Alert archive / Delaware / Tornado Warnings in 1991

Tornado Warning 2, NWS Wilmington, NC

April 24, 1991Sussex County, Delaware

NWS Wilmington, NC issued this tornado warning at Apr 24, 1991, 4:36 PM EDT for Sussex County, Delaware. It was in force for 34 min. 2 reports 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: Apr 24, 1991, 4:36 PM EDT (20:36 UTC)
Expired: Apr 24, 1991, 5:10 PM EDT
In force: 34 min
Issued by: NWS Wilmington, NC
Area: Whole counties

County Sussex County, DE

What was reported inside it

Time	Report	Where	Remark
Apr 24, 4:40 PM EDT	Thunderstorm Wind 56	Sussex, DE
Apr 24, 5:00 PM EDT	Thunderstorm Wind 65	Sussex, DE

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

Wallops Is Stn, VA (KWAL), launched 12:00Z, 8.6 hours before the alert went out and 84 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-p

Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.

Hodograph

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: 113 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -50 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 948 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 51 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 51 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 40 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.0
Supercell composite: 0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
TTAA00 KILG 242036
TORILG
DEC005-242130-
 
BULLETIN - EBS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO AND SPECIAL MARINE WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WILMINGTON DE
436 PM EDT WED APR 24 1991
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN WILMINGTON HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO AND SPECIAL MARINE WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL  530 PM EDT
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS......
 
IN SOUTH DELAWARE
 
   ...SUSSEX COUNTY
 
  AND FOR MARINE INTERESTS FROM
 
   ...SLAUGHTER BEACH  TO  CAPE HENLOPEN
 
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR AT PATUXENT RIVER MARYLAND HAS REPORTED
A TORNADO IN NORTHEAST SUSSEX COUNTY APPROACHING LEWES DELAWARE. THE
TORNADO IS REPORTED TO BE MOVING EAST AT 35 MPH.
 
IF YOU ARE CAUGHT OUTSIDE...SEEK SHELTER IN A NEARBY REINFORCED
BUILDING.  AS A LAST RESORT...SEEK SHELTER IN A CULVERT...DITCH
OR LOW SPOT AND COVER YOUR HEAD WITH YOUR HANDS.
 
THIS IS A DANGEROUS STORM SITUATION.  ACT QUICKLY.  IF YOU ARE
IN THE PATH OF THIS TORNADO MOVE TO A SHELTER BELOW GROUND IF
AVAILABLE.  OTHERWISE...GO TO A SMALL INTERIOR ROOM ON THE LOWEST
FLOOR POSSIBLE.  AVOID WINDOWS.  ABANDON CARS AND MOBILE HOMES
FOR A REINFORCED BUILDING OR GET INTO A DITCH OR CULVERT.

The office that day

Everything else NWS Wilmington, NC issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Apr 24, 1:39 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	ILM	Sussex	21 min
Apr 24, 1:39 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	ILM	Kent, New Castle	21 min
Apr 24, 3:33 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	ILM	Kent	42 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Delaware, 1991 Every tornado warning in 1991 Tornadoes 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; verification from NCEI's Storm Data; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive.