Alert archive / Texas / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1994

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 21, NWS Houston/Galveston, TX

April 15, 1994Harris County, Montgomery County, Texas

NWS Houston/Galveston, TX issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Apr 15, 1994, 3:50 PM CDT for Harris County, Montgomery County, Texas. It was in force for 55 min.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
Apr 15, 1994, 3:50 PM CDT (20:50 UTC)
Expired
Apr 15, 1994, 4:45 PM CDT
In force
55 min
Issued by
NWS Houston/Galveston, TX
Area
Whole counties

Counties Harris County, TX, Montgomery County, TX

The radar

The Houston radar (KHGX), 76 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 20:52 UTC, the scan nearest the moment this went out.

Open the radar archive at this moment

The archived warnings, watches and discussions in force at that minute are drawn over the scan, this one among them.

The nearest sounding before it

Lake Charles Mun, LA (KLCH), launched 12:00Z, 8.8 hours before the alert went out and 216 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, Lake Charles Mun, LA at 12:00Z on 1994-04-15Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1928 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, Lake Charles Mun, LA at 12:00Z on 1994-04-15The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 65 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
1928 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-33 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
594 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
21 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
65 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
152 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
1.3

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
TTAA00 KHOU 152053
SVRHOU
TXC201-339-152145-
 
BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HOUSTON TX
350 PM CDT FRI APR 15 1994
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN HOUSTON HAS ISSUED A
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL  445 PM CDT
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS...
 
IN SOUTHEAST TEXAS
 
   ...NORTHWESTERN HARRIS COUNTY...MONTGOMERY COUNTY
 
AT 346 PM A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WAS LOCATED 5 MILES NORTH OF WALLER
ALONG HIGHWAY 1488 BETWEEN HEMPSTEAD AND MAGNOLIA. THE STORM WAS MOVING
TO THE NORTHEAST AT 20 MPH. MAGNOLIA IS IN THE PATH OF THIS STORM.
 
THIS IS A DANGEROUS STORM.  IF YOU ARE IN ITS PATH...PREPARE
FOR DAMAGING WIND IN EXCESS OF 55 MPH...LARGE HAIL...AND
VERY HEAVY RAIN.  IF CAUGHT OUTSIDE... MOVE TO A SHELTER...
PREFERABLY INSIDE A STRONG BUILDING BUT STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS.
REMEMBER SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS CAN PRODUCE TORNADOES WITH LITTLE OR NOT
ADVANCE WARNING.

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.

NWS Houston/Galveston, TX wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at Apr 15, 2:45 PM CDT, 1 hour 5 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Apr 15, 2:45 PM CDT, 1 hour 5 minutes before
SOUTHEAST TEXAS FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HOUSTON, TX
241 PM CDT FRI APR 15 1994

THE COMBINATION OF HIGH CAPE VALUES... AN APPROACHING COLD FRONT... AND A S/W
IN THE SUBTROPICAL FLOW HAVE TRIGGRED SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS ALONG THE NORTHERN
FRINGES OF THE COUNTY.  WITH THIS DEVELOPMENT THE FRONT HAS SLOWED A BIT AS IT
STILL NORTH OF CLL AND LFK.  THEREFORE WILL AGAIN SLOW THE TIMING OF THE FRONT
A FEW HOURS.  AFTER THIS ROUND OF SVR |WX THE BIGGEST CONCERN WILL BE THE
CLOUDS ALONG THE SUBTROPICAL THAT WILL BE SKIRTING THE SOUTHERN FRINGE.
OTHERWISE...  A GREAT WEEKEND IN STORE.  GUIDANCE LOOKS OK. 44

IAH UU 056/080 053/082 055 446-00

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Apr 15, 1:39 PM CDT, 2 hours 11 minutes before
TXZ163-164-176>179-195>200-210>213-226-227-236-152040-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HOUSTON TX
139 PM CDT FRI APR 15 1994

...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH IS IN EFFECT FOR MOST OF SOUTHEAST TEXAS
THROUGH 7 PM CDT...

A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 7 PM CDT FOR THE FOLLOWING
COUNTIES... BURLESON... BRAZOS... MADISON... GRIMES... HOUSTON...
TRINITY... POLK... SAN JACINTO... WALKER... MONTGOMERY... WASHINGTON...
COLORADO... AUSTIN... WALLER... LIBERTY... FORT BEND... WHARTON AND
HARRIS.

WITH VERY UNSTABLE AIR AHEAD OF AN ADVANCING COLD FRONT IN CENTRAL
TEXAS... THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM
THROUGH 7 PM CDT.  THESE THUNDERSTORMS HAVE PRODUCED LARGE HAIL AND A
POSSIBLE TORNADO IN NACOGDOCHES COUNTY.  THESE STORMS HAVE THE
CAPABILITY TO PRODUCE LARGE HAIL... DAMAGING WINDS AND DANGEROUS
LIGHTNING.

PEOPLE IN THE WATCH AREA SHOULD MONITOR THERE LOCAL TELEVISION AND
RADIO STATIONS AND YOU NOAA WEATHER RADIO STATIONS FOR THE LATEST
WEATHER UPDATES AND WARNINGS.

IF YOU ARE OUTDOORS...MOVE TO A PLACE OF SHELTER IMMEDIATELY IF A
STORM APPROACHES.  MOTORISTS SHOULD REMAIN ALERT FOR REDUCED
VISIBILITIES DURING DOWNPOURS OF RAIN.  STREETS MAY FLOOD QUICKLY.

The office that day

Everything else NWS Houston/Galveston, TX issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Apr 15, 2:39 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningHGXGrimes, Montgomery66 min
Apr 15, 3:29 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningHGXWaller61 min
Apr 15, 3:29 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningHGXAustin44 min
Apr 15, 4:17 PM CDTTornado WarningHGXHarris, Montgomery58 min
Apr 15, 5:14 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningHGXLiberty61 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Texas, 1994Every severe thunderstorm warning 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; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.