Alert archive / Pennsylvania / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1989
Severe Thunderstorm Warning 4, NWS State College, PA
NWS State College, PA issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Jun 15, 1989, 6:22 PM EDT for Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. It was in force for 38 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 15, 1989, 6:22 PM EDT (22:22 UTC)
- Expired
- Jun 15, 1989, 7:00 PM EDT
- In force
- 38 min
- Issued by
- NWS State College, PA
- Area
- Whole counties
County Lancaster 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 15, 6:30 PM EDT | Tornado F2 | Lancaster, 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
Washington/Dulle, VA (KIAD), launched 12:00Z, 10.4 hours before the alert went out and 157 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
- 79 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -169 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 614 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 42 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 92 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 156 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 0.0
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 severe thunderstorm 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 15, 3:36 PM EDT, 2 hours 46 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HARRISBURG PA. 330 PM EDT THU JUN 15 1989 ...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH FOR YORK AND LANCASTER COUNTIES IN THE LOWER SUSQUEHANNA VALLEY... A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH IS IN EFFECT FROM 330 PM THIS AFTERNOON UNTIL 1000 PM TONIGHT FOR YORK AND LANCASTER COUNTIES. THIS WATCH ALSO EXTENDS INTO SOUTHEASTERN PENNSYLVANIA. LARGE HAIL...DANGEROUS LIGHTNING AND DAMAGING WINDS ARE POSSIBLE IN AND NEAR THE WATCH AREA. REMEMBER...A SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WATCH MEANS CONDITIONS ARE FAVORABLE FOR SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS IN AND CLOSE TO THE WATCH AREA. PERSONS IN THESE AREAS SHOULD BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR THREATENING WEATHER CONDITIONS AND LISTEN FOR LAT?ER STATEMENTS AND POSSIBLE WARNINGS. WSO HAR JORDAN
Special weather statement, Jun 15, 4:21 PM EDT, 2 hours 1 minute before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HARRISBURG PA. 415 PM EDT THU JUN 15 1989 ...THUNDERSTORMS DEVELOPING AND MOVING THROUGH FRANKLIN COUNTY... AT 410 PM EDT THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR WAS OBSERVING A SMALL CLUSTER OF THUNDERSTORMS ACCOMPANIED BY BRIEF VERY HEAVY RAIN FROM JUST EAST OF MERCERSBURG TO JUST NORTHWEST OF CHAMBERSBURG IN FRANKLIN COUNTY. THIS CLUSTER OF THUNDERSTORMS WAS MOVING NORTHEAST AT 30 TO 35 MPH. THESE THUNDERSTORMS WILL CONTINUE TO BE ACCOMPANIED BY BRIEF VERY HEAVY RAIN...FREQUENT LIGHTNING AND MAY ALSO CONTAIN BRIEF STRONG GUSTY WINDS AND SMALL HAIL. THESE THUNDERSTORMS WILL CONTINUE TO THE NORTHEAST AT 30 TO 35 MPH AND WILL REACH INTO TlHE CARLISLE AND MECHANICSBURG AREA BETWEEN 500 AND 530 PM. WSO HAR FITZSIMMONS
Special weather statement, Jun 15, 5:20 PM EDT, 1 hour 2 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HARRISBURG PA. 515 PM EDT THU JUN 15 1989 ...THUNDERSTORMS MOVING THROUGH CUMBERLAND AND NORTHERN YORK COUNTIES... AT 510 PM EDT THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR WAS OBSERVING THUNDERSTORMS ACCOMPANIED BY BRIEF VERY HEAVY RAIN IN THE VICINITY OF MECHANICSBURG IN CUMBERLAND COUNTY AND SOUTHEAST OF DILLSBURG IN EXTREME NORTHWESTERN YORK COUNTY AND NORTHERN ADAMS COUNTY. THESE THUNDERSTORMS WERE MOVING NORTHEAST AT 30 TO 35 MPH. THESE THUNDERSTORMS WILL CONTINUE TO BE ACCOMPANIED BY BRIEF VERY HEAVY RAIN...FREQUENT LIGHTNING AND MAY ALSO CONTAIN BRIEF STRONG GUSTY WINDS AND SMALL HAIL. THESE THUNDERSTORMS WILL CONTINUE TO THE NORTHEAST AT 30 TO 35 MPH AND WILL REACH EXTREME SOUTHEAST PERRY AND WESTERN DAUPHIN COUNTIES BETWEEN 530 AND 600 PM THIS EVENING. WSO HAR FITZSIMMONS
Special weather statement, Jun 15, 5:59 PM EDT, 23 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HARRISBURG PA. 550 PM EDT THU JUN 15 1989 ...LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS MOVING THROUGH THE LOWER SUSQUEHANNA VALLEY... AT 545 PM EDT THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR WAS OBSERVING A LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS ACCOMPANIED BY BRIEF VERY HEAVY RAIN EXTENDING FROM 15 MILES NORTH OF HARRISBURG TO 5 MILES NORTHWEST OF THE CITY OF YORK. THE LINE OF THUNDWRSTORMS WAS MOVING TO THE EAST NORTHEAST AT 30 TO 35 MPH. THESE THUNDERSTORMS WILL CONTINUE TO BE ACCOMPANIED BY BRIEF VERY HEAVY RAIN...FREQUENT LIGHTNING AND MAY ALSO CONTAIN BRIEF STRONG GUSTY WINDS AND SMALL HAIL. AS THIS LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS MOVED THROUGH CUMBERLAND COUNTY... .82 OF AN INCH OF RAIN WAS MEASURED IN TWENTY MINUTES JUST NORTH OF MECHANICSBURG IN HAMPDEN TOWNSHIP. WITH IN THE CITY OF HARRISBURG... 1.03 INCHES OF RAIN WAS MEASURED AT THE TELEVISION STUDIOS OF WHTM ALONG WITH WIND GUSTS TO NEAR 35 MPH RECORDED AT THE FEDERAL BUILDING. IN ADAMS COUNTY...A HAM OPERATOR REPORTED THREE QUARTERS OF AN INCH OF RAIN IN A FIFTEEN MINUTE PERIOD. THESE THUNDERSTORMS WILL CONTINUE TO MOVE EAST NORTHEAST AT 30 TO 35 MPH AND WILL BE ACCOMPANIED BY BRIEF VERY HEAVY RAIN...GUSTY WINDS... FREQUENT LIGHTNING AND POSSIBLT SMALL HAIL. THESE THUNDERSTORMS WILL MOVE INTO WESTERN LEBANON AND LANCASTER COUNTIES BY 630 PM THIS EVENING. WSO HAR FITZSIMMONS
Special weather statement, Jun 15, 6:02 PM EDT, 20 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT...CORRECTION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HARRISBURG PA. 550 PM EDT THU JUN 15 1989 ...LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS MOVING THROUGH THE LOWER SUSQUEHANNA VALLEY... AT 545 PM EDT THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR WAS OBSERVING A LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS ACCOMPANIED BY BRIEF VERY HEAVY RAIN EXTENDING FROM 15 MILES NORTH OF HARRISBURG TO 5 MILES NORTHWEST OF THE CITY OF YORK. THE LINE OF THUNDWRSTORMS WAS MOVING TO THE EAST NORTHEAST AT 30 TO 35 MPH. THESE THUNDERSTORMS WILL CONTINUE TO BE ACCOMPANIED BY BRIEF VERY HEAVY RAIN...FREQUENT LIGHTNING AND MAY ALSO CONTAIN BRIEF STRONG GUSTY WINDS AND SMALL HAIL. AS THIS LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS MOVED THROUGH CUMBERLAND COUNTY... .82 OF AN INCH OF RAIN WAS MEASURED IN TWENTY MINUTES JUST NORTH OF MECHANICSBURG IN HAMPDEN TOWNSHIP. WITH IN THE CITY OF HARRISBURG... 1.03 INCHES OF RAIN WAS MEASURED AT THE TELEVISION STUDIOS OF WHTM ALONG WITH WIND GUSTS TO NEAR 35 MPH RECORDED AT THE FEDERAL BUILDING. IN ADAMS COUNTY...A HAM OPERATOR REPORTED THREE QUARTERS OF AN INCH OF RAIN IN A FIFTEEN MINUTE PERIOD. THESE THUNDERSTORMS WILL CONTINUE TO MOVE EAST NORTHEAST AT 30 TO 35 MPH AND WILL BE ACCOMPANIED BY BRIEF VERY HEAVY RAIN...GUSTY WINDS... FREQUENT LIGHTNING AND POSSIBLY SMALL HAIL. THESE THUNDERSTORMS WILL MOVE INTO WESTERN LEBANON AND LANCASTER COUNTIES BY 630 PM THIS EVENING. WSO HAR FITZSIMMONS
The office that day
Everything else NWS State College, PA issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 15, 6:39 PM EDT | Tornado Warning | CTP | Lancaster | 21 min |
| Jun 15, 6:49 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | CTP | Berks | 56 min |
Nearby
Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Pennsylvania, 1989Every severe thunderstorm warning 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; verification from NCEI's Storm Data; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive.