Alert archive / Louisiana / Tornado Warnings in 1995

Tornado Warning 51, NWS Lake Charles, LA

December 17, 1995Saint Landry Parish, Louisiana

NWS Lake Charles, LA issued this tornado warning at Dec 17, 1995, 1:15 PM CST for Saint Landry Parish, Louisiana. It was in force for 60 min.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
Dec 17, 1995, 1:15 PM CST (19:15 UTC)
Expired
Dec 17, 1995, 2:15 PM CST
In force
60 min
Issued by
NWS Lake Charles, LA
Area
Whole counties

County Saint Landry Parish, LA

The nearest sounding before it

Lake Charles Mun, LA (KLCH), launched 12:00Z, 7.3 hours before the alert went out and 126 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 1995-12-17Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 675 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 1995-12-17The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 239 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
675 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-31 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
573 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
29 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
239 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
246 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.5
Supercell composite
4.8

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
TTAA00 KLCH 171917
TORLCH
LAC097-172015-
 
BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA
115 PM CST SUN DEC 17 1995
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN LAKE CHARLES HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL  215 PM CST
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATION...
 
IN EAST CENTRAL LOUISIANA
 
   ...ST. LANDRY PARISH
 
AT 110 PM...THE SHERIFFS OFFICE IN ACADIA PARISH REPORTED A TORNADO
ALONG HIGHWAY 358 NORTH OF CHURCHPOINT. THE STORM WAS MOVING NORTHEAST
AT 35 MPH AND WILL TRACK NEAR OPELOUSAS BY 120 PM.
 
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 SHELTERB 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.

NWS Lake Charles, LA wrote its last area forecast discussion before this tornado warning went out at Dec 16, 8:55 PM CST, 16 hours 20 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Dec 16, 8:55 PM CST, 16 hours 20 minutes before
SOUTHEAST TEXAS..SOUTHWEST AND CENTRAL LOUISIANA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA
850 PM CST SAT DEC 16 1995

NO BIG ADJUSTMENTS NEEDED TO CURRENT FCST. FOG IS AGAIN QUESTION OF
THE NIGHT. APPEARS DENSE FOG ADVISORY MAY BE IN ORDER AGAIN...BUT
WILL HOLD OFF. LOWS WILL NEED TO BE LOWERED IN CENTRAL LA.
8

TX ZONES...
@1 TYLER JASPER NEWTON
@2 HARDIN ORANGE JEFFERSON

LA ZONES...
@1 VERNON RAPIDES AVOYELLES BEAUREGARD ALLEN EVANGELINE ST LANDRY
@2 CALCASIEU JEFFERSON DAVIS ACADIA LAFAYETTE UPPER ST MARTIN CAMERON
   VERMILION IBERIA LOWER ST MARTIN ST MARY

In the hours before

Local storm report, Dec 17, 11:35 AM CST, 1 hour 40 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA
1135 AM CST SUN DEC 17 1995

TIME(CST)  .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
DATE       ....COUNTY LOCATION....

0930 AM    BURKEVILLE              TX     WIND DAMAGE
12/17/95   NEWTON                         TREE BLOWN DOWN ON HWY 1415.

0930 AM    5 S KOUNTZE             TX     WIND DAMAGE
12/17/95   HARDIN                         TREE BLOWN DOWN ON HWY 326.

0935 AM    KIRBYVILLE              TX     WIND DAMAGE
12/17/95   JASPER                         DAMAGE TO BANKING CENTER...
                                          PART OF ROOF BLOWN OFF...
                                          NUMEROUS TREES AND POWER
                                          LINES BLOWN DOWN.
Local storm report, Dec 17, 11:36 AM CST, 1 hour 39 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA
1135 AM CST SUN DEC 17 1995

TIME(CST)  .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
DATE       ....COUNTY LOCATION....

0930 AM    BURKEVILLE              TX     WIND DAMAGE
12/17/95   NEWTON                         TREE BLOWN DOWN ON HWY 1415.

0930 AM    5 S KOUNTZE             TX     WIND DAMAGE
12/17/95   HARDIN                         TREE BLOWN DOWN ON HWY 326.

0935 AM    KIRBYVILLE              TX     WIND DAMAGE
12/17/95   JASPER                         DAMAGE TO BANKING CENTER...
                                          PART OF ROOF BLOWN OFF...
                                          NUMEROUS TREERS AND POWER
                                          LINES BLOWN DOWN.

The office that day

Everything else NWS Lake Charles, LA issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Dec 17, 10:21 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLCHBeauregard, Vernon39 min
Dec 17, 12:41 PM CSTTornado WarningLCHEvangeline49 min
Dec 17, 1:36 PM CSTTornado WarningLCHAvoyelles54 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Louisiana, 1995Every tornado warning in 1995Tornadoes in 1995

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.