Alert archive / Texas / Tornado Warnings in 1996

Tornado Warning 16, NWS Houston/Galveston, TX

September 1, 1996Galveston County, Texas

NWS Houston/Galveston, TX issued this tornado warning at Sep 1, 1996, 5:57 AM CDT for Galveston County, Texas. It was in force for 63 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 1, 1996, 5:57 AM CDT (10:57 UTC)
Expired
Sep 1, 1996, 7:00 AM CDT
In force
63 min
Issued by
NWS Houston/Galveston, TX
Area
Whole counties

County Galveston County, TX

What was reported inside it

TimeReportWhereRemark
Sep 1, 6:10 AM CDTTornado F0Galveston, 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

Lake Charles Mun, LA (KLCH), launched 00:00Z, 11.0 hours before the alert went out and 180 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, Lake Charles Mun, LA at 00:00Z on 1996-09-01Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 302 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, Lake Charles Mun, LA at 00:00Z on 1996-09-01The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 25 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
302 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-31 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
854 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
19 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
25 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
21 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 KHOU 011059
TORHOU
TXC167-011200-
 
BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HOUSTON TX
557 AM CDT SUN SEP 1 1996
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN HOUSTON HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL  700 AM CDT
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATION...
 
IN SOUTHEAST TEXAS
 
   ...GALVESTON COUNTY
 
AND ADJACENT COASTAL WATERS
 
 
AT 555 AM...TEXAS CITY POLICE REPORTED A WATERSPOUT NEAR THE TEXAS CITY
DIKE. RADAR INDICATED MOVEMENT TO THE EAST SOUTHEAST NEAR 15 MPH. IF
THIS FEATURE REMAINS INTACT EXTREME SOUTHERN BOLIVAR PENINSULA IS IN THE
PATH OF THIS WATERSPOUT.
 
IF YOU SEE SEVERE WEATHER TAKING PLACE... CALL YOUR REPORT TO
THE NEAREST LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY FOR IMMEDIATE RELAY TO THE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE.
 
 
 
&

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 Houston/Galveston, TX wrote its last area forecast discussion before this tornado warning went out at Sep 1, 2:34 AM CDT, 3 hours 23 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Sep 1, 2:34 AM CDT, 3 hours 23 minutes before
SOUTHEAST TEXAS FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HOUSTON/GALVESTON TX
234 AM CDT SUN SEP 1 1996

WATER VAPOR SATELLITE PICTURES SHOW OKLAHOMA UPPER LOW DRIFTING TO
THE SSE.  AHEAD OF THE LOW...IMPULSE CONTINUES MOVING TO THE S ACROSS
THE WESTERN PORTIONS OF THE FORECAST AREA.  AT THE SURFACE...LATEST
ANALYSIS PLACES A WEAK TROF ALONG A LINE FROM JUST S OF LFT TO JUST S
OF IAH TO NEAR SKF (BOUNDARY IS IDENTIFIED BY SLIGHTLY DRIER AIR AND
WEAK NE WINDS TO THE N...MOIST AIR AND WEAK SW WINDS TO THE S).
MODELS IDENTIFY ANOTHER IMPULSE MOVING AROUND THE BACKSIDE OF THE
UPPER LOW TOWARD SE TX DURING THE DAY...THEN KEEP DISTURBANCE NEARLY
STATIONARY.  850 MB TROF AXIS REMAINS ACROSS THE AREA.  WEAK IMPULSES
RIDING THE NW FLOW ALOFT AND AROUND THE UPPER LOW WILL COMBINE WITH
STILL MOIST ATMOSPHERE (PW VALUES AROUND 1.7 INCHES) AND DAYTIME
HEATING TO KEEP POPS IN THE FORECAST.  HOWEVER...GREATEST THREAT OF
HEAVIER AND MORE WIDESPREAD ACTIVITY WILL BE IN LA WHERE DEEPEST GULF
INFLOW WILL PREVAIL.  PRELIMS ARE NEXT.

CLL 89/72/92..3/2/2  IAH 89/70/91..3/2/3  GLS 88/76/88..3/2/3      42

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.