Alert archive / Texas / Tornado Warnings in 1991

Tornado Warning 16, NWS Austin/San Antonio, TX

May 4, 1991Lavaca County, Texas

NWS Austin/San Antonio, TX issued this tornado warning at May 4, 1991, 7:57 PM CDT for Lavaca County, Texas. It was in force for 63 min.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
May 4, 1991, 7:57 PM CDT (00:57 UTC)
Expired
May 4, 1991, 9:00 PM CDT
In force
63 min
Issued by
NWS Austin/San Antonio, TX
Area
Whole counties

County Lavaca County, TX

The nearest sounding before it

Corpus Christi, TX (KCRP), launched 00:00Z, 1.0 hours before the alert went out and 188 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, Corpus Christi, TX at 00:00Z on 1991-05-05Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 4154 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, Corpus Christi, TX at 00:00Z on 1991-05-05The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 24 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
4154 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-72 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
618 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
50 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
24 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
58 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.9
Supercell composite
3.6

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
TTAA00 KVCT 050058
TORVCT
TXC285-050200-
 
BULLETIN - EBS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE VICTORIA TX
757 PM CDT SAT MAY 4 1991
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN VICTORIA HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL  900 PM CDT
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS...
 
IN SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS
 
   ...LAVACA COUNTY
 
AT 755 PM CDT VICTORIA RADAR SHOWED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WITH LARGE
HAIL AND A POSSIBLE TORNADO SOUTH OF HALLETTSVILLE MOVING EAST AT 20
MILES AN HOUR. A RAINFALL OBSERVER REPORTED A TORNADO ON THE GROUND
AND GOLF BALL SIZED HAIL AS THIS STORM MOVED SOUTH OF SHINER.
 
IF THREATING WEATHER APPROACHES YOU SHOULD GO TO A SAFE PLACE
IMMEDIATELY...YOU SHOULD ASK THE NEA,REST LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY
TO RELAY YOUR SEVERE WEATHER REPORTS TO THE LOCAL NATIONAL
WEATHER SERVICE OFFICE.

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 4, 1:59 PM CDT, 5 hours 58 minutes before
TXZ054-042000-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DEL RIO TX
200 PM CDT SAT MAY 4 1991

...THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH FOR VAL VERDE COUNTY HAS BEEN
CANCELED...

AT 158 PM CDT RADAR INDICATED NO PRECIPITATION IN VAL VERDE COUNTY. THE
THUNDERSTORMS REPORTED EARLIER HAVE MOVED EAST OF THE COUNTY AND WERE
LOCATED FROM BRACKETVILLE TO ROCKSPRINGS AND FURTHER NORTH. MOVEMENT WAS
TO THE EAST AT 15 MPH.
Special weather statement, May 4, 2:51 PM CDT, 5 hours 6 minutes before
TXZ030-034>036-042045

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AUSTIN TX
243 PM CDT SAT MAY 04 1991

...TORNADO WATCH HAS BEEN ISSUED MILLS...SAN SABA...LAMPASAS...LLANO...
   BURNET...WILLIAMSON...GILLESPIE...BLANCO...HAYS...CALDWELL...BASTROP...
   AND TRAVIS...UNTIL 9PM CDT...
...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH FOR CENTRAL TEXAS HAS BEEN CANCELLED...
...FLASH FLOOD WATCH FOR SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS AND ADJACENT HILL COUNTRY
   THROUGH TONIGHT...

AT 240 PM CDT...RADAR SHOWED A LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS FROM NORTHEAST OF DEL
RIO TO HARPER TO LLANO CITY TO STAR.  THIS LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS WAS MOVING
TOWARD THE EAST AT 20 MPH.  A THUNDERSTORM PRODUCING SMALL HAIL...VERY GUSTY
SURFACE WINDS...AND VERY HEAVY RAINFALL WAS LOCATED OVER NORTH CENTRAL
GILLESPIE COUNTY AND LLANO COUNTY.
.
.
.
THESE THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE MOVING OVER THE LAKE BUCHANAN VICINITY
BETWEEN 2 PM AMD 230 PM CDT.  PERSONS ON THE LAKE SHOULD IMMEDIATELY
RETURN TO SHOlRE AND SEEK A PLACE OF SHELTER.

STAY TUNED FOR LATER STATEMENTS AND POSSIBLE WARNINGS.
Special weather statement, May 4, 2:58 PM CDT, 4 hours 59 minutes before
TXZ030-034>036-042045

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT...CORRECTION FOR TIME
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AUSTIN TX
243 PM CDT SAT MAY 04 1991

...TORNADO WATCH HAS BEEN ISSUED MILLS...SAN SABA...LAMPASAS...LLANO...
   BURNET...WILLIAMSON...GILLESPIE...BLANCO...HAYS...CALDWELL...BASTROP...
   AND TRAVIS...UNTIL 9PM CDT...
...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH FOR CENTRAL TEXAS HAS BEEN CANCELLED...
...FLASH FLOOD WATCH FOR SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS AND ADJACENT HILL COUNTRY
   THROUGH TONIGHT...

