Alert archive / Louisiana / Tornado Warnings in 1996

Tornado Warning 9, NWS Lake Charles, LA

April 29, 1996Calcasieu Parish, Louisiana

NWS Lake Charles, LA issued this tornado warning at Apr 29, 1996, 6:42 AM CDT for Calcasieu Parish, Louisiana. It was in force for 33 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
Apr 29, 1996, 6:42 AM CDT (11:42 UTC)
Expired
Apr 29, 1996, 7:15 AM CDT
In force
33 min
Issued by
NWS Lake Charles, LA
Area
Whole counties

County Calcasieu Parish, LA

What was reported inside it

TimeReportWhereRemark
Apr 29, 6:44 AM CDTThunderstorm WindSulphur, LA

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, 11.7 hours before the alert went out and 19 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 1996-04-29Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1476 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 1996-04-29The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 40 square meters per square second.193958Sfc1 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
1476 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-89 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
806 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
16 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
40 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
26 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.1
Supercell composite
1.3

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.

000 
TTAA00 KLCH 291143
TORLCH
LAC019-291215-
 
BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA
642 AM CDT MON APR 29 1996
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN LAKE CHARLES HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL  715 AM CDT
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATION...
 
IN SOUTHWEST LOUISIANA
 
   ...CALCASIEU PARISH
 
AT 639 AM CDT DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A TORNADO 13 MILES NORTH OF THE
LAKE CHARLES AIRPORT. ALSO PUBLIC UNCONFIRMED TORNADOS HAVE BEEN
REPORTED NEAR HWY 27 NORTH OF SULPHUR AND SOUTH OF MERRYVILLE. STORMS
HAVE BEEN MOVING TOWARD THE NORTHEAST AT 25 MPH. GILLIS AND MOSS BLUFF
ARE IN THE PATH OF THESE TORNADOS.
 
 
 
IF YOU LIVE IN A HOME OR APARTMENT...SEEK SHELTER IN THE
INNERMOST PORTION OF THE BUILDING ON THE LOWEST FLOOR.  GET TO
A BASEMENT IF ONE IS AVAILABLE.  AVOID WINDOWS AND PROTECT YOUR
BODY FROM FLYING DEBRIS WITH CUSHIONS...BLANKETS...OR PILLOWS.

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 Lake Charles, LA wrote its last area forecast discussion before this tornado warning went out at Apr 29, 1:51 AM CDT, 4 hours 51 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Apr 29, 1:51 AM CDT, 4 hours 51 minutes before
SOUTHEAST TEXAS..SOUTHWEST AND CENTRAL LOUISIANA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA
151 AM CDT MON APR 29 1996

06Z ANALYSIS SHOWING STG COLD FNT FIXING TO MOVE THRU SHV AND LFK.
ETA INDICATES FROPA AT BPT AROUND 12Z...LFT 18Z. TEMPS WILL FALL
SLOWLY THRU DAY BEHIND THE FNT AS CLDS AND PCPN WITH STG CAA FOR
LATE APRIL WL OVERCOME HTG. WENT WITH HIR POPS TDA DUE TO MDT INSTAB
...FAVORABLE UPPER DYNAMICS IN THE FORM OF A RIGHT REAR QUAD OF POLAR
JETSTREAK AND AMPLE MOISTURE. RAINFALL MAY BE HEAVY...ETA LKS
REASONABLE WITH QPF OF 1 IN ON MON. WL HAVE TO WATCH LOCATIONS E OF
CDFNT FOR SVR POTENTIAL DUE TO AFOREMENTIONED RRQ. SHOWER ACTIVITY
WL CONTINUE BEHIND THE FRONT WITH POSSIBLE EMBEDDED TSTMS...ENDING
AROUND SUNDOWN.
11

BPT 74/51/73 800
LCH 73/51/71 800  LFT 76/49/70 810  AEX 73/47/69 800

The office that day

Everything else NWS Lake Charles, LA issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Apr 29, 6:19 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLCHBeauregard, Vernon56 min
Apr 29, 7:28 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLCHRapides47 min
Apr 29, 7:35 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLCHEvangeline, Jefferson Davis40 min
Apr 29, 8:14 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLCHAcadia, Avoyelles, Saint Landry46 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Louisiana, 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.