Alert archive / Ohio / Tornado Warnings in 1996

Tornado Warning 3, NWS Wilmington, OH

May 4, 1996Scioto County, Ohio

NWS Wilmington, OH issued this tornado warning at May 4, 1996, 5:28 PM EDT for Scioto County, Ohio. It was in force for 47 min. 2 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
May 4, 1996, 5:28 PM EDT (21:28 UTC)
Expired
May 4, 1996, 6:15 PM EDT
In force
47 min
Issued by
NWS Wilmington, OH
Area
Whole counties

County Scioto County, OH

The radar

The Cincinnati radar (KILN), 99 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 21:32 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
May 4, 5:30 PM EDTThunderstorm Wind 50Lucasville, OH
May 4, 5:30 PM EDTTornado F1Mc Dermott, OH

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

Cncnati-Daytn, OH (KILN), launched 12:00Z, 9.5 hours before the alert went out and 98 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, Cncnati-Daytn, OH at 12:00Z on 1996-05-04Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 0 joules per kilogram.LCL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km-30°-20°-10°0°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Cncnati-Daytn, OH at 12:00Z on 1996-05-04The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity -5 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
0 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL
688 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
60 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
-5 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
215 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 KILN 042130
TORILN
OHC145-042215-
 
BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WILMINGTON OH
528 PM EDT SAT MAY 4 1996
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN WILMINGTON HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WARNING   EFFECTIVE UNTIL  615 PM EDT
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATION...
 
IN SOUTH OHIO
 
   ...SCIOTO COUNTY
 
AT 525 PM SPOTTER REPORTS AND DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A TORNADO LOCATED
5 MILES NORTH OF PORTSMOUTH. THIS STORM WAS MOVING EAST AT AROUND 40
MPH. TOWNS IN THE PATH OF THIS STORM INCLUDE MINFORD AND PINKERMAN.
 
 
 
THIS IS A DANGEROUS STORM. YOUR QUICK REACTION TO THIS TORNADO
WARNING MAY SAVE YOUR LIFE.  GO TO A SMALL INTERIOR ROOM ON THE
LOWEST FLOOR POSSIBLE.  ABANDON 4CARS AND MOBILE HOMES FOR A
STRONGER SHELTER.  REMEMBER...MOST TORNADO DEATHS OCCUR IN
MOBILE HOMES.

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 Wilmington, OH wrote its last area forecast discussion before this tornado warning went out at May 4, 1:57 PM EDT, 3 hours 31 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, May 4, 1:57 PM EDT, 3 hours 31 minutes before
FORECAST COORDINATION MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WILMINGTON OH
155 PM EDT SAT MAY 4 1996

PROBLEMS OF DAY ARE FLOODING AND POSSIBLE SVR WX.

WESTERN OHIO...SERN IND...AND NRN KY CONTINUE TO EXPERIENCE  HEAVY
RAINFALL OVR SAME AREAS THAT RECEIVED IT LAST NIGHT AND DAYS BEFORE
THAT.  FAST FLOW CONTINUES WITH S/WVS KICKING OFF MCS'S EVERY FEW HOURS.
MODELS KEEP THE SAME PATTERN OVER THE NEXT FEW DAYS WITH FNT
FLUCTUATING OVR CNTRL AND SRN OH WITH EACH SYSTEM THAT PASSES.  WL NOT
ATTEMPT TO TIME SYSTEMS AS ONE COULD FIRE ANYTIME.  HOWEVER...BEST
SETUPS ON THE MODELS ARE THROUGH 00Z TONIGHT AND BETWEEN 18Z SUN AND
00Z MON. MON MAY BE NICE AS HIGH PRESSURE AND STABLE CONDTIONS BUILD
IN...BUJT RAIN MAY RETURN FOR TUES.

WL RAISE TEMPS FOR SUN SIMILAR TO TODAY...OTHERWISE FOLLOWED MOS.

CVG 57/75/54/68 6640
DAY 54/67/50/66 6640
CMH 54/70/51/66 6640

WILKINSON

In the hours before

Local storm report, May 4, 3:54 PM EDT, 1 hour 34 minutes before
STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WILMINGTON,OH
353 PM EDT SAT MAY 04 1996

TIME(EDT)  .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE  ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

 350 PM         LAGRANGE                        HAIL 0.75 INCH
05/05/96        GALLATIN CO         KY          COVERING GROUND

WILKINSON
Local storm report, May 4, 3:59 PM EDT, 1 hour 29 minutes before
STORM REPORT...CORRECTION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE COVINGTON, KY
400 PM EDT SAT MAY 04 1996

TIME(EDT)  .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE  ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

 350 PM         LAGRANGE                        HAIL 0.75 INCH
05/04/96        GALLATIN CO         KY          COVERING GROUND

WILKINSON

CORRECTED FOR DATE OF SVR WX
Local storm report, May 4, 4:00 PM EDT, 1 hour 28 minutes before
STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE COVINGTON, KY
400 PM EDT SAT MAY 04 1996

TIME(EDT)  .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE  ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

 349 PM         SOUTHWEST PART                  HAIL 0.75 INCH
05/04/96        PIKE CO             OH          COVERING GROUND

FARINA
Special weather statement, May 4, 4:30 PM EDT, 58 minutes before
INZ050-058-059-066-073>075-080-050000-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WILMINGTON OH
330 PM EST SAT MAY 4 1996

...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH FOR SOUTHEAST INDIANA AND THE WHITEWATER
VA^LLEY HAS BEEN CANCELLED...

THE STRONGEST THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY HAS MOVED INTO OHIO. THEREFORE THE
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH FOR SOUTHEAST INDIANA AND THE WHITEWATER
VALLEY HAS BEEN CANCELLED.

FARINA
Special weather statement, May 4, 5:16 PM EDT, 12 minutes before
OHZ042-051-060-061-070-071-077-078-042200-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WILMINGTON OH
515 PM EST SAT MAY 4 1996

...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH FOR THE MIAMI VALLEY AND EXTREME
SOUTHWEST OHIO HAS BEEN CANCELLED...

THE STRONGEST THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY HAS MOVED INTO SOUTH CENTRAL OHIO
AND NORTHEAST KENTUCKY. THEREFORE THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH FOR
THE DAYTON AND CINCINNATI METRO AREAS HAS BEEN CANCELLED.

RANDALL

The office that day

Everything else NWS Wilmington, OH issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 4, 12:23 AM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningILNAdams67 min
May 4, 12:23 AM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningILNClermont67 min
May 4, 12:30 AM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningILNBrown60 min
May 4, 12:52 AM EDTFlash Flood WarningILNBrown, Clermont2 hr
May 4, 1:22 AM EDTFlash Flood WarningILNScioto53 min
May 4, 1:22 AM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningILNScioto53 min
May 4, 1:42 AM EDTFlash Flood WarningILNAdams3 hr
May 4, 3:10 AM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningILNClermont, Clinton50 min
May 4, 3:23 AM EDTFlash Flood WarningILNPreble3 hr
May 4, 3:39 AM EDTFlash Flood WarningILNMontgomery3 hr
May 4, 4:39 AM EDTFlash Flood WarningILNAdams3 hr
May 4, 1:50 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningILNChampaign, Clark, Darke, Miami, Montgomery4 hr
May 4, 1:50 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningILNGreene4 hr
May 4, 1:50 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningILNPreble4 hr
May 4, 3:07 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningILNAdams53 min
May 4, 3:13 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningILNHamilton32 min
May 4, 3:20 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningILNHighland25 min
May 4, 3:24 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningILNClermont, Warren21 min
May 4, 3:31 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningILNPike, Scioto29 min
May 4, 3:37 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningILNAdams3 hr
May 4, 3:48 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningILNClinton27 min
May 4, 3:57 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningILNPike, Scioto48 min
May 4, 4:09 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningILNHighland66 min
May 4, 4:15 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningILNBrown, Clermont, Clinton3 hr
May 4, 4:15 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningILNButler, Hamilton, Warren3 hr
May 4, 4:43 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningILNPike, Ross47 min
May 4, 4:49 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningILNBrown26 min
May 4, 4:53 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningILNAdams37 min
May 4, 5:11 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningILNScioto64 min
May 4, 6:58 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningILNAdams2 hr
May 4, 7:41 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningILNPike2 hr

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Ohio, 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.