Alert archive / Kentucky / Tornado Warnings in 1995

Tornado Warning 43, NWS Louisville, KY

May 18, 1995Laurel County, Rockcastle County, Kentucky

NWS Louisville, KY issued this tornado warning at May 18, 1995, 8:14 PM EDT for Laurel County, Rockcastle County, Kentucky. It was in force for 46 min.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
May 18, 1995, 8:14 PM EDT (00:14 UTC)
Expired
May 18, 1995, 9:00 PM EDT
In force
46 min
Issued by
NWS Louisville, KY
Area
Whole counties

Counties Laurel County, KY, Rockcastle County, KY

The nearest sounding before it

Huntington/Tri S, WV (KHTS), launched 00:00Z, 0.2 hours before the alert went out and 196 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, Huntington/Tri S, WV at 00:00Z on 1995-05-19Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 0 joules per kilogram.LCL10008507005003002001001 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, Huntington/Tri S, WV at 00:00Z on 1995-05-19The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 225 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
0 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL
1240 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
70 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
225 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
361 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.1

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
TTAA00 KSDF 190014
TORSDF
KYC125-203-190100-
 
BULLETIN - EBS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LOUISVILLE KY
814 PM EDT THU MAY 18 1995
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN LOUISVILLE HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL  900 PM EDT
FOR PERSONS IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS...
 
IN SOUTH CENTRAL KENTUCKY
 
   ...LAUREL COUNTY...ROCKCASTLE COUNTY
 
AT 810 PM EDT...DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A POSSIBLE TORNADO 10 MILES
NORTH OF SOMERSET. MOVEMENT WAS EAST AT 40 MPH.
 
SOME TOWNS IN THE PATH ARE MOUNT VERNON AND LONDON.
 
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.
 
DARMOFAL/FUNK

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

Local storm report, May 18, 6:35 PM EDT, 1 hour 39 minutes before
LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LOUISVILLE KY
634 PM EDT THU MAY 18 1995

TIME EDT   .....CITY LOCATION.....    STATE    ...EVENT...
 DATE      ....COUNTY LOCATION....            ...REMARKS...

630 PM EDT   COLUMBIA                  KY     GOLFBALL SIZE HAIL
5/18/95      ADIAR CO.                        BY COLUMBIA STATE POLICE
                                              POST.
RNK
Local storm report, May 18, 7:34 PM EDT, 40 minutes before
LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LOUISVILLE KY
727 PM EDT THU MAY 18 1995

TIME EDT   .....CITY LOCATION.....    STATE    ...EVENT...
 DATE      ....COUNTY LOCATION....            ...REMARKS...

659 PM EDT   NEW ALBANY                IN     FUNNELL CLOUD SIGHTED
5/18/95      FLOYD                            OLD RIVER ROAD.

720 PM EDT   RADCLIFF                  KY     TORNADO REPORTED AT
             HARDIN                           FORT KNOX BY RADCLIFF
                                              POLICE.

725 PM EDT   ELIZABETHTOWN             KY     FUNNEL CLOUD REPORTED
             HARDIN                           BY ELIZABETHTOWN POLICE
                                 T             DEPARTMENT.

730 PM EDT   CAMPBELLSVILLE            KY      FUNNEL CLOUD REPORTED
             TAYLOR                            BY TAYLOR COUNTY SHERRIF
RNK
Local storm report, May 18, 7:37 PM EDT, 37 minutes before
LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LOUISVILLE KY
735 PM EDT THU MAY 18 1995

TIME EDT   .....CITY LOCATION.....    STATE    ...EVENT...
 DATE      ....COUNTY LOCATION....            ...REMARKS...

725 PM EDT   PEE WEE VALLEY            KY     FUNNEL CLOUD SIGHTED BY
5/18/95      OLDHAM                           OLDHAM COUNTY POLICE.

730 PM EDT   SHEPARDSVILLE             KY     FUNNEL CLOUD SIGHTED
             BULLITT                  h        WEST OF SHEPARDSVILLE
                                              MOVING NORTHEAST.

RNK
Local storm report, May 18, 7:41 PM EDT, 33 minutes before
LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LOUISVILLE KY
738 PM EDT THU MAY 18 1995

TIME EDT   .....CITY LOCATION.....    STATE    ...EVENT...
 DATE      ....COUNTY LOCATION....            ...REMARKS...

725 PM EDT   COLUMBIA                  KY     2 FUNNEL CLOUDS SPOTTED
5/18/95      ADAIR                            3 MILES EAST OF COLUMBIA
                                              ON HWY 206 BY COLUMBIA
                                   t           STATE POLICE POST.

RNK
Local storm report, May 18, 7:52 PM EDT, 22 minutes before
LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LEXINGTON KY
750 PM EDT MON MAY 18 1995

TIME (EDT) ....CITY LOCATION...    STATE
           ...COUNTY LOCATION...          ...EVENT/REMARKS...

733 PM        BOURBON CO.           KY    FUNNEL CLOUD SPOTTED BY DES

728 PM        IRVINE                KY    3/4 INCH HAIL REPORTED BY
              ESTILL CO.                  HAM OPERATOR

730 PM        IRVINE                KY    DISPATCH REPORTED PEA SIZE
              ESTILL CO.                  HAIL...STRONG WINDS...AND
                                          HEAVY RAINS

RIECK
Local storm report, May 18, 8:06 PM EDT, 8 minutes before
LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LOUISVILLE KY
800 PM EDT THU MAY 18 1995

TIME EDT   .....CITY LOCATION.....    STATE    ...EVENT...
 DATE      ....COUNTY LOCATION....            ...REMARKS...

655 PM EDT   ANTIOCH HILL              KY     MARBLE TO DIME SIZE HAIL
5/18/95      CASEY                            COVERING GROUND...
                                              FUNNEL CLOUDS REPORTED...
                                              ALL LOW LYING ROADS IN
                                              AREA UNDER WATER...
                                              REPORTED FROM CASEY
                                              COUNTY SHERRIF.

715 PM EDT   EMINENCE                  KY     WATER PONDING ON ROADS.
             HENRY                            FROM HENRY COUNTY DISPATCH

715 PM EDT   CENTERFIELD               KY     DIME TO QUARTER SIZE HAIL
             OLDHAM                           FROM HENRY COUNTY DISPATCH

RNK

The office that day

Everything else NWS Louisville, KY issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 18, 8:25 PM EDTTornado WarningLMKHarrison, Scott35 min
May 18, 8:26 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLMKRussell34 min
May 18, 8:48 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLMKPulaski, Wayne27 min
May 18, 8:48 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLMKClinton27 min
May 18, 9:18 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLMKLaurel27 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Kentucky, 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.