Alert archive / Alabama / Tornado Warnings in 1996

Tornado Warning 111, NWS Birmingham, AL

November 7, 1996Chambers County, Alabama

NWS Birmingham, AL issued this tornado warning at Nov 7, 1996, 7:44 PM CST for Chambers County, Alabama. It was in force for 46 min. No storm report in the archive falls inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
Nov 7, 1996, 7:44 PM CST (01:44 UTC)
Expired
Nov 7, 1996, 8:30 PM CST
In force
46 min
Issued by
NWS Birmingham, AL
Area
Whole counties

County Chambers County, AL

The radar

The Maxwell AFB radar (KMXX), 56 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 01:48 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

Peachtre/Fal Fld, GA (KFFC), launched 00:00Z, 1.7 hours before the alert went out and 97 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, Peachtre/Fal Fld, GA at 00:00Z on 1996-11-08Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 700 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, Peachtre/Fal Fld, GA at 00:00Z on 1996-11-08The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity -244 square meters per square second.1939587897Sfc1 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
700 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-2 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
636 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
59 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
-244 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
-81 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
-0.8
Supercell composite
-3.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
TTAA00 KBHM 080145
TORBHM
ALC017-080230-
 
BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
744 PM CST THU NOV 7 1996
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN BIRMINGHAM HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL  830 PM CST
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATION...
 
IN EAST CENTRAL ALABAMA
 
   ...NORTHERN CHAMBERS COUNTY
 
A TORNADO WAS INDICATED BY RADAR MOVING INTO NORTHWEST CHAMBERS COUNTY
NEAR SHILOH ALONG THE TALLAPOOSA RIVER. THIS STORM WILL ALSO AFFECT THE
MILLTOWN AND PENTON AREAS BETWEEN 750 AND 800 PM. MOVEMENT WAS NORTHEAST
AT 40 MPH.
 
 
 
 
IF YOU LIVE IN A HOME OR APARTMENT...SEEK SHELTER IN THE
INNERMOST PORTION OF THE BUILDING ON THE LOWEST FLOOR.  GET TO
A BASEMENT IF ONE IS AVAILABLE.  AVOID WINDOWS AND PROTECT YOUR
BODY FROM FLYING DEBRIS WITH CUSHIONS...BLANKETS...OR PILLOWS.

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, Nov 7, 4:00 PM CST, 3 hours 44 minutes before
ALZ004-005-013-014-022-072300-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
400 PM CST THU NOV 7 1996

THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES IN WEST AND NORTHWEST ALABAMA HAVE BEEN REMOVED
FROM TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 1121...

LIMESTONE...LAWRENCE...WINSTON...FAYETTE...PICKENS.
Special weather statement, Nov 7, 5:20 PM CST, 2 hours 24 minutes before
ALZ006-007-015-016-080000-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
520 PM CST THU NOV 7 1996

THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES IN NORTH ALABAMA HAVE BEEN REMOVED
FROM TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 1121....

MADISON...MORGAN...CULLMAN...WALKER.
Special weather statement, Nov 7, 5:21 PM CST, 2 hours 23 minutes before
ALZ006-007-015-016-080000-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
520 PM CST THU NOV 7 1996

THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES IN NORTH ALABAMA HAVE BEEN REMOVED
FROM TORNADO WATCH NUMBER &1121....

MADISON...MORGAN...CULLMAN...WALKER.
Special weather statement, Nov 7, 7:06 PM CST, 38 minutes before
ALZ008>010-017-018-023>026-030>034-039-040-051>055-080200-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
707 PM CST THU NOV 7 1996

THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES IN ALABAMA HAVE BEEN REMOVED
FROM TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 1121....

JACKSON...MARSHALL...DEKALB...ETOWAH...BLOUNT...ST. CLAIR...
JEFFERSON...SHELBY...TUSCALOOSA...BIBB...SUMTER...GREENE...
HALE...PERRY...CHOCTAW...MARENGO...WILCOX...DALLAS...WASHINGTON...
CLARKE...MONROE.
Special weather statement, Nov 7, 7:25 PM CST, 19 minutes before
ALZ020-035-080300-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
725 PM CST THU NOV 7 1996

THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES IN ALABAMA HAVE BEEN REMOVED
FROM TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 1121....

CHHEROKEE...CHILTON.
Local storm report, Nov 7, 7:30 PM CST, 14 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM ALABAMA
730 PM CST THU NOV 07 1996

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

0325 PM    LIVINGSTON                AL   .75 INCH HAIL
11/07/96   SUMTER                         DIME SIZED HAIL REPORTED
                                          IN LIVINGSTON BY EMA.

0333 PM                              AL   WIND DAMAGE
11/07/96   TUSCALOOSA                     METAL SHEET RIPPED OFF
                                          ROOF OF HOUSE REPORTED BY
                                          EMA.

0540 PM    HOKES BLUFF               AL   .75 INCH HAIL
11/07/96   ETOWAH                         DIME SIZED HAIL REPORTED
                                          IN HOKES BLUFF BY SHERIFF.
0620 PM    HANOVER                   AL   TORNADO
11/07/96   COOSA                          UNCONFIRMED TORNADO NEAR
                                          HANOVER...NUMEROUS TREES
                                          AND POWER LINES DOWN AND
                                          TRAILER ROLLED OVER.

0632 PM                              AL   TORNADO
11/07/96   COOSA                          UNCONFIRMED TORNADO NEAR
                                          STEWARTVILLE...TREES AND
                                          POWER LINES DOWN AND
                                          MOBILE HOME DAMAGE.h

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Nov 7, 6:03 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXCherokee27 min
Nov 7, 6:08 PM CSTTornado WarningBMXElmore37 min
Nov 7, 6:15 PM CSTTornado WarningBMXClay45 min
Nov 7, 6:25 PM CSTTornado WarningBMXTalladega35 min
Nov 7, 6:40 PM CSTTornado WarningBMXElmore, Tallapoosa50 min
Nov 7, 7:02 PM CSTTornado WarningBMXClay28 min
Nov 7, 7:33 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXTallapoosa27 min
Nov 7, 7:56 PM CSTTornado WarningBMXRandolph49 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Alabama, 1996Every tornado warning in 1996Tornadoes in 1996

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.