Alert archive / Mississippi / Tornado Warnings in 1992

Tornado Warning 19, NWS Jackson, MS

March 18, 1992Jones County, Mississippi

NWS Jackson, MS issued this tornado warning at Mar 18, 1992, 3:30 PM CST for Jones County, Mississippi. It was in force for 45 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
Mar 18, 1992, 3:30 PM CST (21:30 UTC)
Expired
Mar 18, 1992, 4:15 PM CST
In force
45 min
Issued by
NWS Jackson, MS
Area
Whole counties

County Jones County, MS

What was reported inside it

TimeReportWhereRemark
Mar 18, 3:40 PM CSTHail 0.88Jones, MS

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

Jackson, MS (KJAN), launched 12:00Z, 9.5 hours before the alert went out and 116 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, Jackson, MS at 12:00Z on 1992-03-18Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 42 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, Jackson, MS at 12:00Z on 1992-03-18The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 126 square meters per square second.1939587897117Sfc1 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
42 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-55 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
648 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
55 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
126 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
254 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 KMEI 182131
TORMEI
MSC067-182215-
 
BULLETIN - EBS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MERIDIAN MS
330 PM CST WED MAR 18 1992
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN MERIDIAN HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL  415 PM CST
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS...
 
IN EAST CENTRAL MISSISSIPPI
 
   ...JONES COUNTY
 
AT 325 PM PUBLIC REPORTS POSSIBLE TORNADO 15 MILES SOUTHWEST OF
MOSELLE MOVING NORTHEAST AT 35 MPH. THE TORNADO SHOULD ENTER SOUTHWEST
JONES COUNTY IN NEXT 10 MINUTES OR AT 335 PM CST.
 
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 INTERIORC 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, Mar 18, 12:02 PM CST, 3 hours 28 minutes before
MSZALL-181900-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JACKSON MS
1201 PM CST WED MAR 18 1992

...SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS EXPECTED THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING...

AT 1200 NOON...A LARGE AREA OF LIGHT TO MODERATE RAIN CONTINUED TO
COVER THE MAJORITY OF MISSISSIPPI.  STRONG SOUTHERLY WINDS AT THE
SURFACE CONTINUED TO PUMP WARM MOIST AIR FROM THE GULF OF MEXICO OVER
THE STATE...BUT THE RAIN WAS PREVENTING TEMPERATURES FROM WARMING UP
INTO THE 70S.  WEST OF THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER ACROSS ARKANSAS
AND WESTERN LOUISIANA THE SUN WAS HEATING TEMPERATURES INTO THE 70S.
CONSEQUENTLY...THE MOST UNSTABLE AIR WAS STILL WEST OF
THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER...AND THUNDERSTORMS WERE RAPIDLY DEVELOPING OVER
WESTERN LOUISIANA.

THE COMBINATION OF STRONG LOW-LEVEL AND UPPER-LEVEL WINDS AND
INCREASING INSTABILITY WILL RESULT IN A STRONG POTENTIAL OF SEVERE
THUNDERSTORMS OVER MISSISSIPPI THIS AFTERNOON.  ISOLATED TORNADOES ARE
ALSO POSSIBLE IN THIS KIND OF ENVIRONMENT.  THE SEVERE WEATHER THREAT
SHOULD SPREAD RAPIDLY EASTWARD THIS AFTERNOON AND SHOULD BE ENDING
OVER EASTERN MISSISSIPPI BEFORE MIDNIGHT.

IT APPEARS STRONG TO SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WILL CONTINUE DEVELOP WEST
OF THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER FOR THE NEXT COUPLE OF HOURS...AND WILL
MOVE INTO WESTERN MISSISSIPPI BY THE MIDDLE OF THE AFTERNOON.
Special weather statement, Mar 18, 1:37 PM CST, 1 hour 53 minutes before
MSZALL-190015-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JACKSON MS
136 PM CST WED MAR 18 1992

...TORNADO WATCH NO. 83 IN EFFECT FOR SOUTHWEST MISSISSIPPI...
...STRONG THUNDERSTORMS TO DEVELOP OVER SOUTHERN MISSISSIPPI THIS
   AFTERNOON WITH GOOD CHANCE OF SEVERE WEATHER...

WEATHER CONDITIONS ARE RIPE FOR STRONG THUNDERSTORMS OVER MOST OF
MISSISSIPPI THIS AFTERNOON. THE GREATEST POTENTIAL SO FAR TODAY IS
INDICATED OVER SOUTHERN COUNTIES OF THE STATE AND EXTENDING INTO
LOUISIANA. DANGEROUS LIGHTNING AND STRONG GUSTY WINDS ARE EXPECTED IN
THIS AREA WITHIN THE NEXT TWO HOURS AND DAMAGING WINDS AND HAIL ARE
LIKELY.

GUSTY SOUTHERLY WINDS HAVE PERSISTED OVER MISSISSIPPI ALL
DAY...FORCING WARM AND MOIST AIR INTO THE AREA. DUE TO CONTINUOUS RAIN
IN THE AREA...TEMPERATURES HAVE REMAINED IN THE 60S BUT IN SOUTHERN
LOUISIANA...WHERE RAINFALL HAS ENDED...TEMPERATURES HAVE QUICKLY RISEN
INTO THE 70S TO PROVIDE EVEN MORE ENERGY TO THUNDERSTORMS THAT WILL
DEVELOP.

A POTENTIALLY VERY DANGEROUS SITUATION IS DEVELOPING OVER
MISSISSIPPI...PARTICULARLY SOUTHERN MISSISSIPPI...AT THIS TIME. STRONG
THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED TO DEVELOP IN THE SOUTH IN THE NEXT COUPLE
HOUERS AND SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS ARE LIKELY THIS AFTERNOON. IN THE VERY
UNSTABLE ENVIRONMENT IN PLACE OVER THE STATE...TORNADOES MAY DEVELOP
LATER TODAY.

The office that day

Everything else NWS Jackson, MS issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Mar 18, 3:14 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANCovington, Lamar31 min
Mar 18, 3:24 PM CSTTornado WarningJANForrest36 min
Mar 18, 4:11 PM CSTTornado WarningJANWayne64 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Mississippi, 1992Every tornado warning in 1992Tornadoes in 1992

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.