Alert archive / Alabama / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1992

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 33, NWS Mobile, AL

April 20, 1992Butler County, Alabama

NWS Mobile, AL issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Apr 20, 1992, 2:42 PM CDT for Butler County, Alabama. It was in force for 63 min.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued: Apr 20, 1992, 2:42 PM CDT (19:42 UTC)
Expired: Apr 20, 1992, 3:45 PM CDT
In force: 63 min
Issued by: NWS Mobile, AL
Area: Whole counties

County Butler County, AL

The nearest sounding before it

Centreville/Bibb, AL (KCKL), launched 12:00Z, 7.7 hours before the alert went out and 137 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: 11 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -209 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 650 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 32 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 185 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 259 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.0
Supercell composite: 0.2

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
TTAA00 KMGM 201944
SVRMGM
ALC013-202045-
 
BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MONTGOMERY AL
242 PM CDT MON APR 20 1992
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN MONTGOMERY HAS ISSUED A
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL  345 PM CDT
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS...
 
IN SOUTH ALABAMA
 
   ...BUTLER COUNTY
 
WEATHER RADAR AT MONTGOMERY SHOWED SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS POISED TO
ENTER BUTLER COUNTY FROM THE SOUTHWEST. THESE STORMS ARE APPROACHING
GARLAND AND GEORGIANA AND GREENVILLE AT 35 MILES AN HOUR. THE
THUNDERSTORMS ARE ABOUT FIVE MILES OUTSIDE THE COUNTY AND WILL BE
ENTERING WEST AND SOUTHWEST BUTLER COUNTY.
 
A TORNADO WATCH IS ALSO IN EFFECT FOR THE WARNED AREA.  REMEMBER
SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS CAN AND OCCASIONALLY DO PRODUCE TORNADOES
WITH LITTLE OR NO ADVANCE WARNING.  REMAIN CALM BUT BE ALERT TO
RAPIDLY CHANGING WEATHER CONDITIONS.

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before this severe thunderstorm 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, Apr 20, 1:37 PM CDT, 1 hour 5 minutes before

FLZ001>004-ALZ010-013>018-MSZ012>014-201930-
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT AND RADAR SUMMARY
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PENSACOLA FL
130 PM CDT MON APR 20 1992

AT 130 PM CDT...A BAND OF STRONG THUNDERSTORMS...SOME WITH HEAVY
RAIN...STRETCHED FROM CLARKE COUNTY ALABAMA SOUTH THROUGH BALDWIN
COUNTY AND CONTINUED OUT INTO THE GULF 100 MILES SOUTH OF MOBILE.

THE THUNDERSTORMS WERE MOVING EAST AT 20 MILES AN HOUR AND WERE
BEGINNING TO ENTER WEST ESCAMBIA COUNTY FLORIDA AT THIS TIME.

THESE THUNDERSTORMS WILL CONTAIN PERIODS OF HEAVY RAIN...FREQUENT
LIGHTNING...STRONG GUSTY WINDS AND POSSIBLE HAIL AND TORNADOES.

PEOPLE IN NORTHWEST FLORIDA SHOULD STAY ADVISED OF THE THUNDERSTORMS
THIS AFTERNOON BY MONITORING THIS SOURCE FOR FURTHER INFORMATION AND
BE PREPARED TO MOVE TO SAFETY IF WARNINGS ARE ISSUED.

Local storm report, Apr 20, 1:44 PM CDT, 58 minutes before

STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MOBILE AL
137 PM MON APR 20 1992

TIME             EVENT
128 PM           TORNADO REPORTED AT CARLTON IN CLARKE COUNTY ALABAMA.
                 TREES DOWN...VEHICLES DAMAGED...
                 INFORMATION SKETCHY AT THIS TIME...

140 PM           TREES DOWN REPORTED 5 MILES EAST OF FAIRHOPE ALABAMA
                 IN BALDWIN COUNTY.  REPORTED AS TORNADO BUT
                 UNCONFIRMED.

Local storm report, Apr 20, 2:03 PM CDT, 39 minutes before

STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MOBILE AL
202 PM MON APR 20 1992

TIME             EVENT
150 PM           BALDWIN COUNTY EMA REPORTED A MOBILE HOME UNROOFED AT
                 GULF STATE PARK NEAR GULF SHORES.

