Alert archive / Pennsylvania / Tornado Warnings in 1987
Tornado Warning 1, NWS Pittsburgh, PA
NWS Pittsburgh, PA issued this tornado warning at Jun 8, 1987, 6:25 PM EDT for Beaver County, Pennsylvania. It was in force for 65 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
- Jun 8, 1987, 6:25 PM EDT (22:25 UTC)
- Expired
- Jun 8, 1987, 7:30 PM EDT
- In force
- 65 min
- Issued by
- NWS Pittsburgh, PA
- Area
- Whole counties
County Beaver County, PA
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 8, 6:30 PM EDT | Hail 0.75 | Beaver, PA |
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
Pittsburgh, PA (KPIT), launched 12:00Z, 10.4 hours before the alert went out and 37 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
- 20 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -383 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 1483 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 31 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 111 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 107 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 0.0
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000 TTAA00 KPIT 082300 TORPIT PAC007-082330- BULLETIN - EBS ACTIVATION REQUESTED TORNADO WARNING NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PITTSBURGH PA 625 PM EDT MON JUN 8 1987 THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED A TORNADO WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 730 PM EDT FOR THE FOLLOWING COUNTY OF WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA... BEAVER AT 615 PM A SKYWARN SPOTTER SIGHTED A FUNNEL CLOUD NEAR EAST PALESTINEE OHIO. THIS STORM IS MOVING EAST AT 25 MPH INTO BEAVER COUNTY PENNSYLVANIA. IF YOU ARE CAUGHT OUTDOORS...ABANDON YOUR CAR AND GO TO A LOW LYING AREA LIKE A DITCH OR RAVINE. GET AS LOW AS POSSIBLE AND PROTECT YOUR HEAD AND CHEST. IF YOU ARE IN A MOBILE HOME ABANDON IT...MOBILE HOME OFFER NO PROTECTION IN TORNADO-STRENGTH WINDS. WJD/BC
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, Jun 8, 3:13 PM EDT, 3 hours 12 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PITTSBURGH, PA 312 PM EDT MON JUN 08 1987 ...VERY HEAVY THUNDERSTORMS DEVELOPING ACROSS THE NORTHERN SECTIONS OF WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA... AT 310 PM NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR SHOWED VERY HEAVY THUNDERSTORMS DEVELOPING FROM MERCER COUNTY NORTHEASTWARD TO NEAR EMPORIUM IN CAMERON COUNTY. THE HEAVIEST STORMS WERE LOCATED OVER FOREST AND ELK COUNTIES AND WERE HEADED TOWARDS CLARION...JEFFERSON AND CLEARFIELD COUNTIES. ALL THUNDERSTORMS WERE MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 40 MPH. THESE STORMS WILL CONTAIN STRONG GUSTY WINDS...DANGEROUS LIGHTNING... HAIL AND HEAVY DOWNPOURS. IF THREATENING WEATHER APPROACHES...GO TO A SAFE PLACE IMMEDIATELY. END/COgMEAUX
Special weather statement, Jun 8, 4:36 PM EDT, 1 hour 49 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT FOR WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA AND THE NORTHERN PANHANDLE OF WEST VIRGINIA... NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PITTSBURGH, PA 435 PM EDT MON JUN 08 1987 ...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH NOW IN EFFECT FOR A LARGE PORTION OF WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA AND THE NORTHERN PANHANDLE OF WEST VIRGINIA... AND A PORTION OF EASTERN OHIO. THE NATIONAL SEVERE STORM FORECAST CENTER IN KANSAS CITY HAS ISSUED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH UNTIL 10 PM THIS EVENING FOR A LARGE PORTION OF WESTERN PENNSYLVNIA...EXCLUDING THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES IN WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA...THEY ARE GREENE...FAYETTE...SOMERSET...BEDFORD AND FULTON. ONLY MARSHALL COUNTY IN THE NORTHERN PANHANDLE OF WEST VIRGINIA IS EXCLUDED FROM THIS WATCH. A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH MEANS SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS ARE POSSIBLE IN AND CLOSE TO THE WATCH AREA...SO BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR THREATENING WEATHER CONDITIONS AND LISTEN FOR LATER STATEMENTS AND POSSIBLE WARNINGS. < END/COMEAUX
Special weather statement, Jun 8, 5:50 PM EDT, 35 minutes before
COMBINED RADAR AND SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PITTSBURGH, PA 547 PM EDT MON JUN 08 1987 AT 530 PM, PITTSBURGH WEATHER RADAR SHOWED A BAND OF VERY HEAVY THUNDERSTORMS STRETCHING FROM ELK COUNTY WESTWARD ACROSS FOREST.. CLARION..SOUTHERN VENANGO..MERCER AND LAWRENCE COUNTIES IN PENNSYLVANIA INTO TRUNBULL..MAHONING AND PORTAGE COUNTIES IN OHIO. THE BAND CONTINUES WESTWARD TO SOUTH OF CLEVELAND. THESE STORMS ARE MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 50 MPH AND WILL MOVE INTO BEAVER..BUTLER..JEFFERSON AND CLEARFIELD COUNTIES DURING THE NEXT HOUR. A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH CONTINUES IN EFFECT UNTIL 10 PM FOR ALMOST ALL OF WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA ..THE NORTHERN PANHANDLE OF WEST VIRGINIA AND MUCH OF NORTHERN OHIO. STAY TUNED FOR FURTHER STATEMENTS AND POSSIBLE WARNINGS. FH/CHH
The office that day
Everything else NWS Pittsburgh, PA issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 8, 6:41 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | PBZ | Armstrong, Butler | 59 min |
| Jun 8, 7:01 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | PBZ | Allegheny, Westmoreland | 59 min |
Nearby
Tornado Warnings in Pennsylvania, 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.