Alert archive / Pennsylvania / Tornado Warnings in 1994

Tornado Warning 5, NWS State College, PA

June 6, 1994Berks County, Pennsylvania

NWS State College, PA issued this tornado warning at Jun 6, 1994, 4:07 PM EDT for Berks County, Pennsylvania. It was in force for 38 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
Jun 6, 1994, 4:07 PM EDT (20:07 UTC)
Expired
Jun 6, 1994, 4:45 PM EDT
In force
38 min
Issued by
NWS State College, PA
Area
Whole counties

County Berks County, PA

What was reported inside it

TimeReportWhereRemark
Jun 6, 4:10 PM EDTTornado F1Frystown, PAA tornado touched down in Frystown and proceeded to uproot about 75 trees and caused roof damage to 17 homes and businesses. Four houses completely lost their roofs and a 30 by 45 foot section of the Bethel Fire Department was peeled off. The tornado lifted

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

Atlantic City In, NJ (KACY), launched 12:00Z, 8.1 hours before the alert went out and 162 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, Atlantic City In, NJ at 12:00Z on 1994-06-06Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 319 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, Atlantic City In, NJ at 12:00Z on 1994-06-06The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 103 square meters per square second.193958Sfc1 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
319 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-56 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
621 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
33 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
103 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
116 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 KABE 062009
TORABE
PAC011-062045-
 
BULLETIN - EBS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ALLENTOWN PA
407 PM EDT MON JUN 6 1994
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN ALLENTOWN HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL  445 PM EDT
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS......
 
IN EAST CENTRAL PENNSYLVANIA
 
   ...BERKS COUNTY
 
AT 405 PM EDT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR INDICATED A POSSIBLE
TORNADO MOVING INTO WESTERN BERKS COUNTY NEAR STOUCHSBURG. MOVEMENT OF
THIS STORM IS TO THE EAST AT 30 TO 40 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.
 
THIS IS A DANGEROUS STORM SITUATION.  ACT QUICKLY.  IF YOU ARE
IN THE PATH OF THIS TORNADO MOVE TO A SHELTER BELOW GROUND IRF
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.

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, Jun 6, 1:40 PM EDT, 2 hours 27 minutes before
PAZ012-037-038-041-042-045-046-049>052-061840-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WILLIAMSPORT PA
140 PM EDT MON JUN 6 1994

...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR CLINTON COUNTY HAS EXPIRED...

AT 135 PM EDT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR INDICATED A LINE OF
STRONG THUNDERSTORMS THAT EXTENDED FROM NEAR WATSONTOWN AND LEWISBURG
THEN TO STATE COLLEGE. STRONG AND POSSIBLE SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WERE
OVER NORTHERN UNION COUNTY.  ELSEWHERE LIGHT TO MODERATE SHOWERS
EXTENDED FROM CENTRAL BRADFORD COUNTY THROUGH EASTERN LYCOMING COUNTY.
THE THUNDERSTORMS WERE MOVING EAST SOUTHEAST AT 35 MPH.

THOSE STRONG THUNDERSTORMS OVER NORTHERN UNION COUNTY WILL BE MOVING
INTO NORTHERN NORTHUMBERLAND COUNTY BY 145 PM EDT.

PERSONS IN THE PATH OF THESE THUNDERSTORMS SHOULD REMAIN ALERT FOR
THREATENING WEATHER AND TAKE SHELTER IF THREATENING WEATHER
APPROACHES.  REMEMBER THE SAFEST PLACE TO BE IN A THUNDERSTORM IS
INSIDE A STRONG BUILDING AND AWAY FROM WINDOWS.

GOUGH/JOHNSON
Special weather statement, Jun 6, 1:40 PM EDT, 2 hours 27 minutes before
PAZ012-037-038-041-042-045-046-049>052-061840-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WILLIAMSPORT PA
140 PM EDT MON JUN 6 1994

...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR CLINTON COUNTY HAS EXPIRED...

AT 135 PM EDT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR INDICATED A LINE OF
STRONG THUNDERSTORMS THAT EXTENDED FROM NEAR WATSONTOWN AND LEWISBURG
THEN TO STATE COLLEGE. STRONG AND POSSIBLE SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WERE
OVER NORTHERN UNION COUNTY.  ELSEWHERE LIGHT TO MODERATE SHOWERS
EXTENDED FROM CENTRAL BRADFORD COUNTY THROUGH EASTERN LYCOMING COUNTY.
THE THUNDERSTORMS WERE MOVING EAST SOUTHEAST AT 35 MPH.

THOSE STRONG THUNDERSTORMS OVER NORTHERN UNION COUNTY WILL BE MOVING
INTO NORTHERN NORTHUMBERLAND COUNTY BY 145 PM EDT.

PERSONS IN THE PATH OF THESE THUNDERSTORMS SHOULD REMAIN ALERT FOR
THREATENING WEATHER AND TAKE SHELTER IF THREATENING WEATHER
APPROACHES.  REMEMBER THE SAFEST PLACE TO BE IN A THUNDERSTORM IS
INSIDE A STRONG BUILDING AND AWAY FROM WINDOWS.

GOUGH/JOHNSON

The office that day

Everything else NWS State College, PA issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jun 6, 12:54 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCTPClinton36 min
Jun 6, 1:07 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCTPUnion53 min
Jun 6, 1:24 PM EDTTornado WarningCTPUnion51 min
Jun 6, 1:34 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCTPCentre26 min
Jun 6, 2:03 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCTPSnyder, Union57 min
Jun 6, 2:13 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCTPHuntingdon62 min
Jun 6, 2:52 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCTPNorthumberland68 min
Jun 6, 2:59 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCTPSchuylkill61 min
Jun 6, 3:02 PM EDTTornado WarningCTPJuniata58 min
Jun 6, 3:08 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCTPCumberland67 min
Jun 6, 3:15 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCTPPerry60 min
Jun 6, 3:48 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCTPLebanon42 min
Jun 6, 3:59 PM EDTTornado WarningCTPLebanon31 min
Jun 6, 4:32 PM EDTTornado WarningCTPBerks43 min
Jun 6, 5:20 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCTPLancaster55 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Pennsylvania, 1994Every tornado warning in 1994Tornadoes in 1994

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.