Alert archive / Tennessee / Tornado Warnings in 1989
Tornado Warning 35, NWS Memphis, TN
NWS Memphis, TN issued this tornado warning at Nov 15, 1989, 1:49 PM CST for Benton County, Decatur County, Tennessee. It was in force for 41 min.
The area
The counties it named.
The facts
- Issued
- Nov 15, 1989, 1:49 PM CST (19:49 UTC)
- Expired
- Nov 15, 1989, 2:30 PM CST
- In force
- 41 min
- Issued by
- NWS Memphis, TN
- Area
- Whole counties
Counties Benton County, TN, Decatur County, TN
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 12:00Z, 7.8 hours before the alert went out and 138 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
- 475 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -28 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 684 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 36 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 209 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 196 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.3
- Supercell composite
- 1.2
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000
TTAA00 KMEM 151949
TORMEM
TNC005-039-152030-
BULLETIN - EBS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEMPHIS TN
149 PM CST WED NOV 15 1989
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN MEMPHIS HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 230 PM CST
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES...
IN WEST TENNESSEE
...BENTON...DECATUR
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR IN MEMPHIS INDICATED A POSSIBLE TORNADO
NORTHEAST OF LEXINGTON TENNESSEE. THIS STORM IS MOVING TO THE
NORTHEAST AT 35 MILES AN HOUR.
THIS IS THE SAME STORM THAT EARLIER PRODUCED A TORNADO NEAR THE
JACKSON TENNESSEE AREA IN MADISON COUNTY.
IF YOU ARE CAUGHT OUTSIDE...SEEK SHELTER IN A NEARBY REINFORCED
BUILDING. A S A LAST RESORT...SEEK SHELTER IN A CULVERT...DITCH
OR LOW SPOT AND COVER YOUR HEAD WITH YOUR HANDS.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, Nov 15, 10:48 AM CST, 3 hours 1 minute 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, 1 hour 56 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.Special weather statement, Nov 15, 12:47 PM CST, 1 hour 2 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TUPELO MS
1245 AM CST WED NOV 15 1989
...STRONG THUNDERSTORMS CONTINUING OVER NORTH MISSISSIPPI...
...TORNADO WATCHES IN EFFECT FOR ALL OF NORTH MISSISSIPPI UNTIL
800 PM THIS EVENING...
AT 1240 AM CST...TUPELO NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR WAS
INDICATING STRONG THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY FROM LEXINGTON MISSISSIPPI
EXTENDING TO THE NORTHEAST TO HICKMAN COUNTY IN SOUTHWEST TENNESSEE.
RADAR WAS ALSO INDICATING AN AREA OF STRONG THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT
FROM GREENVILLE MISSISSIPPI EXTENDING TO THE NORTHEAST TO UNION CITY
IN WEST TENNESSEE
THE STRONGEST ACTIVITY WAS INDICATED CALHOUN...PONTOTOC AND LAFAYETTE
COUNTIES IN NORTH MISSISSIPPI.
THESE THUNDERSTORMS WERE MOVING TO THE NORTHEAST AT 40 MILES AN HOUR
WHILE THE AREA OF THUNDERSTORMS WERE MOVING TO THE SOUTHEAST AT 25
MILES AN HOUR.
THESE THUNDERSTORMS HAVE THE POTENTIAL OF PRODUCING LOCALLY HEAVY
RAINS...STRONG DAMAGING WINDS...FREQUENT DANGEROUS LIGHTNING... AND
LARGE HAIL.
REMEMBER THAT 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.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nov 15, 11:56 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MEG | Dyer, Lauderdale | 49 min |
| Nov 15, 11:56 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MEG | Tipton | 49 min |
| Nov 15, 12:22 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MEG | Shelby | 68 min |
| Nov 15, 12:50 PM CST | Tornado Warning | MEG | Fayette | 55 min |
| Nov 15, 1:05 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MEG | Carroll, Henry | 40 min |
| Nov 15, 1:05 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MEG | Henderson | 40 min |
| Nov 15, 1:21 PM CST | Tornado Warning | MEG | Carroll, Henderson, Madison | 54 min |
| Nov 15, 1:21 PM CST | Tornado Warning | MEG | Hardeman | 54 min |
| Nov 15, 2:02 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MEG | Hardin, McNairy | 58 min |
Nearby
Tornado Warnings in Tennessee, 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.