Alert archive / Virginia / Tornado Warnings in 1997

Tornado Warning 13, NWS Wakefield, VA

July 30, 1997City of Norfolk, City of Virginia Beach, Virginia

NWS Wakefield, VA issued this tornado warning at Jul 30, 1997, 5:28 PM EDT for City of Norfolk, City of Virginia Beach, Virginia. It was in force for 32 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
Jul 30, 1997, 5:28 PM EDT (21:28 UTC)
Expired
Jul 30, 1997, 6:00 PM EDT
In force
32 min
Issued by
NWS Wakefield, VA
Area
Whole counties

Counties City of Norfolk, VA, City of Virginia Beach, VA

The radar

The Norfolk radar (KAKQ), 80 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 21:28 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

Wallops Is Stn, VA (KWAL), launched 12:00Z, 9.5 hours before the alert went out and 140 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, Wallops Is Stn, VA at 12:00Z on 1997-07-30Temperature 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 km15 km-30°-20°-10°0°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Wallops Is Stn, VA at 12:00Z on 1997-07-30The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 11 square meters per square second.1939587897Sfc1 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
2060 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
65 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
11 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
11 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.

789 
WFUS01 KAKQ 302140
TORAKQ
VAC710-810-302200-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO AND SPECIAL MARINE WARNING...CORRECTED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WAKEFIELD VA
528 PM EDT WED JUL 30 1997

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN WAKEFIELD HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO AND SPECIAL MARINE WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL  600 PM EDT
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS...

IN SOUTHEAST VIRGINIA THE INDEPENDENT CITIES OF

   ...NORFOLK...VIRGINIA BEACH

   ...THE SOUTHERN CHESAPEAKE BAY AND ATLANTIC WATERS FROM VIRGINIA
BEACH TO CURRITUCK LIGHT...

AT 525 PM...A WATERSPOUT WAS REPORTED TO HAVE COME ASHORE AROUND NAVY
NORFOLK IN THE VIRGINIA AND NORFOLK AREAS DRIFTING SOUTH AT AROUND 5 MPH.
PERSONS IN NORFOLK AND VIRGINIA BEACH SHOULD SEEK SAFE SHELTER
AND WHEN THE STORM IS OVER...REPORT ANY DAMAGE OR SEVERE WEATHER TO
LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT FOR RELAY TO THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE.

MARINERS SHOULD KEEP A WEATHER EYE OUT FOR THE APPROACH OF
DARK...THREATENING CLOUDS WHICH MAY FORETELL A WATERSPOUT
OR TORNADO. IF THREATENING WEATHER APPROACHES...SEEK
SAFE HARBOR IMMEDIATELY. IF IN HARBOR...STAY IN.

NS

&

CORRECTED FOR NAVY NORFOLK

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Virginia, 1997Every tornado warning in 1997Tornadoes in 1997

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.