Local storm report, Apr 20, 2:18 PM CDT, 24 minutes before

STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MOBILE AL
215 PM MON APR 20 1992

TIME             EVENT
145 PM           BALDWIN COUNTY EMA REPORTED POWER OUTAGE NEAR
                 SILVERHILL.

205 PM           BALDWIN COUNTY EMA REPORTED A TREE FELL ON AND
                 DAMAGED A MOBILE HOME 8 MILES EAST OF FAIRHOPE.

                 CLARKE COUNTY SO AND ALABAMA STATE TROOPERS
                 REPORTED SOME RESIDENTIAL DAMAGE NEAR CARLTON
                 WITH THE STORM REPORTED AT 140 PM.

Local storm report, Apr 20, 2:30 PM CDT, 12 minutes before

STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MOBILE AL
225 PM MON APR 20 1992

UPDATE ON TORNADO AT CARLTON IN CLARKE COUNTY...

RESIDENT TOMMY HART REPORTED MINOR ROOF DAMAGE TO HIS HOME...
HIS PICKUP TRUCK DESTROYED...SEVERAL OUTBUILDINGS DESTROYED.
NO INJURIES.  NUMEROUS TREES SNAPPED OFF OR UPROOTED.

HE REPORTED INKY BLACK SKIES...AND A LOUD ROAR IMMEDIATELY BEFORE
THE STORM HIT.

THE STORM PATH WAS ESTIMATED 200 YARDS WIDE AND PERHAPS A MILE LONG.

STORM REPORTED AT 128 PM.

Special weather statement, Apr 20, 2:34 PM CDT, 8 minutes before

FLZ001>004-ALZ010-013>018-MSZ012>014-202030-
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT AND RADAR SUMMARY
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PENSACOLA FL
230 PM CDT MON APR 20 1992

...A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 700 PM CDT FOR ALL
OF THE FLORIDA PANHANDLE...

AT 230 PM CDT...A LINE OF STRONG THUNDERSTORMS...SOME WITH HEAVY
RAIN...STRETCHED FROM MONROE COUNTY ALABAMA SOUTH THROUGH THE FLORIDA
PANHANDLE ALONG THE ESCAMBIA...SANTA ROSA COUNTY LINE THEN CONTINUED
OUT ANOTHER 100 MILES INTO THE GULF.

THESE THUNDERSTORMS WILL CONTAIN PERIODS OF HEAVY RAIN...FREQUENT
LIGHTNING...STRONG GUSTY WINDS AND POSSIBLE HAIL AS THEY MOVE EAST
ACROSS THE PANHANDLE AT 25 MILES AN HOUR.  WIND GUSTS TO NEAR 50 MPH
HAVE ALREADY BEEN REPORTED IN ESCAMBIA COUNTY FROM THE THUNDERSTORMS.

CONTINUE TO MONITOR THIS SOURCE FOR FURTHER INFORMATION AND BE READY
TO MOVE TO SAFETY IF WARNINGS ARE ISSUED.

The office that day

Everything else NWS Mobile, AL issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Apr 20, 12:01 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MOB	Mobile	44 min
Apr 20, 1:07 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MOB	Clarke	53 min
Apr 20, 1:45 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MOB	Monroe	45 min
Apr 20, 1:49 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MOB	Baldwin	26 min
Apr 20, 2:08 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MOB	Wilcox	67 min
Apr 20, 2:49 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MOB	Conecuh	26 min
Apr 20, 3:09 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MOB	Lowndes	66 min
Apr 20, 3:21 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	MOB	Lowndes, Montgomery	69 min
Apr 20, 3:51 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MOB	Covington	69 min
Apr 20, 3:51 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MOB	Pike	69 min
Apr 20, 4:08 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MOB	Geneva	52 min
Apr 20, 4:11 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MOB	Elmore, Tallapoosa	64 min
Apr 20, 4:46 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MOB	Lee, Macon	59 min
Apr 20, 5:12 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MOB	Chambers	48 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Alabama, 1992 Every severe thunderstorm warning 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; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive.