Alert archive / Alabama / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1987
Severe Thunderstorm Warning 69, NWS Mobile, AL
NWS Mobile, AL issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Dec 15, 1987, 5:15 AM CST for Coffee County, Alabama. It was in force for 45 min.
The area
The counties it named.
The facts
- Issued
- Dec 15, 1987, 5:15 AM CST (11:15 UTC)
- Expired
- Dec 15, 1987, 6:00 AM CST
- In force
- 45 min
- Issued by
- NWS Mobile, AL
- Area
- Whole counties
County Coffee 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
Centreville/Bibb, AL (KCKL), launched 00:00Z, 11.3 hours before the alert went out and 202 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.
- Mixed-layer CAPE
- 0 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- No buoyant parcel
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 618 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 50 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 115 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 348 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 0.5
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000
TTAA00 KMGM 151115
SVRMGM
ALC011-031-109-151215-
BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MONTGOMERY AL
515 AM CST TUE DEC 15 1987
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
EFFECTIVE UNTIL 615 AM CST FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES...
IN SOUTH ALABAMA
...BULLOCK...COFFEE...PIKE
AT 5 15AM CST RADAR INDICATED A LINE OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS FROM
10 SOUTHWEST OF UNION SPRINGS TO JUST NORTHWEST OF OF ELBA MOVING
TOWARD THE EAST AT 30 MPH.
SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS PRODUCE DAMAGING WIND IN EXCESS OF 55
MPH...DESTRUCTIVE HAIL...DEADLY LIGHTNING...AND VERY HEAVY RAIN.
FOR YOUR PROTECTION MOVE TO AN INTERIOR ROOM ON THE LOWEST FLOOR
OF YOUR HOME OR BUSINESS. HEAVY RAINS FLOOD ROADS QUICKLY SO
DON'T DRIVE INTO AREAS WHERE WATER COVERS THE ROAD.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, Dec 15, 2:38 AM CST, 2 hours 37 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT AND RADAR SUMMARY NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PENSACOLA FL 235 AM CST TUE DEC 15 1987 THE TORNADO WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR ALABAMA UNTIL 6AM CST THIS MORNING. AT 230 AM CST...NUMEROUS SHOWERS AND SCATTERED THUNDERSHOWERS...SOME PRODUCING HEAVY RAINFALL...WERE OCASSIONALLY IN LINES AND CLUSTERS OVER THE WESTERN FLORIDA PANHANDLE AND SOUTHWEST ALABAMA. THE HEAVIEST THUNDERSHOWEWRS WERE PRESENTLY INDICATED IN ALABAMA FROM MOBILE BAY NORTHWARD ABOUT 50 MILES. MOVEMENTS WERE NORTHEAST ABOUT 55 MILES AN HOUR. A LINE OF STRONG THUNDERSTORMS WERE BEGINNING TO MOVE INTO SOUTHWEST ALABAMA AND TOWARD THE ALABAMA COASTAL WATERS. NUMEROUS THUNDERSTORMS WERE OCCURRING ALONG THE LINE AS IT MOVED EASTWARD AROUND 35 MILES AN HOUR.
Special weather statement, Dec 15, 3:17 AM CST, 1 hour 58 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MOBILE AL 315 AM CST TUE DEC 15 1987 ...TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 566 REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR SOUTHWEST ALABAMA UNTIL 600 AM... AT 310 AM...THE MOBILE RADAR INDICATED A LINE OF STRONG THUNDERSTORMS FROM SOUTHWEST CLARKE COUNTY SOUTH ACROSS CENTRAL MOBILE COUNTY IN ALABAMA WITH OTHER THUNDERSTORMS OVER BALDWIN...ESCAMBIA AND CONECUH COUNTIES. THE THUNDERSTORMS CONTINUED TO MOVE TOWARD THE NORTH AT 60 MPH WHILE THE LINE IS MOVING EAST AT 30 MPH. THE COLD FRONT PUSHING THE LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS IS EXPECTED TO CONTINUE MOVING EASTWARD ACROSS SOUTHWEST ALABAMA THIS MORNING. THE TEMPERATURE WILL FALL RAPIDLY AFTER THE WIND SHIFT AND THAT WILL END THE THREAT OF SEVERE WEATHER. STRONG GUSTY WEST TO NORTHWEST WINDS WILL OCCUR BEHIND THE COLD FRONT. THE TEMPERATURE AT THE MOBILE AIRPORT HAS FALLEN FROM 73 TO 60 DEGREES IN 25 MINUTES WITH WIND GUSTS OF 37 MPH. THE MOBILE POLICE DEPARTMEN0T REPORTED WIND DAMAGE TO A PATIO COVER IN THE PONDEROSA SUBDIVISION...ABOUT 5 MILES NORTH OF THE AIRPORT...ABOUT THE TIME OF THE WIND SHIFT. WINDS ESTIMATED AT 50 MPH OCCURRED IN THE AREA.
Special weather statement, Dec 15, 4:28 AM CST, 47 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MOBILE AL 430 AM CST TUE DEC 15 1987 ...TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 566 REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR CONECUH AND ESCAMBIA COUNTIES IN ALABAMA UNTIL 600 AM... ...ALL OTHER SOUTHWEST ALABAMA COUNTIES HAVE BEEN CLEARED... AT 425 PM THE MOBILE RADAR SHOWED THAT THE LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS HAD MOVED RAPIDLY EASTWARD AND IS NOW ACROSS NORTHWEST FLORIDA EXTENDING NORTHWARD ACROSS CENTRAL ESCAMBIA AND EASTERN CONECUH COUNTIES IN ALABAMA. SEVERAL HEAVY THUNDERSTORMS MAY MOVE OVER EASTERN ESCAMBIA COUNTY DURING THE NEXT HALF HOUR AS THEY CONTINUE TO MOVE NORTHWARD AT 60 MPH. STRONG GUSTY WINDS ARE LIKELY WITH THESE THUNDERSTORMS. THE THUNDERSTORMS WILL MOVE EAST OF THESE TWO COUNTIES BY 500 AM.
Special weather statement, Dec 15, 4:33 AM CST, 42 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MOBILE AL 430 AM CST TUE DEC 15 1987 ...TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 566 REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR CONECUH AND ESCAMBIA COUNTIES IN ALABAMA UNTIL 600 AM... ...ALL OTHER SOUTHWEST ALABAMA COUNTIES HAVE BEEN CLEARED... AT 425 AM THE MOBILE RADAR SHOWED THAT THE LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS HAD MOVED RAPIDLY EASTWARD AND IS NOW ACROSS NORTHWEST FLORIDA EXTENDING NORTHWARD ACROSS CENTRAL ESCAMBIA AND EASTERN CONECUH COUNTIES IN ALABAMA. SEVERAL HEAVY THUNDERSTORMS MAY MOVE OVER EASTERN ESCAMBIA COUNTY DURING THE NEXT HALF HOUR AS THEY CONTINUE TO MOVE NORTHWARD AT 60 MPH. STRONG GUSTY WINDS ARE LIKELY WITH THESE THUNDERSTORMS. THE THUNDERSTORMS WILL MOVE EAST OF THESE TWO COUNTIES BY 500 AM.
Special weather statement, Dec 15, 4:41 AM CST, 34 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT AND RADAR SUMMARY NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PENSACOLA FL 440 AM CST TUE DEC 15 1987 AT 430 AM CST...A LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS EXTENDED FROM ANDALUSIA ALABAMA TO PENSACOLA THEN SOUTH ACROSS THE GULF. THE LINE WAS MOVING EAST ABOUT 30 MILES AN HOUR. AHEAD OF THE LINE SHOWERS AND THUNDERSHOWERS WERE NUMEROUS IN THE PANHANDLE AND COASTAL WATERS. MOVEMENTS WERE NORTHEAST AROUND 50 MILES AN HOUR. THIS LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS MARKS THE LEADING EDGE OF SOME COLD AIR THAT WILL BE MOVING RAPIDLY EAST AND OVER NORTHWEST FLORIDA TODAY. WINDS WILL BE SHIFTING TO THE NORTHWEST AND TEMPERATURES WILL DROP. IN MOBILE ALABAMA THE TEMPERATURE DROPPED 16 DEGREES AFTER THE FRONT PASSED.
Special weather statement, Dec 15, 4:54 AM CST, 21 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MOBILE AL 455 AM CST TUE DEC 15 1987 ...TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 566 IS NO LONGER IN EFFECT FOR ANY PART OF SOUTHWEST ALABAMA... AT 450 AM WEATHER SERVICE RADARS SHOWED THAT THUNDERSTORMS HAD MOVED INTO SOUTHEAST ALABAMA AND ONLY A FEW SHOWERS REMAIN ACROSS MONROE AND CONECUH COUNTIES. THE THREAT OF SEVERE WEATHER HAS ENDED OVER SOUTHWEST ALABAMA.
The office that day
Everything else NWS Mobile, AL issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 15, 3:12 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MOB | Dallas | 48 min |
| Dec 15, 3:39 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MOB | Autauga | 51 min |
| Dec 15, 3:54 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MOB | Elmore | 66 min |
| Dec 15, 4:14 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MOB | Bullock | 61 min |
| Dec 15, 5:15 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MOB | Bullock, Pike | 45 min |
Nearby
Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Alabama, 1987Every severe thunderstorm warning 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; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive.