Alert archive / Mississippi / Tornado Warnings in 1988

Tornado Warning 35, NWS Jackson, MS

November 4, 1988Pike County, Mississippi

NWS Jackson, MS issued this tornado warning at Nov 4, 1988, 7:41 PM CST for Pike County, Mississippi. It was in force for 34 min.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
Nov 4, 1988, 7:41 PM CST (01:41 UTC)
Expired
Nov 4, 1988, 8:15 PM CST
In force
34 min
Issued by
NWS Jackson, MS
Area
Whole counties

County Pike County, MS

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

Slidell Radar S, LA (KSIL), launched 00:00Z, 1.7 hours before the alert went out and 123 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, Slidell Radar S, LA at 00:00Z on 1988-11-05Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1052 joules per kilogram.LCLEL10008507005003002001001 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, Slidell Radar S, LA at 00:00Z on 1988-11-05The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 137 square meters per square second.1939587897Sfc1 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
1052 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-5 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
860 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
61 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
137 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
211 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.7
Supercell composite
5.2

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
TTAA00 KJAN 050142
TORJAN
MSC113-050215-
 
BULLETIN - EBS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JACKSON MS
741 PM CST FRI NOV 4 1988
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN JACKSON HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL  815 PM CST
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING COUNTY...
 
IN SOUTHWEST MISSISSIPPI
          ...PIKE
 
A TORNADO HAS BEEN REPORTED IN MCCOMB DURING THE PAST FEW MINUTES.
DAMAGE WAS REPORTED IN THE PARKLANE ACADEMY AREA AT 738 PM. THE
THUNDERSTORM CONTAINING THE TORNADO WAS MOVING EAST SOUTHEAST AT 30
MPH.
 
IF YOU ARE IN THE PATH OF A TORNADO...THE SAFEST PLACE IS IN AN
INTERIOR ROOM ON THE LOWEST FLOOR.  GET UNDER STURDY FURNITURE.
USE PILLOWS OR CUSHIONS TO COVER YOUR HEAD.
<

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, Nov 4, 4:53 PM CST, 2 hours 48 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MERIDIAN MS
550 PM CST FRI NOV 4 1988

TORNADO WATCHS ARE IN EFFECT FOR MOST OF MISSISSIPPI AND PARTS
OF ALABAMA FOR THE REST OF THIS AFTERNOON AND SOME OF THIS EVENING.

TORNADO WARNING FOR KEMPER COUNTY IN EFFECT UNTIL 500 PM C

AT 545 PM CST MERIDIAN RADAR INDICATED A LINE OF INTENSE THUNDERSTORMS
EXTENDED ALONG AND 60 MILES NORTH AND WEST OF A LINE FROM PURVIS
TO QUITMAN MISSISSIPPI TO BIRMINGHAM ALABAMA. THE LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS
WAS MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 30 MPH WHILE THE INDIVIDUAL THUNDERSTORMS WERE
MOVING NORTHEAST AT 30 MPH.

NUMEROUS SEVERE WEATHER WARNINGS ARE IN EFFECT ALONG THIS LINE OF
THUNDERSTORMS. <<
Special weather statement, Nov 4, 5:05 PM CST, 2 hours 36 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MERIDIAN MS
503 PM CST FRI NOV 4 1988

TORNADO WATCHS ARE IN EFFECT FOR MOST OF MISSISSIPPI AND PARTS
OF ALABAMA FOR THE REST OF THIS AFTERNOON AND SOME OF THIS EVENING.

TORNADO WARNING FOR KEMPER COUNTY EXPIRED AT 500 PM CST.

AT 500 PM CST MERIDIAN RADAR INDICATED A LINE OF INTENSE THUNDERSTORMS
EXTENDED ALONG AND 60 MILES NORTH AND WEST OF A LINE FROM PURVIS
TO SHUBUTA MISSISSIPPI TO BIRMINGHAM ALABAMA. THE LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS
WAS MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 30 MPH WHILE THE INDIVIDUAL THUNDERSTORMS WERE
MOVING NORTHEAST AT 30 MPH.

NUMEROUS SEVERE WEATHER WARNINGS ARE IN EFFECT ALONG THIS LINE OF
THUNDERSTORMS.
Special weather statement, Nov 4, 6:24 PM CST, 1 hour 17 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT AND RADAR SUMMARY
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JACKSON MS
625 PM CST FRI NOV 4 1988

   ...THUNDERSTORMS CONTINUE OVER CENTRAL AND SOUTH MISSISSIPPI...
        ...TORNADO WATCHES REMAIN IN EFFECT FOR MISSISSIPPI...

AT 620 PM...NUMEROUS THUNDERSTORMS WITH HEAVY RAIN CONTINUE IN
CENTRAL AND SOUTHWEST MISSISSIPPI. MOST OF THE THUNDERSTORMS
EXTEND FROM NEAR KOSCUISKO TO JACKSON TO WOODVILLE. ONE OF THE
STORMS IN THIS BAND AT BENTONIA DROPPED PEA SIZED HAIL. THE
STORMS ARE MOVING EAST AT 20 MPH.

OTHER STRONG STORMS CONTINUE FROM NEAR LAUREL TO RALEIGH.

OVERALL...THE STORMS HAVE WEAKENED DURING THE LAST HOUR...BUT THE
POTENTIAL FOR THE STORMS TO INCREASE EXISTS..[.ESPECIALLY ACROSS
THE SOUTHERN SECTIONS OF THE STATE.
Local storm report, Nov 4, 6:32 PM CST, 1 hour 9 minutes before
LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MERIDIAN MS
630 PM CST FRI NOV 4 1988

DELAYED REPORT FROM MISSISSIPPI EOC.

430 PM CST...LITTLE ROCK...NEWTON COUNTY...ONE HOUSE UNDER CONSTRUCTION
        `     DESTROYED. ONE HOUSE ROOF AND PORCH DAMAGE. NUMEROUS TREES
             DOWN.
Special weather statement, Nov 4, 6:52 PM CST, 49 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JACKSON MS
650 PM CST FRI NOV 4 1988

 ...TORNADO WATCHES NUMBER 458 AND 459 HAVE BEEN CANCELLED...

TORNADO WATCHES NUMBER 458 AND 459 FOR NORTH MISSISSIPPI HAVE BEEN
CANCELLED.  HOWEVER...TORNADO WATCHES NUMBER 460 AND 461 WHICH ARE
GENERALLY SOUTH OF A HOLLANDALE TO MACON LINE REMAIN IN EFFECT.

OVERALL...THE STORMS HAVE WEAKENED DURING THE LAST HOUR...BUT THE
POTENTIAL FOR THE STORMS TO INCREASE EXISTS...ESPECIALLY ACROSS
THE SOUTHERN SECTIONS OF THE STATE.
Special weather statement, Nov 4, 7:11 PM CST, 30 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JACKSON MS
707 PM CST FRI NOV 4 1988

TORNADO WATCHES REMAIN IN EFFECT FOR CENTRAL AND SOUTH MISSISSIPPI...
GENERALLY SOUTH OF A HOLLANDALE TO MACON LINE.

AT 705 PM...RAIN AND SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS CONTINUED OVER MUCH OF
CENTRAL AND SOUTH MISSISSIPPI. THE STRONGEST THUNDERSTORMS WERE LOCATED
IN JONES AND SOUTHERN JASPER COUNTIES...AND ALSO ALONG THE PEARL RIVER
BETWEEN JACKSON AND CARTHAGE.

ANY OF THE THUNDERSTORMS STILL HAVE THE POTENTIAL TO PRODUCE LARGE HAIL
AND STRONG GUSTY WINDS. MOVEMENT WAS GENERALLY EAST AT 25 MPH.

The office that day

Everything else NWS Jackson, MS issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Nov 4, 6:41 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANWayne34 min
Nov 4, 6:45 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANSmith17 min
Nov 4, 7:13 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANJones32 min
Nov 4, 7:22 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANWayne38 min
Nov 4, 7:32 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANWalthall28 min
Nov 4, 8:04 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANJasper41 min
Nov 4, 8:06 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANMarion39 min
Nov 4, 8:13 PM CSTTornado WarningJANJasper47 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Mississippi, 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; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive.