Alert archive / Texas / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1997

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 39, NWS Brownsville, TX

June 18, 1997Hidalgo County, Starr County, Texas

NWS Brownsville, TX issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Jun 18, 1997, 12:44 AM CDT for Hidalgo County, Starr County, Texas. It was in force for 61 min. 2 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
Jun 18, 1997, 12:44 AM CDT (05:44 UTC)
Expired
Jun 18, 1997, 1:45 AM CDT
In force
61 min
Issued by
NWS Brownsville, TX
Area
Whole counties

Counties Hidalgo County, TX, Starr County, TX

The radar

The Brownsville radar (KBRO), 121 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 05:43 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
Jun 18, 1:00 AM CDTThunderstorm WindRio Grande City, TXNumerous power lines and poles down. Tree damage.
Jun 18, 1:00 AM CDTHail 0.75San Isidro, TX

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

Brownsville Intl, TX (KBRO), launched 00:00Z, 5.7 hours before the alert went out and 124 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, Brownsville Intl, TX at 00:00Z on 1997-06-18Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 4846 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Brownsville Intl, TX at 00:00Z on 1997-06-18The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 38 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
4846 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-20 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
672 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
22 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
38 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
18 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
1.7

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

The text of this product is not in the archive. The NWS text archive before 2002 is incomplete.

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 Brownsville, TX wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at Jun 17, 11:00 PM CDT, 1 hour 44 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jun 17, 11:00 PM CDT, 1 hour 44 minutes before
DEEP SOUTH TEXAS FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BROWNSVILLE TX
1100 PM CDT TUE JUN 17 1997

BROWNSVILLE RADAR INDICATE THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY DEVELOPING AHEAD OF
AN AREA OF PVA MOVING RAPIDLY EAST.  THIS ACTIVITY IS DEVELOPING RAPIDLY
AND KEEPING 30 PERCENT CHANCE FOR SHOWERS OR THUNDERSTORMS SEEMS TO BE
IN LINE AT THIS TIME.  THIS SYSTEM BEARS WATCHING AS IT IS MOVING
RAPIDLY EAST.

55

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Jun 17, 7:35 PM CDT, 5 hours 9 minutes before
TXZ248>255-514-180230-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BROWNSVILLE TX
735 PM CDT TUE JUN 17 1997

...A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH IS IN EFFECT FOR ALL OF DEEP SOUTH
TEXAS UNTIL 1000 PM THIS EVENING...

AT 730 PM CDT...BROWNSVILLE RADAR SHOWED SCATTERED SHOWERS OVER THE
FAR WESTERN PORTIONS OF DEEP SOUTH TEXAS. THESE SHOWERS WERE
DRIFTING SLOWLY EAST.  OTHERWISE...NO OTHER RAIN WAS INDICATED OVER
THE REST OF DEEP SOUTH TEXAS OR THE ADJACENT GULF WATERS.

HOWEVER...BROWNSVILLE RADAR INDICATED NUMEROUS SHOWERS AND
THUNDERSTORMS PERSISTING OVER THE THE MEXICAN MOUNTAINS FROM NEAR
MONCLOVA TO NEAR CIUDAD VICTORIA.  THESE STORMS WERE DRIFTING
SLOWLY EAST.  ALSO...BROWNSVILLE AND CORPUS CHRISTI RADAR INDICATED
NUMEROUS INTENSE THUNDERSTORMS OVER THE COASTAL BEND AREA NEAR
CORPUS CHRISTI. THESE COASTAL BEND STORMS WERE MOVING EAST AT 10 TO
15 MPH AND HAVE A HISTORY OF PRODUCING TORRENTIAL RAINS...LARGE
HAIL AND DAMAGING THUNDERSTORM WINDS.

THE ATMOSPHERE OVER DEEP SOUTH TEXAS REMAINS VERY UNSTABLE THIS
EVENING AND THE THREAT OF INTENSE SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL
CONTINUE THROUGH 10 PM THIS EVENING...ESPECIALLY ACROSS THE EASTERN
PORTIONS OF DEEP SOUTH TEXAS.

STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO...COMMERCIAL RADIO AND TELEVISION
OR YOUR LOCAL CABLE OUTLET FOR ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS AND POSSIBLE
WARNINGS CONCERNING THIS DEVELOPING WEATHER SITUATION.

SPEECE
Special weather statement, Jun 17, 7:38 PM CDT, 5 hours 6 minutes before
TXZ248>255-514-180230-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BROWNSVILLE TX
735 PM CDT TUE JUN 17 1997

...A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH IS IN EFFECT FOR ALL OF DEEP SOUTH
TEXAS UNTIL 1000 PM THIS EVENING...

AT 730 PM CDT...BROWNSVILLE RADAR SHOWED SCATTERED SHOWERS OVER THE
FAR WESTERN PORTIONS OF DEEP SOUTH TEXAS. THESE SHOWERS WERE
DRIFTING SLOWLY EAST.  OTHERWISE...NO OTHER RAIN WAS INDICATED OVER
THE REST OF DEEP SOUTH TEXAS OR THE ADJACENT GULF WATERS.

HOWEVER...BROWNSVILLE RADAR INDICATED NUMEROUS SHOWERS AND
THUNDERSTORMS PERSISTING OVER THE THE MEXICAN MOUNTAINS FROM NEAR
MONCLOVA TO NEAR CIUDAD VICTORIA.  THESE STORMS WERE DRIFTING
SLOWLY EAST.  ALSO...BROWNSVILLE AND CORPUS CHRISTI RADAR INDICATED
NUMEROUS INTENSE THUNDERSTORMS OVER THE COASTAL BEND AREA NEAR
CORPUS CHRISTI. THESE COASTAL BEND STORMS WERE MOVING EAST AT 10 TO
15 MPH AND HAVE A HISTORY OF PRODUCING TORRENTIAL RAINS...LARGE
HAIL AND DAMAGING THUNDERSTORM WINDS.

THE ATMOSPHERE OVER DEEP SOUTH TEXAS REMAINS VERY UNSTABLE THIS
EVENING AND THE THREAT OF INTENSE SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL
CONTINUE THROUGH 10 PM THIS EVENING...ESPECIALLY ACROSS THE EASTERN
PORTIONS OF DEEP SOUTH TEXAS.

STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO...COMMERCIAL RADIO AND TELEVISION
OR YOUR LOCAL CABLE OUTLET FOR ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS AND POSSIBLE
WARNINGS CONCERNING THIS DEVELOPING WEATHER SITUATION.

SPEECE

The office that day

Everything else NWS Brownsville, TX issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jun 17, 11:12 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBROBrooks63 min
Jun 17, 11:25 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningBROBrooks2 hr
Jun 17, 11:44 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningBROZapata2 hr
Jun 17, 11:44 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBROZapata2 hr
Jun 18, 2:06 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBROHidalgo, Starr69 min
Jun 18, 4:17 AM CDTFlash Flood WarningBROStarr6 hr

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Texas, 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; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.