AT 240 PM CDT...RADAR SHOWED A LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS FROM NORTHEAST OF DEL
RIO TO HARPER TO LLANO CITY TO STAR.  THIS LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS WAS MOVING
TOWARD THE EAST AT 20 MPH.  A THUNDERSTORM PRODUCING SMALL HAIL...VERY GUSTY
SURFACE WINDS...AND VERY HEAVY RAINFALL WAS LOCATED OVER NORTH CENTRAL
GILLESPIE COUNTY AND LLANO COUNTY.
.
.
.
THESE THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE MOVING OVER THE LAKE BUCHANAN VICINITY
BETWEEN 3 PM AMD 330 PM CDT.  PERSONS ON THE LAKE SHOULD IMMEDIATELY
RETURN TO SHORE AND SEEK A PLACE OF SHELTER.

STAY TUNED FOR LATER STATEMENTS AND POSSIBLE WARNINGS.
Special weather statement, May 4, 3:59 PM CDT, 3 hours 58 minutes before
TXZ030-034>036-042100-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AUSTIN TX
353 PM CDT SAT MAY 04 1991

...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR LLANO COUNTY HAS BEEN CANCELLED...
...TORNADO WATCH IN EFFECT UNTIL 9 PM FOR MUCH OF CENTRAL TEXAS...
...FLASH FLOOD WATCH FOR SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS AND ADJACENT HILL COUNTRY
   THROUGH TONIGHT...

AT 350 PM CDT...RADAR SHOWED A LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS FROM BANDERA TO 10 MILES
WEST OF ROUND MOUNTAIN TO LAMPASAS TO WEST OF WACO.  THESE THUNDERSTORMS
WERE MOVING EAST AT 25 MPH.

THE THUNDERSTORM OVER LLANO COUNTY HAS WEAKENED AND MOVED EAST INTO WESTERN
BURNET COUNTY.  ALTHOUGH THE STORM HAS WEAKENED...IT MAY CONTAIN SMALL HAIL
AND VERY HEAVY RAINFALL.  HEAVY RAINS FELL ACROSS NORTHERN BURNET COUNTY
YESTERDAY AND ADDITIONAL RAINFALL MAY CAUSE FLOODING OF LOW LYING AREAS AND
CREEKS.  KEEP CHILDREN AWAY FROM ALL CREEKS AND DRAINAGE AREAS AND DO NOT
ATTEMPT TO CROSS STREAMS OR LOW LYING AREAS WHERrE WATER COVERS THE ROAD.

STAY TUNED FOR LATER STATEMENTS AND POSSIBLE WARNINGS.
Special weather statement, May 4, 4:00 PM CDT, 3 hours 57 minutes before
TXZ034-035-038-039-042200-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SAN ANTONIO TX
400 PM CDT SAT MAY 4 1991

...THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING HAS EXPIRED FOR UVALDE COUNTY...
...A TORNADO WATCH IS IN EFFECT FOR THE TEXAS HILL COUNTRY AND THE EDWARDS
PLATEAU UNTIL 9PM TONIGHT...
...A FLOOD AND FLASH FLOOD WATCH IS IN EFFECT FOR MOST OF SOUTH CENTRAL
AND SOUTHEAST TEXAS THROUGH TONIGHT...

A LINE OF SHOWERS AND EMBEDDED THUNDERSTORMS FROM UVALDE TO KERRVILLE
AND SAN SABA WERE MOVING EAST AT 25 MPH.  SOME OF THE SHOWERS AND
THUNDERSTORMS WILL MOVE INTO THE SAN ANTONIO AREAS WITHIN AN HOUR. SOME
OF THE MORE INTENSE THUNDERSTORMS DROPPED PEA SIZE HAIL IN NORTHERN EDWARDS
COUNTY AND WESTERN KERR COUNTY.  THE RAINFALL RATE WERE FROM ONE HALF TO
ONE INCH AN HOUR.  NO REPORTS HAVE BEEN RECEIVED AT THIS TIME FROM NORTHWEST
UVALDE COUNTY WERE RADAR DETECTED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM EARLIER  IN THE
AFTERNOON.

THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENyT HAS BEEN AIDED BY A DRY LINE AND AN UPPER LEVEL
DISTURBANCE.  THE POTENTIAL FOR SEVERE WEATHER DEVELOPMENT WILL CONTINUE
THROUGH THIS AFTERNOON AND INTO TONIGHT.

The office that day

Everything else NWS Austin/San Antonio, TX issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 4, 7:07 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningEWXFayette, Lee53 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Texas, 1991Every tornado warning in 1991Tornadoes in 1991

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.