Alert archive / Texas / Tornado Warnings in 1989

Tornado Warning 5, NWS Houston/Galveston, TX

May 17, 1989Grimes County, Waller County, Texas

NWS Houston/Galveston, TX issued this tornado warning at May 17, 1989, 7:16 PM CDT for Grimes County, Waller County, Texas. It was in force for 59 min.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
May 17, 1989, 7:16 PM CDT (00:16 UTC)
Expired
May 17, 1989, 8:15 PM CDT
In force
59 min
Issued by
NWS Houston/Galveston, TX
Area
Whole counties

Counties Grimes County, TX, Waller County, TX

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

Longview/Gregg, TX (KGGG), launched 00:00Z, 0.3 hours before the alert went out and 265 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, Longview/Gregg, TX at 00:00Z on 1989-05-18Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1023 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 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, Longview/Gregg, TX at 00:00Z on 1989-05-18The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 287 square meters per square second.19395878Sfc1 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
1023 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-6 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
554 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
75 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
287 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
292 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
2.0
Supercell composite
9.4

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

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, May 17, 3:53 PM CDT, 3 hours 23 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT AND RADAR SUMMARY
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GALVESTON TX
350 PM CDT WED MAY 17 1989

...A TORNADO WATCH IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 1000 PM CDT FOR EAST TEXAS
ADJOING COASTAL WATERS ...INCLUDING GALVESTON AND CHAMBERS
COUNTIES...

AT 333 PM CDT...RADAR INDICATED NUMEROUS THUNDERSTORMS WITH VERY
HEAVY RAINFALL 20 MILES WEST OF COLLEGE STATION AND BETWEEN
HUNTSVILLE AND LAKE LIVINGSTON.

OTHEkR SCATTERED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS COVERED MUCH OF SOUTHEAST
TEXAS FROM 25 MILES SOUTHEAST OF AUSTIN TO HOUSTON TO NORTHEAST OF
LUFKIN.

MOVEMENT WAS NORTHEAST AT 25 MILES AN HOUR.
Special weather statement, May 17, 4:35 PM CDT, 2 hours 41 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HOUSTON TX
435 PM CDT WED MAY 17 1989

...A TORNADO WATCH CONTINUES IN EFFECT FOR MOST OF EAST AND SOUTHEAST
TEXAS UNTIL 1000 PM CDT THIS WEDNESDAY EVENING INCLUDING HARRIS AND
SURROUNDING COUNTIES....A FLASH FLOOD WATCH IS ALSO IN EFFECT FOR THE
HOUSTON AREA THROUGH TONIGHT...

AT 430 PM CDT RADAR INNDICATES A LINE OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS
THUNDERSTORMS FROM BEEVILLE TO LAKE SOMMERVILLE TO MADINSONVILLE.
THE LINE IS MOVING SLOWLY EASTWARD AS THE INDIVIDUAL THUNDERSTORMS
MOVE NORTHEAST 35 MPH.  HEAVY THUNDERSTORMS HAVE DEVELOPED FROM
SPRING THROUGH CONROE TO EAST OF HUNTSVILLE.   ANOTHER CLUSTER OF
THUNDERSTORMS IS NORTHEAST OF TRINITY MOVING RAPIDLY NORTHEAST.

EVERYONE IN THE WATCH AREA SHOULD REMAIN ALERT FOR THREATENING WEATHER
AND BE PREPARED TO SEEK SAFE SHELTER AT A MOMENTS NOTICE.  STAY TUNED TO
NOAA WEATHER RADIO OR YOUR LOCAL RADIO OR TV STATION FOR THE LATEST
WEATHER INFORMATION.
Special weather statement, May 17, 4:44 PM CDT, 2 hours 32 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT AND RADAR SUMMARY
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GALVESTON TX
345 PM CDT WED MAY 17 1989

...A TORNADO WATCH IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 1000 PM CDT FOR EAST TEXAS
AND ADJOINING COASTAL WATERS ...INCLUDING GALVESTON AND CHAMBERS
COUNTIES...

AT 330 PM CDT .. A LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS...SOME WITH HEAVY RAIN...
EXTENDED FROM 15 MILES WEST OF MADISONVILLE TO NEAR SHINER IN
LA VACA COUNTY.

SCATTERED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS..SOME WITH VERY HEAVY RAIN..
CONTINUED OVER EAST AND SOUTHEAST TEXAS FROM LUFKIN AND THE
SAM RAYBURN RESERVOIR SOUTH TO HUMBLE AND EAGLE LAKE.

MOVEMENT WAS NORTHEAST AT 25 MILES AN HOUR.
Special weather statement, May 17, 4:47 PM CDT, 2 hours 29 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT AND RADAR SUMMARY...CORRECTED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GALVESTON TX
445 PM CDT WED MAY 17 1989

...A TORNADO WATCH IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 1000 PM CDT FOR EAST TEXAS
AND ADJOINING COASTAL WATERS ...INCLUDING GALVESTON AND CHAMBERS
COUNTIES...

AT 430 PM CDT .. A LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS...SOME WITH HEAVY RAIN...
EXTENDED FROM 15 MILES WEST OF MADISONVILLE TO NEAR SHINER IN
LA VACA COUNTY.

SCATTERED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS..SOME WITH VERY HEAVY RAIN..
CONTINUED OVER EAST AND SOUTHEAST TEXAS FROM LUFKIN AND THE
SAM RAYBURN RESERVOIR SOUTH TO HUMBLE AND EAGLE LAKE.

MOVEMENT WAS NORTHEAST AT 25 MILES AN HOUR.
Special weather statement, May 17, 5:43 PM CDT, 1 hour 33 minutes before
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Special weather statement, May 17, 6:43 PM CDT, 33 minutes before
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      <div class="status" id="status">Temporary Notice</div>
      <h1 id="headline">This service is currently unavailable.</h1>
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        The site you requested is temporarily down for maintenance or an unexpected outage.
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The office that day

Everything else NWS Houston/Galveston, TX issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 17, 7:00 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningHGXPolk60 min
May 17, 7:19 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningHGXColorado56 min
May 17, 7:33 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningHGXMontgomery42 min
May 17, 7:45 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningHGXWharton60 min
May 17, 8:01 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningHGXHarris29 min
May 17, 8:10 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningHGXMontgomery, Polk, San Jacinto, Trinity, Walker4 hr
May 17, 8:11 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningHGXMontgomery64 min
May 17, 8:27 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningHGXFort Bend48 min
May 17, 8:48 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningHGXHarris57 min
May 17, 9:38 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningHGXLiberty67 min
May 17, 11:27 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningHGXHarris2 hr
May 18, 1:12 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningHGXHarris48 min
May 18, 1:35 AM CDTFlash Flood WarningHGXHarris3 hr
May 18, 1:47 AM CDTFlash Flood WarningHGXLiberty4 hr
May 18, 5:57 AM CDTFlash Flood WarningHGXLiberty2 hr
May 18, 7:25 AM CDTFlash Flood WarningHGXHarris3 hr
May 18, 7:43 AM CDTFlash Flood WarningHGXMontgomery3 hr
May 18, 7:52 AM CDTFlash Flood WarningHGXLiberty3 hr
May 18, 8:05 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningHGXMontgomery55 min
May 18, 10:04 AM CDTFlash Flood WarningHGXHarris, Liberty, Montgomery4 hr
May 18, 10:13 AM CDTTornado WarningHGXHarris32 min
May 18, 12:39 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningHGXFort Bend2 hr
May 18, 1:58 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningHGXHarris, Liberty, Montgomery3 hr
May 18, 1:58 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningHGXFort Bend3 hr
May 18, 2:15 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningHGXHarris45 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Texas, 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.