Alert archive / Alabama / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1997

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 158, NWS Birmingham, AL

March 3, 1997Limestone County, Alabama

NWS Birmingham, AL issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Mar 3, 1997, 1:21 AM CST for Limestone County, Alabama. It was in force for 69 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
Mar 3, 1997, 1:21 AM CST (07:21 UTC)
Expired
Mar 3, 1997, 2:30 AM CST
In force
69 min
Issued by
NWS Birmingham, AL
Area
Whole counties

County Limestone County, AL

The watch it was issued in

The SPC watch in force over the same counties when this warning went out.

IssuedProductOfficeLasted
Mar 2, 11:45 PM CSTTornado WatchSPC5 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Nashville Metro, TN (KBNA), launched 00:00Z, 7.4 hours before the alert went out and 151 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, Nashville Metro, TN at 00:00Z on 1997-03-03Temperature 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, Nashville Metro, TN at 00:00Z on 1997-03-03The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 196 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
485 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
66 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
196 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
236 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 KHSV 030720 RRA
SVRHSV
ALC083-030830-
 
BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HUNTSVILLE AL
121 AM CST MON MAR 3 1997
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN HUNTSVILLE HAS ISSUED A
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL  230 AM CST
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS...
 
IN NORTH ALABAMA
 
   ...LIMESTONE COUNTY
 
AT 118 THIS MORNING NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR IN HUNTSVILLE
INDICATED SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS IN NORTHERN LAWRENCE COUNTY.
 
THE THUNDERSTORMS WERE MOVING NORTHEAST AT 60 MILES AND HOUR AND WILL
QUICKLY MOVE INTO WEST AND SOUTHWEST LIMESTONE COUNTY.
 
THESE STORMS WILL BE MONITORED FOR A POSSIBLE UPDATE FOR A TORNADO
WARNING.
 
 
A TORNADO WATCH IS ALSO IN EFFECT FOR THE WARNED AREA.  REMEMBER
SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS CAN AND OCCASIONALLY DO PRODUCE TORNADOES
WITH LITTLE OR NO ADVANCE WARNING.  REMAIN CALM BUT BE ALERT TO
RAPIDLY CHANGING WEATHER CONDITIONS.

The office that day

Everything else NWS Birmingham, AL issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Mar 2, 7:29 PM CSTFlash Flood WarningBMXColbert, Franklin, Lawrence3 hr
Mar 2, 7:29 PM CSTFlash Flood WarningBMXLauderdale, Limestone3 hr
Mar 2, 11:15 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXColbert, Lauderdale45 min
Mar 2, 11:35 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXMarion40 min
Mar 2, 11:38 PM CSTTornado WarningBMXColbert, Franklin, Lauderdale67 min
Mar 2, 11:55 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXLamar50 min
Mar 3, 12:05 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXMarion55 min
Mar 3, 12:29 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXFayette61 min
Mar 3, 12:45 AM CSTTornado WarningBMXColbert, Lauderdale, Lawrence60 min
Mar 3, 12:45 AM CSTTornado WarningBMXFranklin60 min
Mar 3, 12:46 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXWinston59 min
Mar 3, 12:57 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXMarion18 min
Mar 3, 1:02 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXWalker58 min
Mar 3, 1:41 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXLawrence, Morgan64 min
Mar 3, 2:03 AM CSTTornado WarningBMXLimestone57 min
Mar 3, 2:11 AM CSTTornado WarningBMXMadison, Morgan64 min
Mar 3, 2:41 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXMarshall64 min
Mar 3, 2:46 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXBlount44 min
Mar 3, 2:59 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXEtowah46 min
Mar 3, 3:50 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXCoosa, Elmore40 min
Mar 3, 4:10 AM CSTTornado WarningBMXCoosa, Tallapoosa65 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Alabama, 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; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive.