Alert archive / Virginia / Tornado Warnings in 1996

Tornado Warning 7, NWS Baltimore/Washington

June 24, 1996City of Fairfax, Virginia

NWS Baltimore/Washington issued this tornado warning at Jun 24, 1996, 5:01 PM EDT for City of Fairfax, Virginia. It was in force for 49 min. No storm report in the archive falls inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
Jun 24, 1996, 5:01 PM EDT (21:01 UTC)
Expired
Jun 24, 1996, 5:50 PM EDT
In force
49 min
Issued by
NWS Baltimore/Washington
Area
Whole counties

County City of Fairfax, VA

The radar

The Sterling radar (KLWX), 21 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 21:01 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.

The nearest sounding before it

Washington/Dulle, VA (KIAD), launched 12:00Z, 9.0 hours before the alert went out and 14 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 242100
TORWBC
DCC001-MDZ502-VAC059-510-600-610-242150-

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

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN STERLING VA HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 550 PM EDT
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS...

THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

IN NORTH VIRGINIA

   ...CENTRAL AND EASTERN FAIRFAX COUNTY

IN NORTH VIRGINIA THE INDEPENDENT CITY OF

   ...FAIRFAX CITY
   ...ALEXANDRIA
   ...FALLS CHURCH
 
AT 500 PM DOPPLER RADAR SHOWED THE TORNADO NEAR FAIRFAX CITY
MOVING EASTWARD AROUND 40 MPH.  THERE HAVE REPORTS OF STRUCTURAL
DAMAGE WITH A TORNADO SIGHTED ON THE GROUND.

THIS IS AN EXTREMELY DANGEROUS SITUATION...TAKE COVER IMMEDIATELY
 
THE TORNADO IS ON THE GROUND AND CAUSING DAMAGE.

PEOPLE IN THE ABOVE LOCATIONS ARE IN THE PROJECTED PATH OF THE
TORNADO AND SHOULD TAKE SHELTER IMMEDIATELY.  MOVE INSIDE A STORM
CELLAR...A BASEMENT...OR A ^SMALL INTERIOR ROOM ON THE LOWEST FLOOR
OF YOUR HOUSE.

JLW/PAP

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, 4:17 PM EDTTornado WarningLWXFauquier, Loudoun28 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, 5:18 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; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.