Alert archive / Texas / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1997
Severe Thunderstorm Warning 23, NWS Austin/San Antonio, TX
NWS Austin/San Antonio, TX issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Apr 3, 1997, 11:32 PM CST for Comal County, Texas. It was in force for 58 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
- Apr 3, 1997, 11:32 PM CST (05:32 UTC)
- Expired
- Apr 4, 1997, 12:30 AM CST
- In force
- 58 min
- Issued by
- NWS Austin/San Antonio, TX
- Area
- Whole counties
County Comal County, TX
The radar
The Austin/San Antonio radar (KEWX), 27 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 05:33 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 3, 11:37 PM CST | Hail 0.75 | New Braunfels, TX | |
| Apr 3, 11:45 PM CST | Hail 0.75 | New Braunfels, 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
Corpus Christi, TX (KCRP), launched 00:00Z, 5.5 hours before the alert went out and 248 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
- 1324 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- 0 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 503 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 62 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 90 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 111 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.9
- Supercell composite
- 3.9
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000 TTAA00 KSAT 040533 RRA SVRSAT TXC091-040630- BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AUSTIN/SAN ANTONIO TX 1132 PM CST THU APR 3 1997 THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN AUSTIN/SAN ANTONIO HAS ISSUED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 1230 AM CST FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATION... IN SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS ...COMAL COUNTY DOPPLER RADAR HAS INDICATE A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CROSSING INTO SOUTHWEST COMAL COUNTY...MOVING TOWARD NEW BRAUNFELS. PEOPLE IN THE PATH OF THIS STORM SHOULD BE ALERT TO THE POSSIBILITY OF LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS. FREQUENT LIGHTNING AND LOCALLY HEAVY RAIN CAN ALSO OCCUR WITH SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS...FLOODING SMALL STREAMS...LOW AREAS...AND 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
Special weather statement, Apr 3, 5:59 PM CST, 5 hours 33 minutes before
TXZ171>173-183>194-202>209-217>225-228-041200- HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AUSTIN/SAN ANTONIO TX 600 PM CST THU APR 3 1997 THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED A FLASH FLOOD WATCH TONIGHT AND FRIDAY FOR SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS AND THE TEXAS HILL COUNTRY. A FLASH FLOOD WATCH MEANS WEATHER CONDITIONS ARE FAVORABLE FOR HEAVY RAIN... FLASH FLOODING... AND RIVER FLOODING IN OR NEAR THE WATCH AREA. AN INTENSE UPPER LEVEL STORM SYSTEM CENTERED OVER NORTHERN BAJA CALIFORNIA IS BEGINNING TO MOVE SLOWLY EASTWARD LATE THIS AFTERNOON. WIND PATTERNS CONTINUE TO PUMP UNUSUALLY HIGH MOISTURE LEVELS FROM THE GULF OF MEXICO AND THE PACIFIC OCEAN INTO TEXAS. A SERIES OF UPPER LEVEL DISTURBANCES AHEAD OF THE MAIN SYSTEM WILL INTERACT WITH THE MOIST AND UNSTABLE AIRMASS TO CONTINUE WIDESPREAD SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS THE HILL COUNTRY AND SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS. RAINFALL TOTALS WILL AVERAGE 1 TO 3 INCHES WITH ISOLATED TOTALS APPROACHING 5 INCHES TONIGHT THROUGH FRIDAY. THE MAIN STORM SYSTEM WILL PICK UP SPEED ON FRIDAY AND BE LOCATED JUST WEST OF THE BIG BEND BY LATE IN THE AFTERNOON. THE AIRMASS IS EXPECTED TO BECOME EXTREMELY UNSTABLE BY THAT TIME. AS A RESULT... A FEW THUNDERSTORMS MAY BECOME SEVERE WITH LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS IN ADDITION TO THE LOCALLY HEAVY RAINFALL. AREAS WET FROM RECENT HEAVY RAINS ARE AT PRIME RISK OF FLOODING IF HEAVY RAIN DEVELOPS. THE HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NORMALLY WILL BE UPDATED BY MEANS OF THE ZONE FORECASTS...SHORT TERM FORECASTS...WATCHES...WARNINGS AND ADVISORIES. THE HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK ITSELF WILL BE UPDATED ONLY IF UNFORECAST HAZARDOUS WEATHER DEVELOPS OR IF FORECAST HAZARDOUS WEATHER NO LONGER IS EXPECTED.
Special weather statement, Apr 3, 6:00 PM CST, 5 hours 32 minutes before
TXZ171>173-183>194-202>209-217>225-228-041200- HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AUSTIN/SAN ANTONIO TX 600 PM CST THU APR 3 1997 THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED A FLASH FLOOD WATCH TONIGHT AND FRIDAY FOR SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS AND THE TEXAS HILL COUNTRY. A FLASH FLOOD WATCH MEANS WEATHER CONDITIONS ARE FAVORABLE FOR HEAVY RAIN... FLASH FLOODING... AND RIVER FLOODING IN OR NEAR THE WATCH AREA. AN INTENSE UPPER LEVEL STORM SYSTEM CENTERED OVER NORTHERN BAJA CALIFORNIA IS BEGINNING TO MOVE SLOWLY EASTWARD LATE THIS AFTERNOON. WIND PATTERNS CONTINUE TO PUMP UNUSUALLY HIGH MOISTURE LEVELS FROM THE GULF OF MEXICO AND THE PACIFIC OCEAN INTO TEXAS. A SERIES OF UPPER LEVEL DISTURBANCES AHEAD OF THE MAIN SYSTEM WILL INTERACT WITH THE MOIST AND UNSTABLE AIRMASS TO CONTINUE WIDESPREAD SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS THE HILL COUNTRY AND SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS. RAINFALL TOTALS WILL AVERAGE 1 TO 3 INCHES WITH ISOLATED TOTALS APPROACHING 5 INCHES TONIGHT THROUGH FRIDAY. THE MAIN STORM SYSTEM WILL PICK UP SPEED ON FRIDAY AND BE LOCATED JUST WEST OF THE BIG BEND BY LATE IN THE AFTERNOON. THE AIRMASS IS EXPECTED TO BECOME EXTREMELY UNSTABLE BY THAT TIME. AS A RESULT... A FEW THUNDERSTORMS MAY BECOME SEVERE WITH LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS IN ADDITION TO THE LOCALLY HEAVY RAINFALL. AREAS WET FROM RECENT HEAVY RAINS ARE AT PRIME RISK OF FLOODING IF HEAVY RAIN DEVELOPS. THE HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NORMALLY WILL BE UPDATED BY MEANS OF THE ZONE FORECASTS...SHORT TERM FORECASTS...WATCHES...WARNINGS AND ADVISORIES. THE HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK ITSELF WILL BE UPDATED ONLY IF UNFORECAST HAZARDOUS WEATHER DEVELOPS OR IF FORECAST HAZARDOUS WEATHER NO LONGER IS EXPECTED.
The office that day
Everything else NWS Austin/San Antonio, TX issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 3, 8:33 PM CST | Flash Flood Warning | EWX | Dimmit | 42 min |
| Apr 3, 8:33 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | EWX | Dimmit | 42 min |
| Apr 3, 9:18 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | EWX | Medina, Zavala | 57 min |
| Apr 3, 10:36 PM CST | Flash Flood Warning | EWX | Gillespie | 69 min |
| Apr 3, 10:47 PM CST | Flash Flood Warning | EWX | Kerr | 58 min |
| Apr 3, 11:10 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | EWX | Bexar | 65 min |
| Apr 3, 11:55 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | EWX | Hays | 65 min |
| Apr 4, 12:25 AM CST | Flash Flood Warning | EWX | Williamson | 65 min |
| Apr 4, 12:25 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | EWX | Williamson | 65 min |
| Apr 4, 12:43 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | EWX | Hays | 62 min |
| Apr 4, 1:17 AM CST | Flash Flood Warning | EWX | DeWitt, Lavaca | 3 hr |
| Apr 4, 1:34 AM CST | Flash Flood Warning | EWX | Travis, Williamson | 116 min |
| Apr 4, 5:36 AM CST | Flash Flood Warning | EWX | Lavaca | 3 hr |
| Apr 4, 6:23 AM CST | Flash Flood Warning | EWX | Travis, Williamson | 3 hr |
| Apr 4, 6:31 AM CST | Flash Flood Warning | EWX | Blanco | 3 hr |
| Apr 4, 6:43 AM CST | Flash Flood Warning | EWX | Kendall | 3 hr |
| Apr 4, 9:24 AM CST | Flash Flood Warning | EWX | Travis, Williamson | 3 hr |
| Apr 4, 10:12 AM CST | Flash Flood Warning | EWX | DeWitt | 2 hr |
| Apr 4, 11:30 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | EWX | Val Verde | 60 min |
| Apr 4, 2:34 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | EWX | Uvalde | 56 min |
| Apr 4, 2:40 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | EWX | Real | 65 min |
| Apr 4, 3:00 PM CST | Flash Flood Warning | EWX | Real | 2 hr |
| Apr 4, 3:25 PM CST | Flash Flood Warning | EWX | Bandera | 65 min |
| Apr 4, 3:25 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | EWX | Bandera | 65 min |
| Apr 4, 3:32 PM CST | Flash Flood Warning | EWX | Uvalde | 58 min |
| Apr 4, 3:32 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | EWX | Uvalde | 58 min |
| Apr 4, 3:53 PM CST | Flash Flood Warning | EWX | Kerr | 2 hr |
| Apr 4, 4:24 PM CST | Flash Flood Warning | EWX | Bandera | 2 hr |
| Apr 4, 4:34 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | EWX | Medina | 56 min |
| Apr 4, 5:11 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | EWX | Bexar, Kendall | 79 min |
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.