Alert archive / Pennsylvania / Tornado Warnings in 1996

Tornado Warning 34, NWS State College, PA

November 8, 1996Lycoming County, Tioga County, Pennsylvania

NWS State College, PA issued this tornado warning at Nov 8, 1996, 10:11 AM EST for Lycoming County, Tioga County, Pennsylvania. It was in force for 49 min. 4 reports 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
Nov 8, 1996, 10:11 AM EST (15:11 UTC)
Expired
Nov 8, 1996, 11:00 AM EST
In force
49 min
Issued by
NWS State College, PA
Area
Whole counties

Counties Lycoming County, PA, Tioga County, PA

The radar

The State College radar (KCCX), 100 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 15:13 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
Nov 8, 10:20 AM ESTTornado F1Jersey Shr, PAThe Pine Station-Jersey Shore tornado moved east from Pine Station crossing Pine Creek into Lycoming County just southwest of Jersey Shore. The F1 tornado touched down about 2 miles southwest of Avis near Pine Station on the north side of Bald Eagle Mountain j
Nov 8, 10:20 AM ESTTornado F1Linden, PAThis storm was a continuation of damage that occurred in the Avis and Jersey Shore areas. The tornado caused intermittent damage along a 2.5 mile path in Woodward Township northwest of Linden. The tornado tore a brick facade off the southeast face of the Lycom
Nov 8, 10:30 AM ESTThunderstorm Wind 50Tiadaghton, PATrees were downed by strong winds near Tidaghton.
Nov 8, 10:45 AM ESTThunderstorm Wind 50Gleason, PA

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

Buffalo Intl Airport, NY (KBUF), launched 12:00Z, 3.2 hours before the alert went out and 198 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, Buffalo Intl Airport, NY at 12:00Z on 1996-11-08Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 0 joules per kilogram.LCLEL10008507005003002001001 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, Buffalo Intl Airport, NY at 12:00Z on 1996-11-08The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity -98 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
497 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
82 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
-98 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
-101 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.

393 
WFUS01 KCTP 081511 RRA
TORCTP
PAC117-081-081600-
 
BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE STATE COLLEGE PA
1011 AM EST FRI NOV 8 1996
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN STATE COLLEGE HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 1100 AM EST
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS......
 
IN  PENNSYLVANIA
 
   ...TIOGA COUNTY...AND EXTREME NORTH LYCOMING COUNTY...
 
AT 1005 AM EDT STATE COLLEGE DOPPLER RADAR WAS TRACKING A STRONGLY
ROTATING THUNDERSTORM ENTERING TIOGA COUNTY NEAR HOYTEVILLE. THE STORM
IS MORNING NORTHEAST AT 45 MPH AND WILL PASS SEBRING SOUTH OF
BLOSSBURG BY 1030 AM.
 
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 State College, PA wrote its last area forecast discussion before this tornado warning went out at Nov 8, 9:56 AM EST, 15 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Nov 8, 9:56 AM EST, 15 minutes before
CENTRAL PENNSYLVANIA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE STATE COLLEGE PA
950 AM EST FRI NOV 8 1996

...ZONE SUGGESTIONS/COORDINATION...
PER CORD WILL KEEP FFA AS IS...TOR WATCH FOR CENTRAL PA INCLUDING
THE LOWER SUS TIL 3 PM.

GETTING REPORTS OF SEVERE FLOODING ACROSS NORTH-CENTRAL
PA...ESPECIALLY TIOGA COUNTY WHERE EVACUATIONS ARE TAKING PLACE.
ALSO GOT REPORTS OF WIND DAMAGE ACROSS S PA WITH SHARP SQUALL LINE
FEATURE.

COLD FRONT TO MOVE SLOWLY EAST NEXT 12 HRS...HVY RAINS FOR E PA A
GOOD BET THIS AFTN. TRW WILL ALSO BE A THREAT.

...LAKE SNOW OUTLOOK...
FRI 12 NOON - 7PM...N
FRI 7PM - SAT 7AM...N
SAT 7AM - SAT 7PM...Y (LATE IN THE PERIOD)

WINTHER

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Nov 8, 9:35 AM EST, 36 minutes before
PAZ012-018-019-026>028-035>037-041-042-045-046-049>053-056>059-
063>066-082000-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE STATE COLLEGE PA
935 AM EST FRI NOV 8 1996

...TORNADO WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF CENTRAL AND EASTERN
PENNSYLVANIA...

THE STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A TORNADO WATCH FOR MUCH OF
EASTERN AND CENTRAL PENNSYLVANIA UNTIL 300 PM THIS AFTERNOON. THE
COUNTIES INCLUDED IN THE WATCH ARE:

ADAMS... CENTRE... CLINTON... DAUPHIN... HUNTINGDON... LANCASTER...
SNYDER... FRANKLIN... JUNIATA... LEBANON... LYCOMING...
NORTHUMBERLAND... SOMERSET... TIOGA... CUMBERLAND... FULTON...
MIFFLIN... MONTOUR... PERRY... SCHUYLKILL... SULLIVAN... UNION...
YORK.

A STRONG COLD FRONT WILL MOVE ACROSS THIS STATE LATE THIS MORNING
AND EARLY AFTERNOON. HEAVY RAIN ALONG WITH THUNDERSTORMS...SOME
SEVERE WILL ACCOMPANY THE FRONT. IN ADDITION...CONDITIONS ARE
FAVORABLE TO PRODUCE ISOLATED TORNADOES.

REMEMBER...A TORNADO WATCH MEANS CONDITIONS ARE FAVORABLE FOR
TORNADOES AND SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS IN AND CLOSE TO THE WATCH AREA.
PEOPLE IN THESE AREAS SHOULD BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR THREATENING
WEATHER CONDITIONS AND LISTEN FOR LATER STATEMENTS AND POSSIBLE
WARNINGS.
Special weather statement, Nov 8, 9:45 AM EST, 26 minutes before
PAZ012-018-019-026>028-035>037-041-042-045-046-049>053-056>059-
063>066-082000-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE STATE COLLEGE PA
935 AM EST FRI NOV 8 1996

...TORNADO WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF CENTRAL AND EASTERN
PENNSYLVANIA...

THE STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A TORNADO WATCH FOR MUCH OF
EASTERN AND CENTRAL PENNSYLVANIA UNTIL 300 PM THIS AFTERNOON. THE
COUNTIES INCLUDED IN THE WATCH ARE:

ADAMS... CENTRE... CLINTON... DAUPHIN... HUNTINGDON... LANCASTER...
SNYDER... FRANKLIN... JUNIATA... LEBANON... LYCOMING...
NORTHUMBERLAND... SOMERSET... TIOGA... CUMBERLAND... FULTON...
MIFFLIN... MONTOUR... PERRY... SCHUYLKILL... SULLIVAN... UNION...
YORK.

A STRONG COLD FRONT WILL MOVE ACROSS THIS STATE LATE THIS MORNING
AND EARLY AFTERNOON. HEAVY RAIN ALONG WITH THUNDERSTORMS...SOME
SEVERE WILL ACCOMPANY THE FRONT. IN ADDITION...CONDITIONS ARE
FAVORABLE TO PRODUCE ISOLATED TORNADOES.

REMEMBER...A TORNADO WATCH MEANS> CONDITIONS ARE FAVORABLE FOR
TORNADOES AND SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS IN AND CLOSE TO THE WATCH AREA.
PEOPLE IN THESE AREAS SHOULD BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR THREATENING
WEATHER CONDITIONS AND LISTEN FOR LATER STATEMENTS AND POSSIBLE
WARNINGS.

The office that day

Everything else NWS State College, PA issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Nov 8, 8:14 AM ESTFlash Flood WarningCTPTioga3 hr
Nov 8, 8:41 AM ESTTornado WarningCTPBedford, Blair49 min
Nov 8, 8:48 AM ESTTornado WarningCTPFulton, Huntingdon72 min
Nov 8, 9:02 AM ESTFlash Flood WarningCTPBlair, Centre4 hr
Nov 8, 9:02 AM ESTFlash Flood WarningCTPClinton, Lycoming4 hr
Nov 8, 9:20 AM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCTPCentre, Mifflin55 min
Nov 8, 9:20 AM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCTPJuniata55 min
Nov 8, 9:51 AM ESTFlash Flood WarningCTPPotter, Tioga4 hr
Nov 8, 9:58 AM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCTPClinton, Lycoming62 min
Nov 8, 10:06 AM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCTPTioga69 min
Nov 8, 10:29 AM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCTPSnyder, Union46 min
Nov 8, 10:29 AM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCTPPerry46 min
Nov 8, 10:45 AM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCTPDauphin, Montour, Northumberland60 min
Nov 8, 11:09 AM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCTPColumbia, Sullivan66 min
Nov 8, 11:30 AM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCTPLebanon, Schuylkill60 min
Nov 8, 1:48 PM ESTFlash Flood WarningCTPTioga3 hr
Nov 8, 2:19 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCTPLancaster, York56 min
Nov 8, 3:46 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCTPLancaster59 min
Nov 8, 3:59 PM ESTFlash Flood WarningCTPYork4 hr
Nov 8, 4:05 PM ESTFlash Flood WarningCTPLebanon, Schuylkill4 hr
Nov 8, 4:05 PM ESTFlash Flood WarningCTPLancaster4 hr
Nov 8, 4:23 PM ESTFlash Flood WarningCTPTioga5 hr

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Pennsylvania, 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.