Alert archive / Arizona / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1996

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 71, NWS Tucson, AZ

August 14, 1996Pima County, Santa Cruz County, Arizona

NWS Tucson, AZ issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Aug 14, 1996, 3:32 PM MST for Pima County, Santa Cruz County, Arizona. It was in force for 58 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
Aug 14, 1996, 3:32 PM MST (22:32 UTC)
Expired
Aug 14, 1996, 4:30 PM MST
In force
58 min
Issued by
NWS Tucson, AZ
Area
Whole counties

Counties Pima County, AZ, Santa Cruz County, AZ

The radar

The Tucson radar (KEMX), 66 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 22:33 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
Aug 14, 4:25 PM MSTHail 1Vail, AZ

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

Tuscon, AZ (KTUS), launched 12:00Z, 10.5 hours before the alert went out and 56 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, Tuscon, AZ at 12:00Z on 1996-08-14Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1509 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, Tuscon, AZ at 12:00Z on 1996-08-14The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 2 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
1509 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-133 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1432 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
21 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
2 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
111 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 KTUS 142230
SVRTUS
AZC019-023-142330-
 
BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TUCSON ARIZONA
332 PM MST WED AUG 14 1996
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN TUCSON ARIZONA HAS ISSUED A
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL  430 PM MST
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS...
 
IN SOUTH CENTRAL ARIZONA
 
   ...EASTERN PIMA COUNTY...NORTHEASTERN SANTA CRUZ COUNTY
 
AT 330 PM...TUCSON DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS
IN NORTHEAST SANTA CRUZ COUNTY AND EASTERN PIMA COUNTY. SEVERE
STORMS WERE LOCATED IN EASTERN PIMA COUNTY NORTH OF INTERSTATE 10
OVER THE RINCONS...IN SOUTHEAST PIMA COUNTY NEAR HIGHWAY 83...AND
IN NORTHEAST SANTA CRUZ COUNTY BETWEEN PATAGONIA AND SONOITA ALONG
HIGHWAY 82.  MOVEMENT OF THESE STORMS WAS TO THE WEST AT 10 MPH.
 
THESE STORMS ARE ALL CAPABLE OF PRODUCING VERY HEAVY RAIN...
DAMAGING WINDS...AND FREQUENT LIGHTNING.  MOTORISTS SHOULD AVOID
DRIVING THROUGH FLOODED ROADWAY DIPS.  SEEK SHELTER INDOORS AND
AWAY FROM WINDOWS.
 
BRYANT

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before this severe thunderstorm warning went out, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Tucson, AZ wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at Aug 14, 2:30 PM MST, 1 hour 2 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Aug 14, 2:30 PM MST, 1 hour 2 minutes before
SOUTHEAST ARIZONA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TUCSON AZ
220 PM MST WED AUG 14 1996

SPECIAL 19Z TUS SOUNDG CONFIRMS SVR POTENTIAL FOR TDA/TGNT.
LOADED GUN TYPE WITH WELL MIXED LOW LVL MSTR AND CAP AT 800 MB.
CONVECTIVE TEMP ARND 99-100...WITH CLEAR SKIES SHLD BE ABLE TO
REACH THIS. STEERING WINDS AT H5/H4 ELY 10-15 KTS TO HELP PUSH MT
TSTMS INTO THE VALLEYS.  NWLY WINDS AT UPR LVLS PUSHG ANVILS OFF
TO SE.  BEEFED UP POPS AND MENTIONED PSLB SVR LVLS TGNT.
THU/FRI...MODELS DRIFT UPR HI ARND NRN AZ THRU FCST PD...SO LTL
CHG IN BIG SCALE FEATURES.  WILL KEEP SCT IN ERN...AND WDLY SCT
IN WRN ZNS BOTH DAYS.  TEMPS WILL BE DIFFICULT TGNT AND THU.  IF
WE GET A PERSISTENT CLD SHXIELD LASTING OVRNGT INTO THE MRNG MAX
TEMPS MAY BE WAY DOWN.  SWING SHIFT MAY NEED TO ADJUST SOME
TEMPS. TUS  4232

The office that day

Everything else NWS Tucson, AZ issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Aug 14, 2:29 PM MSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTWCSanta Cruz61 min
Aug 14, 4:18 PM MSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTWCPima57 min
Aug 14, 4:36 PM MSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTWCPima69 min
Aug 14, 4:43 PM MSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTWCPima62 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Arizona, 1996Every severe thunderstorm warning 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.