Alert archive / Arizona / Tornado Warnings in 1996
Tornado Warning 9, NWS Flagstaff, AZ
NWS Flagstaff, AZ issued this tornado warning at Sep 13, 1996, 4:09 PM MST for Gila County, Arizona. It was in force for 46 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 13, 1996, 4:09 PM MST (23:09 UTC)
- Expired
- Sep 13, 1996, 4:55 PM MST
- In force
- 46 min
- Issued by
- NWS Flagstaff, AZ
- Area
- Whole counties
County Gila County, AZ
The radar
The Flagstaff radar (KFSX), 93 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 23:12 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
| Time | Report | Where | Remark |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 13, 4:20 PM MST | Hail 1.75 | Pine, AZ |
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
Tuscon, AZ (KTUS), launched 12:00Z, 11.2 hours before the alert went out and 181 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.
- Mixed-layer CAPE
- 0 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- No buoyant parcel
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 2710 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 30 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 23 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 67 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 0.0
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000 TTAA00 KFLG 132309 TORFLG AZC007-132355- BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED TORNADO WARNING NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FLAGSTAFF AZ 409 PM MST FRI SEP 13 1996 THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN FLAGSTAFF HAS ISSUED A TORNADO WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 455 PM MST FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATION... IN EAST CENTRAL ARIZONA ...NORTHWESTERN GILA COUNTY INCLUDING THE TOWNS OF STRAWBERRY AND PINE. AT 410 PM MST...DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A TORNADIC STORM MOVING NORTHEAST AT 30 MPH ACROSS THE GILA/YAVAPAI COUNTY LINE 13 MILES SOUTHWEST OF STRAWBERRY. IF YOU ARE CAUGHT OUTSIDE...TRY TO FIND A NEARBY REINFORCED BUILDING FOR SHELTER. AS A LAST RESORT...LIE FACE DOWN IN A DITCH OR LOW SPOT AND COVER YOUR HEAD WITHL 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 Flagstaff, AZ wrote its last area forecast discussion before this tornado warning went out at Sep 13, 2:02 PM MST, 2 hours 7 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Sep 13, 2:02 PM MST, 2 hours 7 minutes before
NORTHERN ARIZONA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FLAGSTAFF AZ 200 PM MST FRI SEP 13 1996 SVR BOX JUST OUT...UPDATES TO DO. FLG 5300 INW 4300 PASSETTI
In the hours before
Special weather statement, Sep 13, 12:35 PM MST, 3 hours 34 minutes before
AZZ007-132035- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FLAGSTAFF AZ 1232 PM MST FRI SEP 13 1996 ...THUNDERSTORMS DEVELOPING IN YAVAPAI COUNTY... AT 1228 PM MST...FLAGSTAFF DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED THUNDERSTORMS DEVELOPING IN YAVAPAI COUNTY OF ARIZONA. THE STRONGEST STORMS WERE IN SOUTHWESTERN YAVAPAI ABOUT 30 MILES SOUTHWEST OF PRESCOTT. MOVEMENT WAS TO THE NORTHEAST AT 20 MPH. THUNDERSTORMS THIS AFTERNOON WILL BE CAPABLE OF BRIEF HEAVY RAIN ...DEADLY LIGHTNING AND POSSIBLY HAIL. VERY STRONG WIND GUSTS ARE ALSO POSSIBLE NEAR STORMS. PEOPLE IN YAVAPAI COUNTY SHOULD FIND SAFE SHELTER IF THREATENING WEATHER APPROACHES. STAY TUNED TO LOCAL MEDIA OR NOAA WEATHER RADIO FOR UPDATES AND POSSIBLE WARNINGS. BT
Special weather statement, Sep 13, 2:10 PM MST, 1 hour 59 minutes before
AZZ007-132215- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FLAGSTAFF AZ 210 PM MST FRI SEP 13 1996 ...STRONG THUNDERSTORMS IN YAVAPAI COUNTY... AT 210 PM MST...FLAGSTAFF DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED STRONG THUNDERSTORMS IN YAVAPAI COUNTY. ONE WAS FIVE MILES SOUTHWEST OF PRESCOTT WHILE ANOTHER WAS 15 MILES WEST OF CONGRESS. MOVEMENT WAS TO THE NORTHEAST AT 25 MPH. STRONG WIND GUSTS...FREQUENT LIGHTNING...VERY HEAVY RAINFALL AND HAIL MAY AfCCOMPANY THESE STORMS. IF YOU ARE OUTDOORS AND A STORM APPROACHES...MOVE TO A PLACE OF SHELTER IMMEDIATELY. MOTORISTS SHOULD REMAIN ALERT FOR STREET FLOODING AND REDUCED VISIBILITIES IN HEAVY RAIN. BT
Special weather statement, Sep 13, 2:40 PM MST, 1 hour 29 minutes before
AZZ007-011>013-132240- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FLAGSTAFF AZ 240 PM MST FRI SEP 13 1996 ...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH INCLUDES MUCH OF CENTRAL ARIZONA... AT 235 PM MST...STRONG THUNDERSTORMS CONTINUED TO MOVE NORTHEAST AT 25 MPH ACROSS YAVAPAI COUNTY. THE STRONGEST STORMS WERE NEAR PRESCOTT VALLEY AND JUST NORTHEAST OF WICKENBURG. AT 215 PM HAIL 1/2 INCH IN DIAMETER WAS REPORTED IN PRESCOTT. A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 800 PM MST THIS EVENING AND INCLUDES MUCH OF CENTRAL ARIZONA. THUNDERSTORMS THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING MAY PRODUCE DAMAGING WINDS ...HAIL..DEADLY LIGHTNING AND VERY HEAVY RAIN. IF THREATENING WEATHER APPROACHES YOUR AREA FIND SAFE SHELTER AT ONCE. BT
The office that day
Everything else NWS Flagstaff, AZ issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 13, 3:13 PM MST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | FGZ | Yavapai | 47 min |
| Sep 13, 3:55 PM MST | Tornado Warning | FGZ | Yavapai | 30 min |
| Sep 13, 3:59 PM MST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | FGZ | Gila | 61 min |
| Sep 13, 4:45 PM MST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | FGZ | Coconino | 60 min |
Nearby
Tornado Warnings in Arizona, 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.