Alert archive / Texas / Tornado Warnings in 1996

Tornado Warning 3, NWS Corpus Christi, TX

August 14, 1996Bee County, Texas

NWS Corpus Christi, TX issued this tornado warning at Aug 14, 1996, 4:54 PM CDT for Bee County, Texas. It was in force for 36 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
Aug 14, 1996, 4:54 PM CDT (21:54 UTC)
Expired
Aug 14, 1996, 5:30 PM CDT
In force
36 min
Issued by
NWS Corpus Christi, TX
Area
Whole counties

County Bee County, TX

What was reported inside it

TimeReportWhereRemark
Aug 14, 5:05 PM CDTHail 0.75Beeville, 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 12:00Z, 9.9 hours before the alert went out and 86 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 12:00Z on 1996-08-14Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 2050 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 12:00Z on 1996-08-14The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 23 square meters per square second.1939Sfc1 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
2050 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-33 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
820 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
12 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
23 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
43 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 142154
TORCRP
TXC025-142230-
 
BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CORPUS CHRISTI TX
454 PM CDT WED AUG 14 1996
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN CORPUS CHRISTI HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL  530 PM CDT
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING COUNTY......
 
IN SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS
 
   ...BEE COUNTY
 
AT 454 PM CDT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
POSSIBLE TORNADO NEAR U.S. HIGHWAY 181 JUST TO THE SOUTH OF
BEEVILLE.  MOVEMENT WAS TO THE SOUTHWEST AT 10 TO 15 MPH.
 
 
 
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.
 
IF YOU ARE CAUGHT OUTSIDE...SEEK SHELTER IN A NEARBY REINFORCED
BUILDING.  AS A LAST RESORT...SEEK SHELTER IN A CULVERT...DITCH
OR LOW SPOT AND COVER YOUR HEAD WITH YOUR HANDS.

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 Aug 14, 2:46 PM CDT, 2 hours 8 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Aug 14, 2:46 PM CDT, 2 hours 8 minutes before
COASTAL BEND FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CORPUS CHRISTI TX
245 PM CDT WED AUG 14 1996

STORMS UNDERWAY THIS AFTERNOON NEAR VCT AND TRANSLATING WESTWARD
WITH TIME AS OUTFLOW BOUNDRY...INTENSE HEATING AND SEA-BREEZE
COMBINE TO PRODUCE STRONG TO PULSE SVR THUNDERSTORMS.  PRECIP
WILL CONTINUE THROUGH THIS EVENING.  BY SUNSET ALL RAINFALL
SHOULD HAVE DIED DOWN.  LOCALLY HEAVY RAINFALL POSSIBLE DUE
TO WEAK STEERING CURRENTS VCT AREA.

WEAKNESS WILL REMAIN OVER THE REGION THE NEXT 48 HOURS HOWEVER
PRECIP CHANCES WILL LOWER WITH TIME AS WEAK RIDGE TRIES TO BUILD
INTO THE AREA.  ONLY ISOLATED TO WDLY SCT PRECIP THURS-FRI.

PRELIMS
CRP BB 076/098 076/098 077 221
VCT BB 075/098 075/098 076 321
LRD BB 076/103 077/103 077 211
RVL...0074

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Aug 14, 3:30 PM CDT, 1 hour 24 minutes before
TXZ234-142130-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CORPUS CHRISTI TX
331 PM CDT WED AUG 14 1996

...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING HAS EXPIRED AT 330 PM...

AT 331 PM...DOPPLER RADAR SHOWED A STRONG THUNDERSTORM OVER SOUTHERN
VICTORIA COUNTY.  THIS STORM HAS DECREASED IN INTENSITY BUT THE STORM
WAS STILL CAPABLE OF PRODUCING VERY HEAVY RAINFALL OF UP TO 2 INCHES
PER HOUR...WINDS UP TO 40 MPH...HAIL AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING.

THE STRONGEST STORM WAS LOCATED 5 MILES SOUTHEAST OF VICTORIA.
MOVEMENT OF THE PRECIPITATION WAS TOWARD THE SOUTHWEST AT 15
MPH.

FLOODING OF LOW-LYING AREAS IS LIKELY.

LUNA

The office that day

Everything else NWS Corpus Christi, TX issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Aug 14, 2:50 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCRPVictoria40 min
Aug 14, 4:08 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCRPGoliad67 min
Aug 14, 4:20 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCRPJim Wells, Nueces40 min
Aug 14, 5:14 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCRPLive Oak61 min
Aug 14, 6:13 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCRPDuval32 min

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.