Alert archive / Massachusetts / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1997
Severe Thunderstorm Warning 53, NWS Albany, NY
NWS Albany, NY issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Jul 17, 1997, 7:03 PM EDT for Berkshire County, Massachusetts. It was in force for 42 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
- Jul 17, 1997, 7:03 PM EDT (23:03 UTC)
- Expired
- Jul 17, 1997, 7:45 PM EDT
- In force
- 42 min
- Issued by
- NWS Albany, NY
- Area
- Whole counties
County Berkshire County, MA
What was reported inside it
| Time | Report | Where | Remark |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 17, 7:10 PM EDT | Thunderstorm Wind | Pittsfield, MA |
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 watch it was issued in
The SPC watch in force over the same counties when this warning went out.
| Issued | Product | Office | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 17, 4:00 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Watch | SPC | 6 hr |
The nearest sounding before it
Albany, NY (KALY), launched 12:00Z, 11.1 hours before the alert went out and 62 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.
- Mixed-layer CAPE
- 74 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -161 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 1106 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 29 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 75 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 74 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 0.0
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000 TTAA00 KALB 172302 RRA SVRALB MAC003-172345- BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ALBANY NY 703 PM EDT THU JUL 17 1997 THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN ALBANY NY HAS ISSUED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 745 PM EDT FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATION... IN WEST MASSACHUSETTS ...BERKSHIRE COUNTY A LINE OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS FROM NORTH ADAMS TO PITTSFIELD WILL MOVE ACROSS EASTERN BERKSHIRE COUNTY BETWEEN 705 PM AND 740 PM. GOLF BALL SIZE HAIL WAS REPORTED IN NORTH ADAMS ABOUT 700 PM. WHEN THUNDERSTORMS ARE OCCURRING...PEOPLE SHOULD MOVE INSIDE A STRONG BUILDING. DO NOT STAND BY WINDOWS. DON'T USE TELEPHONES OR ELECTRICAL APPLIANCES UNLESS IN AN EMERGENCY UNTIL THE STORM HAS PASSED. MOTORISTS SHOULD NOT DRIVE INTO LOW WATER CROSSINGS. &
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.
In the hours before
Local storm report, Jul 17, 6:51 PM EDT, 12 minutes before
NEW YORK STATEWIDE POLICE INFORMATION NETWORK
TROOP G
0654PM THU JUL 17 1997
GCOW WLSR QHQT QTRF APTS WAPT
05196 FILE 28 WASHINGTON CO SO SALEM NY0570000 JUL 17-97
TO NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE
COPY SEMO DUTY OFFICER
THUNDERSTORM/HIGH WIND REPORT
COUNTY(S) AFFECTED: WASHINGTON
LOCATION (INCLUDING TOWN AND NEAREST ROAD): FORT EDWARD ARGYLE GREENWICH SALEM
HEBRON JACKSON
DATE AND TIME CONDITION STARTED: 1650 HRS 07/17/97
EXTENT OF DAMAGE OR AREAS IN DANGER:
CHECK ONE:
HAIL SIZE REPORTED
(X) - NO HAIL REPORTED ( ) - LESS THAN 1/2" (PEA)
( ) - 1/2" (MARBLE) ( ) - 1/2" TO 3/4" (PENNY)
( ) - 3/4" TO 1" (DIME) ( ) - 1.25" (HALF DOLLAR)
( ) - 1.50" (WALNUT) ( ) - 1.75" (GOLFBALL)
( ) - 2.00" (HENS EGG) ( ) - 2.50" (TENNISBALL)
( ) - 2.75" (BASEBALL) ( ) - 3.00" (TEA CUP)
( ) - 4.00" (GRAPEFRUIT) ( ) - 4.50" (SOFTBALL)
NUMBER KILLED: 0 NUMBER INJURED: 0
CHECK ONE OR MORE AS APPLICABLE:
LIGHTNING REPORTED AS ( ) - CLOUD TO CLOUD (X) - CLOUD TO GROUND
LIGHTNING DAMAGE TO: (X) - TREES
(X) - POWER/TELCO POLES (X) - POWER/TELCO LINES
( ) - COMM. BUILDINGS (X) - PRIVATE HOMES
( ) - OUT/FARM BUILDINGS ( ) - CROPS
NUMBER KILLED: 0 NUMBER INJURED: 0
CHECK ONE OR MORE AS APPLICABLE:
HIGH WIND/T'STORM WIND DAMAGE ( ) - CROPS
(X) - SMALL TREES/SHRUBS (X) - LARGE TREES
( ) - COMM. BUILDINGS (X) - PRIVATE HOMES
( ) - OUT/FARM BUILDINGS (X) - POWER/TELCO POLES
(X) - POWER/TELCO LINES
RELIABLE WIND SPEED REPORTS: MPH OR KNOTS
NUMBER KILLED: 0 NUMBER INJURED: 0
FLOODING (IF EXTENSIVE, SEND SEPARATE FLOOD MESSAGE FROM MENU)
( ) - STORM SEWER OVERFLOWS, UNDERPASSES, STREET FLOODING
( ) - LOCAL SMALL CREEKS OVERFLOWING
( ) - STREAMS AND LARGE CREEKS FLOODING (COMPLETE REMARKS W/DAMAGE
REMARKS: NUMEROUS TREES/WIRES DOWN IN THE ABOVE MENTIONED TOWNS
LARGE AREAS WITHOUT POWER
1" OF RAIN REPORTED WITHIN A 15 MIN TIME PERIOD IN FORT EDWARD
AUTH PHONE #: 518 747-7520
AUTH WILLIAM H COOK, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR
OPER - STODDARD,WAYNE L 1854Nearby
Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Massachusetts, 1997Every severe thunderstorm warning 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; verification from NCEI's Storm Data; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive.