Alert archive / Texas / Tornado Warnings in 1987

Tornado Warning 33, NWS Amarillo, TX

July 1, 1987Armstrong County, Carson County, Texas

NWS Amarillo, TX issued this tornado warning at Jul 1, 1987, 9:43 PM CDT for Armstrong County, Carson County, Texas. It was in force for 62 min. 2 reports 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
Jul 1, 1987, 9:43 PM CDT (02:43 UTC)
Expired
Jul 1, 1987, 10:45 PM CDT
In force
62 min
Issued by
NWS Amarillo, TX
Area
Whole counties

Counties Armstrong County, TX, Carson County, TX

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

TimeReportWhereRemark
Jul 1, 9:57 PM CDTTornado F2Carson, TX
Jul 1, 10:10 PM CDTTornado F2Armstrong, TX

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

Amarillo Airport, TX (KAMA), launched 00:00Z, 2.7 hours before the alert went out and 32 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, Amarillo Airport, TX at 00:00Z on 1987-07-02Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 3198 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, Amarillo Airport, TX at 00:00Z on 1987-07-02The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 25 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
3198 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-20 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1773 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
18 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
25 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
128 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 KAMA 020243
TORAMA
TXC011-065-020345-
 
BULLETIN - EBS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AMARILLO TX
943 PM CDT WED JUL 1 1987
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED A TORNADO WARNING
EFFECTIVE UNTIL 1045 PM CDT FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES...
 
IN THE TEXAS PANHANDLE
          ...ARMSTRONG...SOUTHERN CARSON
 
AT 945 PM CDT RADAR INDICATES A POSSIBLE TORNADO SOUTH OF WHITE DEER.
AT 940 PM LARGE HAIL BETWEEN GOLF BALL AND BASEBALL SIZE WAS FALLING
IN PANHANDLE. THIS STORM IS MOVING SOUTH AT 15 MPH.
 
IF YOU ARE IN THE PATH OF A TORNADO...THE SAFEST PLACE IS A
BASEMENT.  GET UNDER A WORKBENCH OR PIECE OF STURDY FURNITURE.
IF NO BASEMENT IS AVAILABLE...SEEK SHELTER IN AN INTERIOR ROOM
SUCH AS A CLOSET ON THE LOWEST FLOOR.  USE BLANKETS...PILLOWS...
OR CUSHIONS TO COVER YOUR BODY.  AVOID WINDOWS.
 
IF YOU ARE CAUGHT OUTSIDE...SEEK SHELTER IN A NEARBY REINFORCED
BUILDING.  AS A LAST RESORT...SEEK SHELTER IN A CAULVERT...DITCH
OR LOW SPOT AND COVER YOUR HEAD WITH YOUR HANDS.

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

Special weather statement, Jul 1, 4:40 PM CDT, 5 hours 3 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT AND RADAR SUMMARY
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AMARILLO TX
 438 PM CDT WED JUL 1  1987
 ...TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 293 IN EFFECT FROM 430 PM CDT UNTIL 1000 PM
CDT FOR THE WEST AND CENTRAL SECTIONS OF THE TEXAS AND OKLAHOMA
PANHANDLES...AND FOR PORTIONS OF NORTHEAST NEW MEXICO...

AT 425 PM CDT AMARILLO RADAR INDICATED A LINE OF VERY STRONG THUNDER
STORMS EXTENDING FROM NEAR GUYMON OKLAHOMA...SOUTHWEST ACROSS THE
NORTHWEST CORNER OF THE TEXAS PANHANDLE TO JUST SOUTH OF CLAYTON NEW
MEXICO. STRONGEST PORTION OF THE LINE WAS IN DALLAM COUNTY OF THE
NORTHWEST TEXAS PANHANDLE...JUST EAST OF TEXLINE.

THE LINE WAS SHOWING A SLOW SOUTHEAST MOVEMENT.

PERSONS INP THE WATCH AREA SHOULD REMAIN ALERT AND MOVE TO A PLACE OF
SAFETY IF THREATENING CONDITIONS ARE SIGHTED. STAY TUNED TO RADIO...
TV OR NOAA WEATHER RADIO FOR LATER STATEMENTS AND POSSIBLE WARNINGS.
Special weather statement, Jul 1, 5:32 PM CDT, 4 hours 11 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT AND RADAR SUMMARY
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AMARILLO TX
531 PM CDT WED JUL 1  1987
...TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 293 IN EFFECT FROM 430 PM CDT UNTIL 1000 PM
CDT FOR THE WEST AND CENTRAL SECTIONS OF THE TEXAS AND OKLAHOMA
PANHANDLES...AND FOR PORTIONS OF NORTHEAST NEW MEXICO...

AT 525 PM CDT AMARILLO RADAR INDICATED A LINE OF VERY STRONG THUNDER
STORMS EXTENDING FROM NEAR LIBERAL KANSAS...SOUTHWEST ACROSS GUYMON
OKLAHOMA TO JUST SOUTH OF CLAYTON NEW MEXICO. STRONGEST PORTION OF THE
LINE WAS IN TEXAS COUNTY OF THE CENTRAL OKLAHOMA PANHANDLE...BETWEEN
HOOKER AND TYRONE.

THE LINE WAS SHOWING A SLOW SOUTHEAST MOVEMENT.

PERSONS IN THE WATCH AREA SHOULD REMAmIN ALERT AND MOVE TO A PLACE OF
SAFETY IF THREATENING CONDITIONS ARE SIGHTED. STAY TUNED TO RADIO...
TV OR NOAA WEATHER RADIO FOR LATER STATEMENTS AND POSSIBLE WARNINGS.
Special weather statement, Jul 1, 7:41 PM CDT, 2 hours 2 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT AND RADAR SUMMARY
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AMARILLO TX
 737 PM CDT WED JUL 1  1987
 ...TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 293 IN EFFECT UNTIL 1000 PM CDT FOR THE WEST
AND CENTRAL TEXAS AND OKLAHOMA PANHANDLES...TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 295 IN
EFFECT UNTIL 12 MIDNIGHT CDT FOR THE EAST TEXAS AND OKLAHOMA PANHANDLES.

AT 725 PM CDT AMARILLO RADAR INDICATED ISOLATED VERY STRONG THUNDER
STORMS IN THE CENTRAL AND SOUTH TEXAS PANHANDLE...ONE JUST SOUTHEAST OF
SILVERTON...ANOTHER 25 MILES SOUTH OF CLAUDE...AND ANOTHER JUST EAST OF
BORGER. MOVEMENT WAS SOUTHEAST AT 15 MILES AN HOUR.

OTHER LESS INTENSE THUNDERSTORMS REMAINED OVER THE NORTH TEXAS PANHANDLE
BETWEEN PERRYTON AND DALHART...AND NEAR THE CLAYTON NEW MEXICO AREA.

PERSONS IN THE WATCH AREAS SHOULD REMAIN ALERT AND MOVE TO A PLACE OF
SAFETY IF THREATENING CONDITIONS ARE SIGHTED. STRONG GUSTY WINDS...
DANGEROUS LIGHTNING...AND HAIL ARE POSSIBLE NEAR THE HEAVIER STORMS.
SOME FLOODING OF LOW LYING AREAS IS POSSIBLE.

The office that day

Everything else NWS Amarillo, TX issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jul 1, 8:10 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningAMABriscoe65 min
Jul 1, 8:26 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningAMACarson, Gray64 min
Jul 1, 8:46 PM CDTTornado WarningAMACarson, Gray59 min
Jul 1, 10:42 PM CDTTornado WarningAMAArmstrong63 min
Jul 2, 1:21 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningAMACarson, Gray54 min
Jul 2, 3:02 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningAMAHutchinson58 min
Jul 2, 6:31 PM CDTTornado WarningAMACastro, Parmer59 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Texas, 1987Every tornado warning in 1987Tornadoes in 1987

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.