIKE COUNTY. NO THUNDERSTORMS WERE
IN THE IMMEDIATE AREA..BUT A GUST FRONT CAUSED BY A DISSIPATING
THUNDERSTORM WAS OBSERVED ON RADAR.

825 PM..CLAYTON IN BARBOUR COUNTY...A POLICE COMMUNICATIONS TOWER
BLOWN DOWN.

DEVAUGHN

The office that day

Everything else NWS Birmingham, AL issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jul 31, 8:44 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXLauderdale, Limestone61 min
Jul 31, 9:16 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXLimestone, Madison59 min
Jul 31, 9:16 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXLauderdale34 min
Jul 31, 10:23 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXMadison, Marshall52 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Alabama, 1986Every severe thunderstorm warning in 1986

Sources

The product and its follow-ups from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service and Storm Prediction Center text; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive.