Alert archive / Tennessee / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1989

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 124, NWS Memphis, TN

November 15, 1989Dyer County, Lauderdale County, Tennessee

NWS Memphis, TN issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Nov 15, 1989, 11:56 AM CST for Dyer County, Lauderdale County, Tennessee. It was in force for 49 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
Nov 15, 1989, 11:56 AM CST (17:56 UTC)
Expired
Nov 15, 1989, 12:45 PM CST
In force
49 min
Issued by
NWS Memphis, TN
Area
Whole counties

Counties Dyer County, TN, Lauderdale County, TN

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

TimeReportWhereRemark
Nov 15, 12:30 PM CSTTornado F1Lauderdale, TN

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

Little Rock, AR (KLZK), launched 12:00Z, 5.9 hours before the alert went out and 126 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, Little Rock, AR at 12:00Z on 1989-11-15Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 0 joules per kilogram.LCL10008507005003002001001 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, Little Rock, AR at 12:00Z on 1989-11-15The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 279 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
0 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL
3593 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
47 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
279 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
264 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.0

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 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, Nov 15, 10:48 AM CST, 1 hour 8 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TUPELO MS
1048 AM CST WED NOV 15 1989

   ...THUNDERSTORMS DEVELOPING OVER NORTH MISSISSIPPI...
   ...TORNADO WATCH IN EFFECT FOR PORTIONS OF NORTH CENTRAL
      MISSISSIPPI UNTIL 300 PM THIS AFTERNOON...

AT 1030 AM CST...TUPELO NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR WAS
INDICATING STRONG THUNDERSTORN DEVEOLPMENT FROM WESTERN GRENADA
COUNTY EXTENDING TO THE NORTHEAST TO SOUTHERN HARDEMAN COUNTY IN
SOUTHWEST TENNESSEE.

TRHE STRONGEST THUNDERSTORMS INDICATED BY RADAR WAS LOCATED OVER
MARSHALL AND BENTON COUNTY IN NORTH CENTRAL MISSISSIPPI.

THESE THUNDERSTORMS WERE MOVING TO THE NORTHEAST AT 30 MILES AN HOUR.

MORE THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE DEVELOPING TODAY AS THE COLD FRONT NEARS             OUR AREA OUR AREA AND PEOPLE IN NORTH MISSISSIPPI SHOULD BECOME WEATHER ALERT
SHOULD CONDITIONS START TO DETERIORATE.

MORE STATEMENTS WILL BE ISSUED AS CONDITIONS WARRANT.
Special weather statement, Nov 15, 11:53 AM CST, 3 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TUPELO MS
1150 AM CST WED NOV 15 1989

   ...STRONG THUNDERSTORMS DEVELOPING OVER NORTH MISSISSIPPI...
   ...TORNADO WATCH IN EFFECT FOR PORTIONS OF NORTH CENTRAL
      MISSISSIPPI UNTIL 300 PM THIS AFTERNOON...

AT 1130 AM CST...TUPELO NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR WAS
INDICATING STRONG THUNDERSTORM DEVEOLPMENT FROM YAZOO COUNTY
EXTENDING TO THE NORTHEAST TO MCNAIRY COUNTY IN SOUTHWEST TENNESSEE.

RADAR WAS ALSO INDICATING A LINE OF VERY HEAVY THUNDERSTORMS FROM
NORTHWEST OF ELDORADO ARKANSAS EXTENDING TO THE NORTHEAST TO CAIRO
ILLINOIS.

THE LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS WERE MOVING TO THE SOUTHEAST AT 25 MILES AN
HOUR. WHILE THE INDIVIDUAL THUNDERSTORM CELLS WERE MOVING TO THE
NORTHEAST AT 35 MILES AN HOUR.

THESE THUNDERSTORMS HAVE THE POTENTIAL OF PRODUCING LOCALLY HEAVY
RAINS...STRONG DAMAGING WINDS...FREQUENT DANGEROUS LIGHTNING...Q AND
LARGE HAIL.

REMEMBER THAHT SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS CAN AND OCCASIONALLY DO PRODUCE
TORNADOES...SO BE ON THE LOOKOUT.

MORE STATEMENTS WILL BE ISSUED AS CONDITIONS WARRANT.

The office that day

Everything else NWS Memphis, TN issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Nov 15, 12:30 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMEGDeSoto, Tate, Tunica60 min
Nov 15, 12:50 PM CSTTornado WarningMEGMarshall55 min
Nov 15, 1:05 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMEGLafayette30 min
Nov 15, 1:21 PM CSTTornado WarningMEGBenton54 min
Nov 15, 1:30 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMEGItawamba30 min
Nov 15, 2:00 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMEGClay, Monroe30 min
Nov 15, 2:35 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMEGMonroe40 min
Nov 15, 2:48 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMEGChickasaw, Pontotoc27 min
Nov 15, 3:00 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMEGLee30 min
Nov 15, 11:56 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMEGTipton49 min
Nov 15, 12:22 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMEGShelby68 min
Nov 15, 1:05 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMEGCarroll, Henry40 min
Nov 15, 1:05 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMEGHenderson40 min
Nov 15, 1:21 PM CSTTornado WarningMEGCarroll, Henderson, Madison54 min
Nov 15, 1:49 PM CSTTornado WarningMEGBenton, Decatur41 min
Nov 15, 2:02 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMEGHardin, McNairy58 min
Nov 15, 10:18 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMEGClay, Greene27 min
Nov 15, 10:34 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMEGCraighead, Poinsett56 min
Nov 15, 11:13 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMEGCross47 min
Nov 15, 11:19 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMEGMississippi41 min
Nov 15, 11:37 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMEGPhillips53 min
Nov 15, 11:44 AM CSTTornado WarningMEGMississippi31 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Tennessee, 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.