Alert archive / Texas / Tornado Warnings in 1996

Tornado Warning 12, NWS Corpus Christi, TX

September 21, 1996Victoria County, Texas

NWS Corpus Christi, TX issued this tornado warning at Sep 21, 1996, 1:10 AM CDT for Victoria County, Texas. It was in force for 65 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
Sep 21, 1996, 1:10 AM CDT (06:10 UTC)
Expired
Sep 21, 1996, 2:15 AM CDT
In force
65 min
Issued by
NWS Corpus Christi, TX
Area
Whole counties

County Victoria County, TX

The radar

The Corpus Christi radar (KCRP), 124 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 06:18 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.

What was reported inside it

TimeReportWhereRemark
Sep 21, 1:25 AM CDTThunderstorm Wind 62Nursery, TX

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.

The nearest sounding before it

Corpus Christi, TX (KCRP), launched 00:00Z, 6.2 hours before the alert went out and 124 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, Corpus Christi, TX at 00:00Z on 1996-09-21Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 234 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, Corpus Christi, TX at 00:00Z on 1996-09-21The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity -46 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
234 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-264 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1539 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
39 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
-46 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
-7 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 KCRP 210610
TORCRP
TXC469-210715-
 
BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CORPUS CHRISTI TX
110 AM CDT SAT SEP 21 1996
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN CORPUS CHRISTI HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL  215 AM CDT
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING COUNTY......
 
IN SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS
 
   ...VICTORIA COUNTY
 
AT 110 AM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WITH A POSSIBLE TORNADO NEAR THOMASTON IN DEWITT
COUNTY ALONG HIGHWAY 87 MOVING TO THE SOUTHEAST AT 30 MPH.
 
THE TOWNS OF NURSERY...MISSION VALLEY AND VICTORIA ARE IN THE PATH OF
THIS STORM.
 
THIS IS A DANGEROUS STORM SITUATION.  ACT QUICKLY.  IF YOU ARE
IN THE PATH OF THIS TORNADO MOVE TO A SHELTER BELOW GROUND IF
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.

NWS Corpus Christi, TX wrote its last area forecast discussion before this tornado warning went out at Sep 20, 8:37 PM CDT, 4 hours 33 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Sep 20, 8:37 PM CDT, 4 hours 33 minutes before
COASTAL BEND FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CORPUS CHRISTI TX
835 PM CDT FRI SEP 20 1996

SEVERE WX APPROACHING THE NORTHERN COUNTIES.  SELS ISSUED TORNADO
WATCH 1050 TIL 2AM FROM COTULLA TO VICTORIA.  WATCHING TWO SEPARATE
STORM SYSTEMS.  THE STORMS OVER THE WESTERN COUNTIES NEAR UVALDE
DISSIPATING.  BAND FROM NW OF SAT TO CLL IS SEVERE AND MOVING SSE AT
30 MPH.  MANY TORNADOES WITH THIS SECOND COMPLEX AND POSES A GREAT
THREAT TO OUR NE COUNTIES.  WILL ACTIVATE SPOTTERS FOR THE VICTORIA
AREA.  UPPER JET DIGGING INTO THE REGION WILL ENHANCE THE UVV'S TIL
MORNING.  BEYOND TONIGHTS CONVECTION...AMS WILL DRY OUT (ALREADY
APPARENT ON CRP AND DRT' 00Z SOUNDING PWAI'S <1.5 INCHES)

PRELIMS...

CRP   30/20/20
VCT   40/20/20
LRD   30/20/10

JM...075

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Sep 20, 8:30 PM CDT, 4 hours 40 minutes before
TXZ229>234-246-247-210700-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CORPUS CHRISTI TX
830 PM CDT FRI SEP 20 1996

...A TORNADO WATCH IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 2AM CDT...

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED A TORNADO WATCH FOR PORTIONS
OF THE COASTAL BEND INCLUDING THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES IN THE VICTORIA
AND CORPUS CHRISTI LISTENING AREAS...LA SALLE...MCMULLEN...LIVE OAK
BEE...REFUGIO...GOLIAD...VICTORIA AND CALHOUN.

THUNDERSTORMS WERE RAPIDLY DEVELOPING OVER THE HILL COUNTRY AND
CENTRAL TEXAS FROM NEAR UVALDE TO NORTH OF SAN ANTONIO.  ANOTHER AREA
OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH A HISTORY OF PRODUCING TORNADOES WAS
LOCATED FROM NEAR AUSTIN TO COLLEGE STATION.  THESE STORMS WERE MOVING
QUICKLY SOUTH AND SOUTHEAST AT 30 MPH.

EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT OFFICIALS AND STORM SPOTTERS IN THE WATCH AREA
SHOULD BE READY FOR POSSIBLE ACTIVATION.
REMEMBER...A TORNADO WATCH MEANS CONDITIONS ARE FAVORABLE FOR
SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH THE POSSIBILITY OF TORNADOES IN AND CLOSE
TO THE WATCH AREA.  PERSONS IN THE WATCH AREA SHOULD BE ON TH LOOKOUT
FOR THREATENING WEATHER CONDITIONS AND LISTEN FOR LATER STATEMENTS
AND POSSIBLE WARNINGS.

STAY TUNED TO YOUR LOCAL NOAA WEATHER RADIO...TV OR RADIO STATIONS
FOR FURTHER STATEMENTS OR POSSIBLE WARNINGS ON THIS POTENTIALLY
DANGEROUS WEATHER SITUATION.

METZ
Special weather statement, Sep 20, 8:38 PM CDT, 4 hours 32 minutes before
TXZ229>234-246-247-210700-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT...RETRANSMITTED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CORPUS CHRISTI TX
830 PM CDT FRI SEP 20 1996

...A TORNADO WATCH IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 2AM CDT...

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED A TORNADO WATCH FOR PORTIONS
OF THE COASTAL BEND INCLUDING THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES IN THE VICTORIA
AND CORPUS CHRISTI LISTENING AREAS...LA SALLE...MCMULLEN...LIVE OAK
BEE...REFUGIO...GOLIAD...VICTORIA AND CALHOUN.

THUNDERSTORMS WERE RAPIDLY DEVELOPING OVER THE HILL COUNTRY AND
CENTRAL TEXAS FROM NEAR UVALDE TO NORTH OF SAN ANTONIO.  ANOTHER AREA
OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH A HISTORY OF PRODUCING TORNADOES WAS
LOCATED FROM NEAR AUSTIN TO COLLEGE STATION.  THESE STORMS WERE MOVING
QUICKLY SOUTH AND SOUTHEAST AT 30 MPH.

EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT OFFICIALS AND STORM SPOTTERS IN THE WATCH AREA
SHOULD BE READY FOR POSSIBLE ACTIVATION.
REMEMBER...A TORNADO WATCH MEANS CONDITIONS ARE FAVORABLE FOR
SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH THE POSSIBILITY OF TORNADOES IN AND CLOSE
TO THE WATCH AREA.  PERSONS IN THE WATCH AREA SHOULD BE ON TH LOOKOUT
FOR THREATENING WEATHER CONDITIONS AND LISTEN FOR LATER STATEMENTS
AND POSSIBLE WARNINGS.

STAY TUNED TO YOUR LOCAL NOAA WEATHER RADIO...TV OR RADIO STATIONS
FOR FURTHER STATEMENTS OR POSSIBLE WARNINGS ON THIS POTENTIALLY
DANGEROUS WEATHER SITUATION.

METZ

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Texas, 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; verification from NCEI's Storm Data; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.