Alert archive / Texas / Tornado Warnings in 1991

Tornado Warning 9, NWS Lubbock, TX

May 10, 1991Lamb County, Texas

NWS Lubbock, TX issued this tornado warning at May 10, 1991, 8:31 PM CDT for Lamb County, Texas. It was in force for 29 min.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
May 10, 1991, 8:31 PM CDT (01:31 UTC)
Expired
May 10, 1991, 9:00 PM CDT
In force
29 min
Issued by
NWS Lubbock, TX
Area
Whole counties

County Lamb County, TX

The nearest sounding before it

Amarillo Airport, TX (KAMA), launched 00:00Z, 1.5 hours before the alert went out and 142 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, Amarillo Airport, TX at 00:00Z on 1991-05-11Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 2246 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, Amarillo Airport, TX at 00:00Z on 1991-05-11The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 216 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
2246 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-165 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
862 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
32 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
216 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
320 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.7
Supercell composite
13.7

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
TTAA00 KLBB 110132
TORLBB
TXC279-110200-
 
BULLETIN - EBS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LUBBOCK TX
831 PM CDT FRI MAY 10 1991
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN LUBBOCK HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL  900 PM CDT
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS...
 
IN NORTHWEST TEXAS
 
   ...SOUTHERN LAMB COUNTY
 
AT 830 PM RADAR CONTINUED TO INDICATE POSSIBLE TORNADOES OVER
SOUTHWEST LAMB COUNTY. SEVERAL TORNADOS HAVE BEEN REPORTED IN THIS
AREA. THE PARENT THUNDERSTORM IS NOW MOVING EAST AT 15 MPH.
 
 
IF YOU ARE IN THE PATH OF A TORNADO...THE SAFEST PLACE IS A
BASEMENT.  GET UNDER A WORKBENCH OR PIECE OF STURDY FURNITURE.
IF NO BASEMENT IS AVAILABLE...SEEK SHELTER IN AN INTERIOR ROOM
SUCH AS A CLOSET ON THE LOWEST FLOOR.  USE BLANKETS...PILLOWS...
OR CUSHIONS TO COVER YOUR BODY.  AVOID WINDOWS.

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 10, 4:03 PM CDT, 4 hours 28 minutes before
TXZ007-008-009-010-011-012-102300-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LUBBOCK TX
401 PM CDT FRI MAY 10 1991

...A TORNADO WATCH IS IN EFFECT FOR THE WESTERN HALF OF THE SOUTH
PLAINS UNTIL 10 PM CDT...

THE TORNADO WATCH INCLUDES HALE...LAMB...BAILEY...COCHRAN...HOCKLEY...
LUBBOCK...YOAKUM...TERRY... AND LYNN COUNTIES.

AT 350 PM NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR SHOWED SCATTERED SHOWERS AND
THUNDERSTORMS OVER THE SOUTHEASTERN SOUTH PLAINS.  THE STRONGEST
THUNDERSTORMS WERE LOCATED 15 MILES NORTHEAST OF POST IN GARZA COUNTY
AND NEAR CLAIREMONT IN KENT COUNTY.  ANOTHER INTENSE THUNDERSTORM
WAS LOCATED WELL SOUTHWEST OF MIDLAND IN THE PERMIAN BASIN.

ALTHOUGH NO THUNDERSTORMS WERE LOCATED IN THE PORTION OF THE SOUTH
PLAINS IN THE TORNADO WATCH...THE AIRMASS OVER THE WESTERN
SOUTH PLAINS IS EXTREMELY UNSTABLE.  A DRYLINE HAS FORMED OVER
EASTERN NEW MEXICO AND SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED TO
DEVELOP BETWEEN 400 AND 600 PM IN THIS AREA AND MOVE ACROSS
THE WESTERN SOUTH PLAINS.

REMEMBER A TORNADO WATCH MEANS CONDITIONS ARE FAVORABLE FOR TORNADOES
AND SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS IN AND NEAR THE WATCH AREA... SO PEOPLE
ACROSS THE SOUTH PLAINS SHOULD BE ON THE L)OOKOUT FOR THREATENING
WEATHER CONDITIONS AND LISTEN FOR LATER STATEMENTS AND POSSIBLE
WARNINGS.
Special weather statement, May 10, 4:44 PM CDT, 3 hours 47 minutes before
TXZ007-008-009-010-011-012-102245-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LUBBOCK TX
444 PM CDT FRI MAY 10 1991

...A TORNADO WATCH IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 10 PM CDT FOR BAILEY...
   LAMB...HAL
Special weather statement, May 10, 5:12 PM CDT, 3 hours 19 minutes before
TXZ007-008-009-010-011-012-102345-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LUBBOCK TX
510 PM CDT FRI MAY 10 1991

...A TORNADO WATCH IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 10 PM CDT FOR BAILEY...
   LAMB...HALE...COCHRAN...HOCKLEY...LUBBOCK...YOAKUM...TERRY...AND
   LYNN COUNTIES...

AT 505 PM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR SHOWED THUNDERSTORMS
CONTINUING TO RAPIDLY DEVELOP OVER THE WESTERN SOUTH PLAINS.  THE
STRONGEST STORM WAS IN SOUTHERN COCHRAN COUNTY ABOUT 10 MILES SOUTHWEST
OF WHITEFACE.  OTHER SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WERE SCATTERED OVER THE
SOUTHEASTERN SOUTH PLAINS WITH THE STRONGEST STORM ABOUT 10 MILES EAST
OF DICKENS.  THE THUNDERSTORMS WERE MOVING NORTHEAST AT 20 MPH.

PEOPLE THROUGHOUT THE SOUTH PLAINS SHOULD CONTINUE TO MONITOR NOAA
WEATHER RADIO OR COMMERCIAL RADIO OR T.V. STATIONS FOR LATEST
STATEMENTS OR POSSIBLE WARNINGS FROM THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE.

The office that day

Everything else NWS Lubbock, TX issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 10, 7:03 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLUBHockley57 min
May 10, 7:25 PM CDTTornado WarningLUBLamb35 min
May 10, 7:40 PM CDTTornado WarningLUBBailey50 min
May 10, 8:05 PM CDTTornado WarningLUBLamb25 min
May 10, 8:55 PM CDTTornado WarningLUBLamb50 min
May 11, 5:53 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLUBHale67 min
May 11, 6:23 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLUBLamb52 min
May 11, 6:57 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLUBHockley48 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.