Alert archive / New York / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1988

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 22, NWS Buffalo, NY

August 15, 1988Erie County, Genesee County, New York

NWS Buffalo, NY issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Aug 15, 1988, 3:10 AM EDT for Erie County, Genesee County, New York. 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: Aug 15, 1988, 3:10 AM EDT (07:10 UTC)
Expired: Aug 15, 1988, 4:15 AM EDT
In force: 65 min
Issued by: NWS Buffalo, NY
Area: Whole counties

Counties Erie County, NY, Genesee County, NY

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
Aug 15, 3:30 AM EDT	Thunderstorm Wind 0	Genesee, NY

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

Buffalo Intl Airport, NY (KBUF), launched 00:00Z, 7.2 hours before the alert went out and 18 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: 2170 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -7 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 1053 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 33 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 193 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 248 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 1.8
Supercell composite: 21.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
TTAA00 KBUF 150710
SVRBUF
NYC029-037-150815-

BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM AND SPECIAL MARINE WARNING 
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BUFFALO NY
310 AM EDT MON AUG 15 1988

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM 
AND SPECIAL MARINE WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 415 AM EDT FOR 
PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES

   IN THE STATE OF NEW YORK
      EASTERN ERIE...GENESEE

...THIS WARNING ALSO INCLUDES THE ADJACENT LAKE WATERS FOR THE   
COUNTIES JUST MENTIONED

AT 300 AM A LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS WITH VERY HEAVY DOWNPOURS AND
STRONG DAMAGING WINDS EXTENDED FROM RIPLEY TO BUFFALO...THEN
NORTHEAST ALONG THE LAKE ONTARIO SHORE TO WATERTOWN.

THE HEAVIEST ACTIVITY WAS IN A THUNDERSTORM OVER NORTHERN ERIE
COUNTY...THAT PRODUCED A WIND GUST OF 71 MPH AT THE BUFFALO
AIRPORT.   THE STORMS WERE MOVING EAST AT 45 MPH.

BE ON THE ALERT FOR THUNDERSTORMS ACCOMPANIED BY FREQUENT LIGHTNING
STRONG DAMAGING WINDS AND LARGE HAIL.  LOCALLY HEAVY RAIN MAY ALSO
CAUSE DRAINAGE FLOODING.
.
IF THREATENING WEATHER APPROACHES GO TO A SAFE PLACE IMMEDIATELY.
IN HOMES A BASEMENT OR INTERIOR ROOM IS THE SAFEST LOCATION.

 THE STRONGEST THUNDERSTORM WILL PASS THROUGH EASTERN ERIE CwOUNTY AND
 GENESEE COUNTY DURING THE NEXT HOUR.

 NIZIOL

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in New York, 1988 Every severe thunderstorm warning in 1988

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.