Alert archive / Texas / Tornado Warnings in 1988
Tornado Warning 5, NWS Fort Worth, TX
NWS Fort Worth, TX issued this tornado warning at Apr 1, 1988, 3:37 PM CST for Smith County, Texas. It was in force for 68 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
- Apr 1, 1988, 3:37 PM CST (21:37 UTC)
- Expired
- Apr 1, 1988, 4:45 PM CST
- In force
- 68 min
- Issued by
- NWS Fort Worth, TX
- Area
- Whole counties
County Smith 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
| Time | Report | Where | Remark |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 1, 3:45 PM CST | Thunderstorm Wind 0 | Smith, 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
Longview/Gregg, TX (KGGG), launched 12:00Z, 9.6 hours before the alert went out and 63 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
- 49 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -181 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 794 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 46 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 173 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 240 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 0.4
The text
The text of this product is not in the archive. The NWS text archive before 2002 is incomplete.
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, Apr 1, 11:27 AM CST, 4 hours 10 minutes before
<!doctype html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
<meta charset="utf-8">
<meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1">
<title>Service Notice</title>
<link rel="stylesheet" href="index.css">
</head>
<body>
<main class="wrap">
<section class="card" role="status" aria-live="polite">
<div class="status" id="status">Temporary Notice</div>
<h1 id="headline">This service is currently unavailable.</h1>
<p id="message1">
The site you requested is temporarily down for maintenance or an unexpected outage.
</p>
<p id="message2">
Please try again in a few minutes.
</p>
<p class="small" id="detail">
If you are an administrator, restore upstream service and remove the redirect/fallback rule when normal operations resume.
</p>
</section>
</main>
<script src="index.js"></script>
</body>
</html>Special weather statement, Apr 1, 11:49 AM CST, 3 hours 48 minutes before
<!doctype html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
<meta charset="utf-8">
<meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1">
<title>Service Notice</title>
<link rel="stylesheet" href="index.css">
</head>
<body>
<main class="wrap">
<section class="card" role="status" aria-live="polite">
<div class="status" id="status">Temporary Notice</div>
<h1 id="headline">This service is currently unavailable.</h1>
<p id="message1">
The site you requested is temporarily down for maintenance or an unexpected outage.
</p>
<p id="message2">
Please try again in a few minutes.
</p>
<p class="small" id="detail">
If you are an administrator, restore upstream service and remove the redirect/fallback rule when normal operations resume.
</p>
</section>
</main>
<script src="index.js"></script>
</body>
</html>Special weather statement, Apr 1, 12:33 PM CST, 3 hours 4 minutes before
<!doctype html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
<meta charset="utf-8">
<meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1">
<title>Service Notice</title>
<link rel="stylesheet" href="index.css">
</head>
<body>
<main class="wrap">
<section class="card" role="status" aria-live="polite">
<div class="status" id="status">Temporary Notice</div>
<h1 id="headline">This service is currently unavailable.</h1>
<p id="message1">
The site you requested is temporarily down for maintenance or an unexpected outage.
</p>
<p id="message2">
Please try again in a few minutes.
</p>
<p class="small" id="detail">
If you are an administrator, restore upstream service and remove the redirect/fallback rule when normal operations resume.
</p>
</section>
</main>
<script src="index.js"></script>
</body>
</html>Special weather statement, Apr 1, 12:59 PM CST, 2 hours 38 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FORT WORTH TX 1255 PM CST FRI APR 1 1988 ...A SLOW MOVING LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS EXTENDS ACROSS THE METROPLEX... AT 1250 PM...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR INDICATED A 15 MILE WIDE LINE OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS EXTENDED FROM THE RED RIVER NEAR SHERMAN...ACROSS THE DALLAS/FORT WORTH METROPLEX TO NEAR WACO AND TEMPLE. THE LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS WAS NEARLY STATIONARY. THESE THUNDERSTORMS WILL PRODUCE LOCALLY HEAVY RAINFALL AND GUSTY WINDS AS THEY MOVE SLOWLY OFF TO THE EAST OR REMAIN NEARLY STATIONARY. RESIDENTS IN SOUTHEAST TARRANT...SOUTHWEST DALLAS AND EASTERN JOHNSON COUNTIES CAN EXPECT LOCALLY HEAVY RAIN AS THE LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS CONTINUES EAST. ANOTHER AREA OF THUNDERSTORMS WERE DEVELOPING OVER EAST TEXAS FROM NEAR PARIS TO PALESTINE. STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO FOR LATER STATEMENTS.
Special weather statement, Apr 1, 1:30 PM CST, 2 hours 7 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WACO TX 120 PM CST FRI APR 1 1988 ...LINE OF STRONG THUNDERSTORMS MOVING THROUGH CENTRAL TEXAS... AT 120 PM CST A LINE OF STRONG THUNDERSTORMS EXTENDED FROM THE DALLAS AREA SOUTH THROUGH WACO TO NEAR GEORGETOWN. THIS LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS WAS PRODUCING VERY HEAVY RAIN...GUSTY WINDS TO NEAR 40 MILES AN HOUR... AND SMALL HAIL. MOVEMENT WAS EAST AT 25 MILES AN HOUR. ELSEWHERE...ISOLATED STRONG THUNDERSTORMS WERE OVER SOUTHCENTRAL TEXAS ...IN LEON COUNTY JUST EAST OF MARQUEZ...AND ALONG THE ROBERTSON/MILAM COUNTY LINE ABOUT 10 MILES WEST OF CALVERT. THESE THUNDERSTORMS WERE MOVING NORTHEAST AT AROUND 25 MILES AN HOUR. VERY HEAVY RAIN AND GUSTY WINDS...AS WELL AS HAIL...MAY ACCOMPANY THESE STORMS. CONTINUE TO LISTEN TO THIS STATION FOR LATER STATEMENTS AND POSSIBLE WARNINGS. 03
Special weather statement, Apr 1, 1:49 PM CST, 1 hour 48 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FORT WORTH TX 150 PM CST FRI APR 1 1988 ...THUNDERSTORMS DEVELOPING OVER THE EASTERN HALF OF NORTH TEXAS... AT 145 PM...THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR CONTINUED TO INDICATE A 15 MILE WIDE LINE SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS EXTENDING FROM NEAR SHERMAN TO DALLAS TO WACO AND TEMPLE. THE LINE OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WAS MOVING VERY SLOWLY TO THE EAST. A STRONG THUNDERSTORM LOCATED OVER DALLAS COUNTY PRODUCED MARBLE SIZE HAIL AS IT MOVED ACROSS THE CITY OF GRAND PRAIRIE. OTHER STRONG THUNDERSTORMS CONTINUED TO DEVELOP RAPIDLY IN EAST TEXAS IN AN AREA FROM NEAR PARIS TO ATHENS TO BUFFALO. MOVEMENT WAS TO THE NORTHEAST AT 20 MILES AN HOUR. THE STRONGER THUNDERSTORMS ARE CAPABLE OF PRODUCING LOCALLY HEAVY RAIN...STRONG GUSTY SURFACE WINDS...DANGEROUS LIGHTNING AND LARGE HAIL. PERSONS IN DALLAS...HENDERSON...RED RIVER...AND SMITH COUNTIES SHOULD BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR STRONG THUNDERSTORMS DEVELOPING IN OR MOVING ACROSS YOUR COUNTIES. YOU SHOULD BE READY FOR QUICK ACTION IF THESE THUNDERSTORMS BECOME SEVERE AND THREATEN YOUR AREA. STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO...LOCAL RADIO OR TV FOR ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS.
The office that day
Everything else NWS Fort Worth, TX issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 1, 1:47 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | FWD | Hill | 58 min |
| Apr 1, 1:50 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | FWD | Collin, Dallas | 55 min |
| Apr 1, 2:06 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | FWD | Navarro | 69 min |
| Apr 1, 2:40 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | FWD | Henderson, Smith | 65 min |
| Apr 1, 2:40 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | FWD | Anderson | 65 min |
| Apr 1, 4:04 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | FWD | Upshur | 56 min |
| Apr 1, 4:14 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | FWD | Upshur | 61 min |
| Apr 1, 4:25 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | FWD | Anderson, Cherokee | 65 min |
| Apr 1, 4:50 PM CST | Tornado Warning | FWD | Upshur | 55 min |
| Apr 1, 5:10 PM CST | Tornado Warning | FWD | Morris | 65 min |
| Apr 1, 5:21 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | FWD | Lamar, Red River | 69 min |
| Apr 1, 5:33 PM CST | Tornado Warning | FWD | Cherokee, Smith | 57 min |
| Apr 1, 5:48 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | FWD | Brazos | 57 min |
Nearby
Tornado Warnings in Texas, 1988Every tornado warning in 1988Tornadoes 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.