Alert archive / Alabama / Tornado Warnings in 1997
Tornado Warning 6, NWS Birmingham, AL
NWS Birmingham, AL issued this tornado warning at Jan 24, 1997, 2:59 PM CST for Cullman County, Alabama. It was in force for 61 min. 4 reports 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
- Jan 24, 1997, 2:59 PM CST (20:59 UTC)
- Expired
- Jan 24, 1997, 4:00 PM CST
- In force
- 61 min
- Issued by
- NWS Birmingham, AL
- Area
- Whole counties
County Cullman County, AL
The radar
The Birmingham radar (KBMX), 107 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 21:00 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
| Time | Report | Where | Remark |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 24, 3:10 PM CST | Thunderstorm Wind 50 | Good Hope, AL | |
| Jan 24, 3:17 PM CST | Hail 0.75 | Cullman, AL | |
| Jan 24, 3:30 PM CST | Hail 1.75 | Cullman, AL | |
| Jan 24, 3:53 PM CST | Thunderstorm Wind 60 | Cullman, AL |
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
Birmingham, AL (KBMX), launched 12:00Z, 9.0 hours before the alert went out and 106 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
- 379 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -22 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 510 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 50 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 316 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 348 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 2.7
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000 TTAA00 KBHM 242101 RRA TORBHM ALC043-242200- BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED TORNADO WARNING NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL 259 PM CST FRI JAN 24 1997 THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN BIRMINGHAM HAS ISSUED A TORNADO WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 400 PM CST FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATION... IN NORTH ALABAMA ...CULLMAN COUNTY RADAR INDICATED A POSSIBLE TORNADO OVER EASTERN WINSTON COUNTY BETWEEN DOUBLE SPRINGS AND ADDISON. THIS STORM PRODUCED 2 INCH HAIL IN BOTH MARION AND WINSTON COUNTIES. MOVEMENT WAS EAST AT 35 MPH. THE STORM SHOULD CROSS INTO WESTERN CULLMAN COUNTY AROUND 315 PM...AND WILL AFFECT JONES CHAPEL AND THE CLARKSON AREAS AROUND 320 PM. IT WILL PASS JUST NOR CULLMAN SHORTLY AFTER 330 PM. THIS IS A DANGEROUS STORM SITUATION. ACT QUICKLY. IF YOU ARE IN THE PATH OF THIS TORNADO MOVE TO A SHELTER BELOW GROUND IF AVAILABLE. OTHERWISE...GO TO A SMALL INTERIOR ROOM ON THE LOWEST FLOOR POSSIBLE. AVOID WINDOWS. ABANDON CARS AND MOBILE HOMES FOR A REINFORCED BUILDING OR GET INTO A DITCH OR CULVERT. &
The office that day
Everything else NWS Birmingham, AL issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 24, 6:37 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Dallas | 38 min |
| Jan 24, 6:52 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Autauga, Lowndes | 53 min |
| Jan 24, 7:10 AM CST | Tornado Warning | BMX | Autauga | 35 min |
| Jan 24, 7:24 AM CST | Tornado Warning | BMX | Elmore, Montgomery | 51 min |
| Jan 24, 7:43 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Coosa | 47 min |
| Jan 24, 8:00 AM CST | Tornado Warning | BMX | Tallapoosa | 60 min |
| Jan 24, 8:02 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Macon | 58 min |
| Jan 24, 8:15 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Montgomery | 30 min |
| Jan 24, 8:18 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Bullock | 57 min |
| Jan 24, 8:26 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Pike | 64 min |
| Jan 24, 8:29 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Lee | 61 min |
| Jan 24, 8:35 AM CST | Tornado Warning | BMX | Chambers | 55 min |
| Jan 24, 8:41 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Randolph | 49 min |
| Jan 24, 8:58 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Macon | 17 min |
| Jan 24, 9:01 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Barbour | 59 min |
| Jan 24, 9:04 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Russell | 56 min |
| Jan 24, 1:39 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Marion | 51 min |
| Jan 24, 1:46 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Franklin | 59 min |
| Jan 24, 2:01 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Winston | 44 min |
| Jan 24, 2:11 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Lawrence | 64 min |
| Jan 24, 2:32 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Winston | 43 min |
| Jan 24, 2:42 PM CST | Tornado Warning | BMX | Winston | 33 min |
| Jan 24, 3:18 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Tuscaloosa | 42 min |
| Jan 24, 3:27 PM CST | Tornado Warning | BMX | Morgan | 63 min |
| Jan 24, 3:30 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Colbert, Lauderdale | 60 min |
| Jan 24, 3:42 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Limestone | 63 min |
| Jan 24, 3:47 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Jefferson | 58 min |
| Jan 24, 3:49 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Marion | 41 min |
| Jan 24, 3:54 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Franklin | 66 min |
| Jan 24, 3:57 PM CST | Tornado Warning | BMX | Blount | 33 min |
| Jan 24, 4:03 PM CST | Tornado Warning | BMX | Cullman | 12 min |
| Jan 24, 4:05 PM CST | Tornado Warning | BMX | Marshall | 55 min |
| Jan 24, 4:14 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Lawrence | 61 min |
| Jan 24, 4:18 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Winston | 42 min |
| Jan 24, 4:23 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Tuscaloosa | 52 min |
| Jan 24, 4:27 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Marion | 48 min |
| Jan 24, 4:31 PM CST | Tornado Warning | BMX | Lawrence | 59 min |
| Jan 24, 4:38 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Limestone, Morgan | 67 min |
| Jan 24, 4:42 PM CST | Tornado Warning | BMX | Jefferson | 48 min |
| Jan 24, 4:48 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Madison, Marshall | 72 min |
| Jan 24, 4:54 PM CST | Tornado Warning | BMX | Shelby | 51 min |
| Jan 24, 5:04 PM CST | Tornado Warning | BMX | DeKalb, Marshall | 56 min |
| Jan 24, 5:11 PM CST | Tornado Warning | BMX | Tuscaloosa | 49 min |
| Jan 24, 5:12 PM CST | Tornado Warning | BMX | Madison | 63 min |
| Jan 24, 5:16 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | St. Clair | 44 min |
| Jan 24, 5:26 PM CST | Tornado Warning | BMX | Jackson | 64 min |
| Jan 24, 5:28 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Lawrence | 62 min |
| Jan 24, 5:32 PM CST | Tornado Warning | BMX | Morgan | 43 min |
| Jan 24, 5:34 PM CST | Tornado Warning | BMX | Jefferson | 41 min |
| Jan 24, 5:34 PM CST | Tornado Warning | BMX | Morgan | 41 min |
| Jan 24, 5:37 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Talladega | 38 min |
| Jan 24, 5:43 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Sumter | 32 min |
| Jan 24, 5:45 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Limestone | 60 min |
| Jan 24, 5:45 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Marshall | 60 min |
| Jan 24, 5:48 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Lamar | 42 min |
| Jan 24, 5:52 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Calhoun | 53 min |
| Jan 24, 5:57 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Fayette | 48 min |
Nearby
Tornado Warnings in Alabama, 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; verification from NCEI's Storm Data; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.