Alert archive / Texas / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1989

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 2, NWS Lake Charles, LA

February 20, 1989Jasper County, Newton County, Texas

NWS Lake Charles, LA issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Feb 20, 1989, 3:10 PM CST for Jasper County, Newton County, Texas. It was in force for 50 min.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
Feb 20, 1989, 3:10 PM CST (21:10 UTC)
Expired
Feb 20, 1989, 4:00 PM CST
In force
50 min
Issued by
NWS Lake Charles, LA
Area
Whole counties

Counties Jasper County, TX, Newton 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

Lake Charles Mun, LA (KLCH), launched 12:00Z, 9.2 hours before the alert went out and 97 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, Lake Charles Mun, LA at 12:00Z on 1989-02-20Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 586 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, Lake Charles Mun, LA at 12:00Z on 1989-02-20The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 249 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
586 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-23 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
517 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
38 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
249 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
322 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.8
Supercell composite
4.3

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
TTAA00 KBPT 202114
SVRBPT
TXC241-351-202200-

BULLETIN-IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED

SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PORT ARTHUR TX
310 PM CST MON FEB 20 1989

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM
WARNING FOR PERSONS IN THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES OF

TEXAS...
        NORTHERN JASPER...NORTHERN NEWTON

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
UNTIL 400 PM CST FOR PERSONS IN NORTHERN JASPER AND NORTHERN NEWTON
COUNTIES.

AT 305 PM...WEATHER RADAR SHOWED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM MOVING OUT OF
NORTHERN TYLER COUNTY INTO NORTHERN JASPER COUNTY  JUST NORTHWEST OF
THE CITY OF JASPER.


THIS STORM WAS MOVING EAST AT 40 MILES AN HOUR AND SHOULD PASS
NORTH OF JASPER AND NEWTON.

THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 330 PM
THE TYLER COUNTY AS ANOTHER SEVERE THUNDERSTORM HAS DEVELOPED
NEAR COLMESNEIL ALSO MOVING EAST AT 40 MILES AN HOUR.  THIS STORM
WILL PASS OVER STEINHAGEN LAKE AND JASPER.

PERSONS IN THE PATH OF THESE DANGEROUS STORMS SHOULD MOVE TO
SAFTY NOW.  STAY TUNED TO THE WEATHER RADIO FOR THE LATEST
WEATHER INFORMATION.

DCG

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, Feb 20, 10:49 AM CST, 4 hours 21 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT AND RADAR SUMMARY
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA
1045 AM CST MON FEG 19 1989

...THUNDERSTORMS WITH HEAVY RAIN DEVELOPING...

AT 1030 AM...SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS...WITH HEAVY RAIN INDICATED...
WERE NEAR ORANGE AND ACROSS BEAUREGARD PARISH FROM NORTH OF SULPHUR TO
DERIDDER.

THESE THUNDERSTORMS ARE CAPABLE OF PRODUCING SMALL HAIL...GUSTY WINDS
...FREQUENT LIGHTING AND BRIEF HEAVY RAINS AS THEY MOVE NORTH AT 35
MILES AN HOUR.

LIGHT RAIN CONTINUED OVER THE GULF FROM 25 MILES SOUTHEAST OF GALVESTON
TO THE SABINE PASS.  OTHER PATCHES OF LIGHT RAIN WERE OCCURRING FROM
NORTHEAST OF KOUNTZE TO EAST OF JASPER.

LIGHT RAIN WAS ALSO FALLING FROM THE NORTHERN PART OF THE TOLEDO BEND
RESERVOIR TO EAST OF SHREVEPORT AND FROM NEAR NATCHITOCHES TO WEST
OF ALEXANDRIA.
Special weather statement, Feb 20, 1:40 PM CST, 1 hour 30 minutes before
SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT AND RADAR SUMMARY
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA
140 PM CST MON FEG 19 1989

...A TORNADO WARNING FOR RAPIDES PARISH UNTIL 145 PM...

...A TORNADO WARNING IN EFFECT FOR LASALLE PARISH UNTIL 215 PM...

...A TORNADO WATCH FROM 130 PM UNTIL 800 PM FOR WESTERN LOUISIANA...

AT 130 PM...THUNDERSTORMS...WITH HEAVY RAINS INDICATED...WERE OCCURRING
SOUTHWEST AND NORTHEAST OF ALEXANDRIA AS WELL AS IN THE SOUTHEAST
CORNER OF BEAUREGARD PARISH.

THESE THUNDERSTORMS ARE CAPABLE OF PRODUCING SMALL HAIL...GUSTY WINDS
...FREQUENT LIGHTING AND BRIEF HEAVY RAINS AS THEY MOVE NORTHEAST
ACROSS ACROSS  RAPIDES AND LASALLE PARISHES.   SEEK SAFE COVER
IMMEDIATELY IF THREATENING WEATHER APPROACHES.

SMALL HAIL WAS REPORTED IN THE DERIDDER AREA AT 1245 PM.
Special weather statement, Feb 20, 1:54 PM CST, 1 hour 16 minutes before
SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT AND RADAR SUMMARY CORRECTION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA
150 PM CST MON FEG 19 1989

...A TORNADO WARNING FOR RAPIDES PARISH UNTIL 145 PM...

...A TORNADO WARNING IN EFFECT FOR LASALLE PARISH UNTIL 215 PM...

...A TORNADO WATCH FROM 130 PM UNTIL 800 PM FOR WESTERN AND CENTRAL
LOUISIANA...
AT 130 PM...THUNDERSTORMS...WITH HEAVY RAINS INDICATED...WERE OCCURRING
SOUTHWEST AND NORTHEAST OF ALEXANDRIA AS WELL AS IN THE SOUTHEAST
CORNER OF BEAUREGARD PARISH.

THESE THUNDERSTORMS ARE CAPABLE OF PRODUCING SMALL HAIL...GUSTY WINDS
...FREQUENT LIGHTING AND BRIEF HEAVY RAINS AS THEY MOVE NORTHEAST
ACROSS ACROSS  RAPIDES AND LASALLE PARISHES.   SEEK SAFE COVE$R
IMMEDIATELY IF THREATENING WEATHER APPROACHES.

SMALL HAIL WAS REPORTED IN THE DERIDDER AREA AT 1245 PM.
Special weather statement, Feb 20, 2:41 PM CST, 29 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT AND RADAR SUMMARY
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA
233 PM CST MON FEG 19 1989

...A TORNADO WATCH UNTIL 800 PM FOR WESTERN AND CENTRAL LOUISIANA...

AT 225 PM...THUNDERSTORMS...WITH HEAVY RAINS INDICATED...CONTINUED
OVER PARTS OF WEST LOUISIANA SPREADING ACROSS ALLEN PARISH INTO
RAPIDES AND LASALLE PARISHES.  THE HEAVIEST ACTIVITY WAS OCCURRING
IN THE NORTHERN PART OF ALLEN AND EVANGELINE PARISH.

MOVEMENT WAS NORTHEAST AT 35 MILES AN HOUR.

THESE ARE DANGEROUS THUNDERSTORMS CAPABLE OF PRODUCING STRONG GUSTY
WINDS...FREQUENT LIGHTING...BRIEF HEAVY RAINS AND POSSIBLY SMALL
HAIL.  THE THUNDERSTORMS WERE IN A MASS OF RAIN THAT WAS OCCURRING
FROM THE NORTHEAST PART OF CALCASIEU PARISH TO NORTH AND NORTHEAST
OF ALEXANDRIA.

DURING THE PAST HOUR A BAND OF THUNDERSTORMS...WITH HEAVY RAIN
INDICATED WAS OCCURRING FROM LAKE LIVINGSTON...ACROSS SAM RAYBURN LAKE
INTO NORTHWEST LOUISIANA.

MOVEMENT WAS NORTHiWEST AT 40 MILES AN HOUR.

The office that day

Everything else NWS Lake Charles, LA issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Feb 20, 2:30 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLCHAngelina2 hr
Feb 20, 5:10 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLCHJasper, Newton50 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Texas, 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; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive.