Alert archive / Texas / Tornado Warnings in 1997
Tornado Warning 5, NWS Austin/San Antonio, TX
NWS Austin/San Antonio, TX issued this tornado warning at May 27, 1997, 6:24 PM CDT for Uvalde County, Texas. It was in force for 36 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
- May 27, 1997, 6:24 PM CDT (23:24 UTC)
- Expired
- May 27, 1997, 7:00 PM CDT
- In force
- 36 min
- Issued by
- NWS Austin/San Antonio, TX
- Area
- Whole counties
County Uvalde County, TX
What was reported inside it
| Time | Report | Where | Remark |
|---|---|---|---|
| May 27, 6:35 PM CDT | Hail 1.5 | Sabinal, TX | |
| May 27, 7:00 PM CDT | Tornado F0 | Utopia, TX | Amateur Radio spotters relayed a report of a tornado sighted by a Sheriff's Deputy. |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| May 27, 3:45 PM CDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | 6 hr |
The nearest sounding before it
Del Rio, TX (KDRT), launched 12:00Z, 11.4 hours before the alert went out and 104 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
- 5551 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -96 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 817 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 24 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 45 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 91 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.7
- Supercell composite
- 5.0
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
705 WFUS1 KSAT 272323 RRA TORSAT TXC463-280000- BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED TORNADO WARNING NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AUSTIN/SAN ANTONIO TX 624 PM CDT TUE MAY 27 1997 THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN AUSTIN/SAN ANTONIO HAS ISSUED A TORNADO WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 700 PM CDT FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATION... IN SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS ...NORTHERN UVALDE COUNTY AT 620 PM...RADAR INDICATED A DEVELOPING TORNADO WEST OF UTOPIA. THE STORM IS MOVING EAST AT 20 MPH. RADAR INDICATED THE STORM MAY ALSO BE PRODUCING 1 1/2 INCH HAIL. IF YOU ARE CAUGHT OUTSIDE...SEEK SHELTER IN A NEARBY REINFORCED BUILDING. AS A LAST RESORT...SEEK SHELTER IN A DITCH OR LOW SPOT AND COVER YOUR HEAD. PEOPLE IN OR NEAR THE PATH OF THIS STORM SHOULD TAKE IMMEDIATE ACTION TO PROTECT THEIR LIVES. GO TO THE CENTER ON THE LOWEST FLOOR OF YOUR BUILDING...COVER YOUR HEAD. STAY AWAY FROM DOORS AND WINDOWS. DO NOT STAY IN MOBILE HOMES OR VEHICLES...GET INTO A STURDY BUILDING. THIS IS A DANGEROUS STORM...ACT QUICKLY. IF YOU ARE IN THE PATH OF THIS TORNADO...GO TO A SMALL INTERIOR ROOM ON THE LOWEST FLOOR OF A STURDY BUILDING. AVOID WINDOWS. ABANDON CARS AND MOBILE HOMES.
What forecasters said that day
The local office's own words before this tornado 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, May 27, 4:45 PM CDT, 1 hour 39 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AUSTIN/SAN ANTONIO TEXAS
445 PM CDT TUE MAY 27 1997
TIME(CDT) .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE ...EVENT/REMARKS...
....COUNTY LOCATION....
0405 PM JARRELL TX TORNADO
05/27/97 WILLIAMSON REPORTS OF FATALITIES AND
MULTIPLE INJURIES
0415 PM CEDAR PARK TX TORNADO
05/27/97 WILLIAMSON REPORT OF GROCERY STORE
COLLAPSE IN CEDAR PARK.
REPORTS OF FATALITIES AND
MULTIPLE INJURIESSpecial weather statement, May 27, 5:05 PM CDT, 1 hour 19 minutes before
TXZ171>173-183>194-202>209-217>225-228-281000- HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AUSTIN/SAN ANTONIO TX 506 PM CDT TUE MAY 27 1997 ...TORNADO WATCH IN EFFECT UNTIL 10 PM CDT FOR SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS AND THE HILL COUNTRY... A WEAK COLD FRONT WILL BECOME STATIONARY ACROSS SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS TONIGHT AND PROVIDE THE FOCUS FOR SEVERE WEATHER THROUGH WEDNESDAY. THE ATMOSPHERE IS VERY MOIST AND UNSTABLE ACROSS THE REGION THIS EVENING AND CONDITIONS ARE FAVORABLE FOR ADDITIONAL DEVELOPMENT OF SCATTERED SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH LARGE HAIL... DAMAGING WINDS... ISOLATED TORNADOES AND VERY HEAVY RAINFALL. THIS ACTIVITY WILL PERSIST THROUGH THE EVENING HOURS AND DECREASE IN SEVERITY LATER TONIGHT. THIS SYSTEM WILL EVOLVE INTO A HEAVY RAIN EVENT OVER PORTIONS OF SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS... THE HILL COUNTRY AND SOUTHEAST TEXAS LATE TONIGHT INTO WEDNESDAY WITH ISOLATED SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS. RAINFALL AMOUNTS WILL AVERAGE FROM 1/2 TO 1 INCH WITH ISOLATED TOTALS NEAR 3 INCHES POSSIBLE WHERE THUNDERSTORMS MERGE OR REDEVELOP ACROSS A PARTICULAR LOCATION. A FLASH FLOOD WATCH MAY BE REQUIRED LATER TONIGHT ACROSS PORTIONS OF SOUTH TEXAS. THE HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK WILL NORMALLY BE UPDATED BY MEANS OF THE ZONE FORECAST...SHORT TERM FORECAST...WATCHES...WARNINGS AND ADVISORIES. THE HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK ITSELF WILL BE UPDATED ONLY IF UNFORECAST HAZARDOUS WEATHER DEVELOPS OR IF FORECAST HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS NO LONGER EXPECTED.
Special weather statement, May 27, 5:06 PM CDT, 1 hour 18 minutes before
TXZ171>173-183>194-202>209-217>225-228-281000- HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AUSTIN/SAN ANTONIO TX 506 PM CDT TUE MAY 27 1997 ...TORNADO WATCH IN EFFECT UNTIL 10 PM CDT FOR SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS AND THE HILL COUNTRY... A WEAK COLD FRONT WILL BECOME STATIONARY ACROSS SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS TONIGHT AND PROVIDE THE FOCUS FOR SEVERE WEATHER THROUGH WEDNESDAY. THE ATMOSPHERE IS VERY MOIST AND UNSTABLE ACROSS THE REGION THIS EVENING AND CONDITIONS ARE FAVORABLE FOR ADDITIONAL DEVELOPMENT OF SCATTERED SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH LARGE HAIL... DAMAGING WINDS... ISOLATED TORNADOES AND VERY HEAVY RAINFALL. THIS ACTIVITY WILL PERSIST THROUGH THE EVENING HOURS AND DECREASE IN SEVERITY LATER TONIGHT. THIS SYSTEM WILL EVOLVE INTO A HEAVY RAIN EVENT OVER PORTIONS OF SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS... THE HILL COUNTRY AND SOUTHEAST TEXAS LATE TONIGHT INTO WEDNESDAY WITH ISOLATED SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS. RAINFALL AMOUNTS WILL AVERAGE FROM 1/2 TO 1 INCH WITH ISOLATED TOTALS NEAR 3 INCHES POSSIBLE WHERE THUNDERSTORMS MERGE OR REDEVELOP ACROSS A PARTICULAR LOCATION. A FLASH FLOOD WATCH MAY BE REQUIRED LATER TONIGHT ACROSS PORTIONS OF SOUTH TEXAS. THE HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK WILL NORMALLY BE UPDATED BY MEANS OF THE ZONE FORECAST...SHORT TERM FORECAST...WATCHES...WARNINGS AND ADVISORIES. THE HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK ITSELF WILL BE UPDATED ONLY IF UNFORECAST HAZARDOUS WEATHER DEVELOPS OR IF FORECAST HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS NO LONGER EXPECTED.
The office that day
Everything else NWS Austin/San Antonio, TX issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 27, 3:30 PM CDT | Tornado Warning | EWX | Williamson | 60 min |
| May 27, 3:34 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | EWX | Edwards | 56 min |
| May 27, 3:58 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | EWX | Real | 62 min |
| May 27, 4:09 PM CDT | Tornado Warning | EWX | Travis | 66 min |
| May 27, 4:26 PM CDT | Flash Flood Warning | EWX | Edwards, Real | 2 hr |
| May 27, 4:32 PM CDT | Flash Flood Warning | EWX | Travis, Williamson | 118 min |
| May 27, 4:37 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | EWX | Williamson | 68 min |
| May 27, 4:49 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | EWX | Edwards | 56 min |
| May 27, 4:58 PM CDT | Tornado Warning | EWX | Hays | 62 min |
| May 27, 5:19 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | EWX | Travis | 56 min |
| May 27, 5:24 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | EWX | Blanco | 66 min |
| May 27, 5:37 PM CDT | Flash Flood Warning | EWX | Uvalde | 98 min |
| May 27, 5:37 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | EWX | Uvalde | 98 min |
| May 27, 5:52 PM CDT | Tornado Warning | EWX | Kendall | 68 min |
| May 27, 5:58 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | EWX | Bastrop, Caldwell | 2 hr |
| May 27, 6:01 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | EWX | Hays | 59 min |
| May 27, 6:06 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | EWX | Val Verde | 69 min |
| May 27, 6:14 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | EWX | Comal | 61 min |
| May 27, 6:28 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | EWX | Edwards | 62 min |
| May 27, 6:29 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | EWX | Guadalupe | 61 min |
| May 27, 6:56 PM CDT | Tornado Warning | EWX | Kendall | 64 min |
| May 27, 6:59 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | EWX | Bexar | 91 min |
Nearby
Tornado Warnings in Texas, 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.