Alert archive / Mississippi / Tornado Warnings in 1986

Tornado Warning 5, NWS Memphis, TN

March 12, 1986Tippah County, Mississippi

NWS Memphis, TN issued this tornado warning at Mar 12, 1986, 2:57 AM CST for Tippah County, Mississippi. It was in force for 33 min. 1 report came from inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The counties it named, with what was reported inside it.

The facts

Issued: Mar 12, 1986, 2:57 AM CST (08:57 UTC)
Expired: Mar 12, 1986, 3:30 AM CST
In force: 33 min
Issued by: NWS Memphis, TN
Area: Whole counties

County Tippah County, MS

The radar

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

What was reported inside it

Time	Report	Where	Remark
Mar 12, 3:15 AM CST	Thunderstorm Wind 0	Tippah, MS

NCEI Storm Data entries that began inside the alert's area while it was in force. Before 2003 the local storm report archive is thin, so this is the record of what happened rather than what was phoned in. Storm Data before 1996 records only tornadoes, thunderstorm wind and hail.

The nearest sounding before it

Little Rock, AR (KLZK), launched 00:00Z, 9.0 hours before the alert went out and 95 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-p

Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.

Hodograph

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: 0 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL: 3618 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 67 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 467 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 635 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.0
Supercell composite: 0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
TTAA00 KTUP 120857
TORTUP
MSC139-120930-

BULLETIN-EBS ACTIVATION REQUESTED

TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TUPELO MS 
257 AM CST WED MAR 12 1986

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED A TORNADO WARNING EFFECTIVE
UNTIL 330AM CST FOR PERSONS IN THE FOLLOWING COUNTY IN NORTHEAST
MISSISSIPPI...TIPPAH

AT 255AM CST...RADAR INDICATED A POSSIBLE TORNADO 5 MILES WEST OF
RIPLEY. THE TORNADO IS MOVING EAST AT 40 MILES.

PERSONS IN RIPLEY SHOULD TAKE COVER IMMEDIATELYO.

IF YOU ARE IN THE PATH OF THIS TORNADO..GO TO A BASEMENT SHELTER OR A
CENTRAL INTERIOR ROOM ON THE LOWEST FLOOR. ABANDON VEHICLES AND MOBILE
HOMES FOR A REINFORCED BUILDING.

What forecasters said that day

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

In the hours before

Local storm report, Mar 11, 10:06 PM CST, 4 hours 51 minutes before

STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE  MEMPHIS TN
1000 PM CST TUE MAR 11 1986

    9:38 PM...SIGNIFICANT WIND DAMAGE AND POSSIBLE TORNADO AT WYNNE
    AR. ( CROSS CTY).  POWER LINES CUT DOWN AT GROUND LEVEL.
    9:55 PM...GOLF BALL SIZE HAIL IN EASTERN POINSETT CTY OF AR.
    9:58 PM...POWER OUT IN CRITTENDEN CNTY AR.

Local storm report, Mar 11, 10:29 PM CST, 4 hours 28 minutes before

STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE  MEMPHIS TN
1028 PM CST TUE MAR 11 1986

    9:38 PM...SIGNIFICANT WIND DAMAGE AND POSSIBLE TORNADO AT WYNNE
    AR. ( CROSS CTY).  POWER LINES CUT DOWN AT GROUND LEVEL.
    9:55 PM...GOLF BALL SIZE HAIL IN EASTERN POINSETT CTY OF AR.
    9:58 PM...POWER OUT IN CRITTENDEN CNTY AR.

    ..NEW INFORMATION.. PERSONAL INJURIES IN CROSS COUNTY OF
    ARKANSAS AND DAMAGE TO THE WYNNE JR. HIGH SCHOOL (CROSS CTY AR.)

Local storm report, Mar 12, 12:55 AM CST, 2 hours 2 minutes before

STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE  MEMPHIS TN
145 AM CST WED MAR 12 1986

    ADDITIONAL STORM REPORTS...

    10:00 PM CST ... GOLF BALL SIZE HAIL NEAR WILSON IN MISSISSIPPI CTY
    ARKANSAS.
    10:10 PM CST ... 2 INCHES OF HAIL COVERING THE GROUND ALONG 1-55
    20 MILES N OF MEMPHIS.
    10:10 PM CST ... TWO "SEMI" TRUCKS BLOWN OFF ROAD NEAR LAKE DAVID
    IN EAST ARKANSAS PROBABLY CRITTENDEN CTY.
    10:15 PM CST ... 1" HAIL AT LUXORA ARKANSAS (MISSISSIPPI CTY).
    10:50 PM CST ... 3/4" INCH HAIL AT RIPLEY TN (LAUDERDALE CTY).
    11:20 PM CST ... 3/4 " HAIL NEWBURN TN (DYER CTY).
    11:32 PM CST ... GOLF BALL SIZE HAIL IN DYER TN (GIBSON CTY).
    11:40 PM CST ... 1" HAIL/ 50 MPH GUSTS IN RIPLEY TN.

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Mississippi, 1986 Every tornado warning in 1986 Tornadoes 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; verification from NCEI's Storm Data; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive.