Alert archive / Alabama / Tornado Warnings in 1989
Tornado Warning 34, NWS Birmingham, AL
NWS Birmingham, AL issued this tornado warning at May 22, 1989, 8:14 PM CDT for Lauderdale County, Alabama. It was in force for 61 min.
The area
The counties it named.
The facts
- Issued
- May 22, 1989, 8:14 PM CDT (01:14 UTC)
- Expired
- May 22, 1989, 9:15 PM CDT
- In force
- 61 min
- Issued by
- NWS Birmingham, AL
- Area
- Whole counties
County Lauderdale 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
Nashville Metro, TN (KBNA), launched 00:00Z, 1.2 hours before the alert went out and 167 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
- 493 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -28 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 1270 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 40 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 171 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 245 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.4
- Supercell composite
- 3.7
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000
TTAA00 KHSV 230114
TORHSV
ALC077-230215-
BULLETIN - EBS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HUNTSVILLE AL
814 PM CDT MON MAY 22 1989
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN HUNTSVILLE HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 915 PM CDT
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING COUNTY...
IN NORTH ALABAMA
...LAUDERDALE
AT 8:12 PM... A POSSIBLE TORNADO WAS INDICATED BY RADAR CROSSING THE
TENNESSEE RIVER MOVING INTO SOUTHWEST LAUDERDALE COUNTY.
THE THUNDERSTORM WITH THIS TORNADO WAS MOVING NORTHEAST AT 25 MPH.
IF YOU LIVE IN A HOME OR APARTMENT...SEEK SHELTER IN THE
INNERMOST PORTION OF THE BUILDING ON THE LOWEST FLOOR. GET TO
A BASEMENT IF ONE IS AVAILABLE. AVOID WINDOWS AND PROTECT YOUR
BODY FROM FLYING DEBRIS WITH CUSHIONS...BLANKETS...OR PILLOWS.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, May 22, 2:36 PM CDT, 5 hours 38 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL 235 PM CDT MON MAY 22 1989 SEVERAL THUNDERSTORMS HAVE DEVELOPED OVER CENTRAL ALABAMA EARLY THIS AFERNOON. SOME OF THESE THUNDERSTORMS HAVE PRODUCED HAIL...DAMAGING LIGHTNING AND GUSTY WINDS. PEA SIZED HAIL WAS REPORTED OVER TRUSSVILLE IN NORTHEAST JEFFERSON COUNTY AT 2:15 PM. AT 235 PM ANOTHER STRONG THUNDERSTORM WAS MOVING ACROSS WESTERN JEFFERSON COUNTY...THIS STORM SHOULD MOVE ACROSS THE GRAYSVILLE AND ADAMSVILLE AREAS WITHIN THE NEXT HALF HOUR. THESE STORMS ARE MOVING NORTHEAST AT 25 MPH. MOIST UNSTABLE AIR OVER THE STATE WILL CONTINUE TO BRING A THREAT OF THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS THE STATE...WITH SOME STORMS POSSIBLY BE3COMING SEVERE THIS AFTERNOON AND THIS EVENING. KEEP UP TO DATE ON THE LATEST WEATHER CONDITIONS THROUGH THE AFTERNOON AS THE WEATHER DEVELOPES.
Special weather statement, May 22, 4:40 PM CDT, 3 hours 34 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MONTGOMERY AL 440 PM CDT MON MAY 22 1989 AT 430 PM CDT MONTGOMERY WEATHER RADAR SHOWED A BAND OF THUNDERSTORMS WITH VERY HEAVY RAINS FROM CHOCTAW COUNTY IN WEST CENTRAL ALABAMA TO NORTHERN SANTA ROSA COUNTY IN NORTHWEST FLORIDA. THESE THUNDERSTORMS WERE MOVING NORTHEAST AT AROUND 25 MILES AND HOUR AND WERE MOVING INTO SOUTHWEST WILCOX COUNTY AND SHOULD MOVE INTO DALLAS...BUTLER AND COVINGTON COUNTIES WITHIN THE HOUR. HEAVY DOWNPOURS...DANGEROUS LIGHTNING...GUSTY WINDS AND POSSIBLY SOME HAIL WILL ACCOMPANY THE STORMS. PERSONS IN SOUTH ALABAMA SHOULD RAMAIN ALERT TO THE WEATHER CONDITIONS THROUGHOUT THE EVENING AND LISTEN TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO FOR FURTHER WEATHER INFORMATION. RAGLAND
Special weather statement, May 22, 5:30 PM CDT, 2 hours 44 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MONTGOMERY AL 530 PM CDT MON MAY 22 1989 AT 530 PM CDT MONTGOMERY WEATHER RADAR SHOWED A BAND OF THUNDERSTORMS CONTINUING OVER SOUTH ALABAMA FROM DEMOPOLIS SOUTHEAST TO GEORGIANA IN SOUTHERN BUTLER COUNTY. ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS WERE IN SOUTHWEST CRENSHAW COUNTY...CENTRAL COFFEE COUNTY AND ALONG THE ALABAMA-GEORIA STATE LINE IN SOUTHERN HENRY COUNTY. MOVEMENT OF THE STORMS WAS EAST- NORTHEAST AT AROUND 25 MILES AN HOUR. HEAVY DOWNPOURS...DANGEROUS LIGHTNING...GUSTY WINDS AND POSSIBLY SOME HAIL WILL ACCOMPANY THE STORMS. PERSONS IN SOUTH ALABAMA SHOULD RAMAIN ALERT TO THE WEATHER CONDITIONS THROUGHOUT THE EVENING AND LISTEN TO N:OAA WEATHER RADIO FOR FURTHER WEATHER INFORMATION. RAGLAND
Special weather statement, May 22, 6:06 PM CDT, 2 hours 8 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MONTGOMERY AL 605 PM CDT MON MAY 22 1989 AT 600 PM CDT MONTGOMERY WEATHER RADAR SHOWED A BAND OF THUNDERSTORMS CONTINUING OVER SOUTH ALABAMA FROM SOUTHERN PERRY COUNTY IN WEST- CENTRAL ALABAMA TO SELMA...TO NEAR FT DEPOSIT AND SOUTH INTO BUTLER AND CRENSHAW COUNTIES. THE BAND EXTENDED INTO NORTHWEST FLORIDA. ISLOLATED THUNDERSTORMS WERE OVER DALE AND NORTHERN HOUSTON COUNTIES. MOVEMENT WAS NORTHEAST AT 25 TO 30 MILES AN HOUR AND THE STORMS WILL BE APPROACHING WEST MONTGOMERY WITHIN THE HOUR. HEAVY DOWNPOURS...DANGEROUS LIGHTNING...GUSTY WINDS AND POSSIBLY SOME HAIL WILL ACCOMPANY THE STORMS. PERSONS IN SOUTH ALABAMA SHOULD RAMAInN ALERT TO THE WEATHER CONDITIONS THROUGHOUT THE EVENING AND LISTEN TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO FOR FURTHER WEATHER INFORMATION. RAGLAND
Special weather statement, May 22, 6:38 PM CDT, 1 hour 36 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL 635 PM CDT MON MAY 22 1989 SEVERAL THUNDERSTORMS HAVE DEVELOPED LATE THIS AFTERNOON OVER CENTRAL ALABAMA. AT 635 PM CDT...THE STRONGER THUNDERSTORMS WERE LOCATED IN EXTREME SOUTHERN CULLMAN COUNTY...SOUTHERN TALLADEGA COUNTY NEAR SYLACAUGA...AND GREENE COUNTY NORTHEAST OF BOLIGEE. THE STORMS WERE MOVING TO THE NORTHEAST AROUND 25 MILES AN HOUR. THESE STORMS WILL PRODUCE HEAVY DOWNPOURS...GUSTY WINDS... FREQUENT LIGHTNING...AND POSSIBLY SOME HAIL. RADAR DOES INDICATE THE PRESENCE OF HAIL IN THE STORM LOCATED OVER SOUTHERN CULLMAN COUNTY. MOIST UNSTABLE AIR OVER THE STATE WILL CONTINUE TO BRING A THREAT OF THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS THE STATE. SINCE SOME STORMS COULD BECOME SEVERE TONIGHT...PEOPLE SHOULD STAY ABREAST OF THE LATEST WEATHER INFORMATION.
Special weather statement, May 22, 6:44 PM CDT, 1 hour 30 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MONTGOMERY AL 644 PM CDT MON MAY 22 1989 AT 640 PM CDT MONTGOMERY WEATHER RADAR SHOWED THUNDERSTORMS OVER SOUTH CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST ALABAMA IN A BAND FROM AUTAUGA COUNTY SOUTHEAST THROUGH THE CITY OF MONTGOMERY INTO PIKE...DALE AND HENRY COUNTIES. THE THUNDERSTORMS WERE MOVING EAST NORTHEAST AT AROUND 30 MILES AN HOUR. HEAVY DOWNPOURS...DANGEROUS LIGHTNING...GUSTY WINDS AND POSSIBLY SOME HAIL WILL ACCOMPANY THE STORMS. PERSONS IN SOUTH ALABAMA SHOULD RAMAIN ALERT TO THE WEATHER CONDITIONS THROUGHOUT THE EVENING AND LISTEN TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO FOR FURTHER WEATHER INFORMATION. RAGLAND
The office that day
Everything else NWS Birmingham, AL issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 22, 7:22 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Bibb, Tuscaloosa | 53 min |
| May 22, 11:19 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Madison, Morgan | 56 min |
| May 23, 11:29 AM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Perry | 46 min |
| May 23, 12:05 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Marengo | 40 min |
Nearby
Tornado Warnings in Alabama, 1989Every tornado warning in 1989Tornadoes in 1989
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.