Alert archive / Virginia / Tornado Warnings in 1996

Tornado Warning 3, NWS Baltimore/Washington

June 24, 1996Fauquier County, Loudoun County, Virginia

NWS Baltimore/Washington issued this tornado warning at Jun 24, 1996, 4:17 PM EDT for Fauquier County, Loudoun County, Virginia. It was in force for 28 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
Jun 24, 1996, 4:17 PM EDT (20:17 UTC)
Expired
Jun 24, 1996, 4:45 PM EDT
In force
28 min
Issued by
NWS Baltimore/Washington
Area
Whole counties

Counties Fauquier County, VA, Loudoun County, VA

The radar

The Sterling radar (KLWX), 21 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 20:20 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
Jun 24, 4:40 PM EDTTornado F0Extreme Se Portion, VA

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

Washington/Dulle, VA (KIAD), launched 12:00Z, 8.3 hours before the alert went out and 28 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, Washington/Dulle, VA at 12:00Z on 1996-06-24Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1 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, Washington/Dulle, VA at 12:00Z on 1996-06-24The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 32 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
1 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL
1076 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
29 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
32 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
93 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 KWBC 242016
TORWBC
VAC061-107-242045-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE STERLING VA
417 PM EDT MON JUN 24 1996

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN STERLING VA HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 445 PM EDT
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATION...

IN NORTH VIRGINIA

   ...SOUTHERN LOUDOUN COUNTY

IN NORTH CENTRAL VIRGINIA

   ...NORTHERN FAUQUIER COUNTY
 
AT 410 PM A FUNNEL CLOUD WAS REPORTED ALONG ROUTE 50 IN THE
UPPERVILLE AND MIDDLEBURG AREAS IN THE VICINITY OF THE LOUDOUN AND
FAUQUIER COUNTY LINES.  THE FUNNEL WAS SIGHTED BY AN OFF DUTY FIRE
OFFICIAL.  HE ESTIMATED THE FUNNEL TO 100 YARDS IN DIAMETER AND
THAT IT HAD PICKED UP SOME TREES BUT HAD NOT YET TOUCHED DOWN.
 
SEVERAL SIGHTINGS OF FUNNELS AND TORNADOES HAVE BEEN REPORTED
WITH THIS STORM.

IF YOU ARE IN THE PATH OF A TORNADO...THE SAFEST PLACE IN A HOME
OR BUSINESS IS AN INTERIOR ROOM ON THE LOWEST FLOOR POSSIBLE.
AVOID WINDOWS.

JLW/PAP/AN

The office that day

Everything else NWS Baltimore/Washington issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jun 24, 2:00 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXFrederick, City of Winchester60 min
Jun 24, 2:34 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXClarke, Warren61 min
Jun 24, 3:06 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXFauquier, Loudoun59 min
Jun 24, 3:37 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningLWXClarke, Warren58 min
Jun 24, 3:37 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXClarke, Warren58 min
Jun 24, 4:08 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningLWXFauquier, Loudoun62 min
Jun 24, 4:08 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningLWXRappahannock62 min
Jun 24, 4:08 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXFauquier, Rappahannock62 min
Jun 24, 4:08 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXLoudoun62 min
Jun 24, 4:45 PM EDTTornado WarningLWXFairfax, City of Fairfax35 min
Jun 24, 5:01 PM EDTTornado WarningLWXFairfax, City of Falls Church49 min
Jun 24, 5:01 PM EDTTornado WarningLWXCity of Alexandria49 min
Jun 24, 5:01 PM EDTTornado WarningLWXCity of Fairfax49 min
Jun 24, 5:18 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXPrince William, Stafford, City of Manassas, City of Manassas Park57 min
Jun 24, 5:18 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXCulpeper57 min
Jun 24, 6:05 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXSpotsylvania, City of Fredericksburg65 min
Jun 24, 6:05 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXKing George65 min
Jun 24, 6:24 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXRockingham61 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Virginia, 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.