Alert archive / Texas / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1997
Severe Thunderstorm Warning 252, NWS Houston/Galveston, TX
NWS Houston/Galveston, TX issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Dec 23, 1997, 5:16 PM CST for Montgomery County, Texas. It was in force for 59 min. 1 report 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
- Dec 23, 1997, 5:16 PM CST (23:16 UTC)
- Expired
- Dec 23, 1997, 6:15 PM CST
- In force
- 59 min
- Issued by
- NWS Houston/Galveston, TX
- Area
- Whole counties
County Montgomery County, TX
The radar
The Houston radar (KHGX), 101 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 23:15 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 23, 5:25 PM CST | Thunderstorm Wind | The Woodlands, TX | Trees blown down. |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 23, 2:30 PM CST | Tornado Watch | SPC | 6 hr |
The nearest sounding before it
Lake Charles Mun, LA (KLCH), launched 12:00Z, 11.3 hours before the alert went out and 222 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
- 0 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- No buoyant parcel
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 815 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 56 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 457 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 560 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 2.3
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
803 WUUS1 KHOU 232319 RRA SVRHOU TXC071-167-201-291-339-373-240015- BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HOUSTON/GALVESTON TX 516 PM CST TUE DEC 23 1997 THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN HOUSTON/GALVESTON HAS ISSUED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 615 PM CST FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS... IN SOUTHEAST TEXAS ...CHAMBERS COUNTY...GALVESTON COUNTY...EASTERN HARRIS COUNTY ...LIBERTY COUNTY...EASTERN MONTGOMERY COUNTY...POLK COUNTY AT 515 PM...A SQUALL LINE CONTAINING STRONG DAMAGING WINDS EXTENDS FROM RIVERSIDE TO INTERCONTINENTAL AIRPORT TO DOWNTOWN HOUSTON TO WEST COLUMBIA. MOVEMENT WAS EAST AT 45 MPH. STRONG DAMAGING WINDS WILL ACCOMPANY THIS LINE OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS. TAKE SHELTER NOW 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.
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 Houston/Galveston, TX wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at Dec 23, 2:39 PM CST, 2 hours 37 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Dec 23, 2:39 PM CST, 2 hours 37 minutes before
SOUTHEAST TEXAS FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HOUSTON/GALVESTON TX 235 PM CST TUE DEC 23 1997 BUSY MORNING TURNING INTO A BUSY AFTN(AND EVENING) WITH CONVECTION BE- GINING TO GO HAYWIRE TO OUR W. WITHOUT MUCH ADO... WOULD LIKE TO CON- TINUE WITH THE MENTION OF HVY RAIN/SVR WX FOR TONIGHT. DYNAMICS QUITE IMPRESSIVE AS THE UPPER LOW SWINGS AROUND WITH THE PACIFIC COLD FRONT. THE WARM FRONT JUST TO OUR S HAS NOT MOVED ALL THAT MUCH THIS AFTN AND THERE IS SOME CONCERN AS TO WHAT IS GOING TO DO. OUT AHEAD OF THE WARM FRONT, PATCHY DENSE FOG DEVELOPING AND IN LIEU OF AN ADVISORY WITH ALL OF THE OTHER ACITIVTY GOING ON WILL COVER THIS IN OUR NOWCASTS. AFTER THIS SYSTEM WE ARE LOOKING AT ANOTHER VERY SIMILAR LOOKING TYPE SYSTEM SET TO COME THRU SC/SE TX ON SATURDAY ALONG THAT OLD EL NINO WX-MAKING CONVEYOR BELT. ;) WILL GO WITH A BLEND OF GUIDANCE FOR TEMPS. 41 PRELIMS... CLL C/>B B/B 43/60 38/64 +000 IAH C/>B B/B 45/63 39/65 +000 GLS C/>B B/B 56/63 46/66 +000 *FFA AND SVR TONIGHT ALL ZONES
In the hours before
Special weather statement, Dec 23, 1:55 PM CST, 3 hours 21 minutes before
TXZ211-237-210-227-198-213-200-511-236-199-179-178-164-177-212- 197-226-196-195-214-238-235-240200- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HOUSTON/GALVESTON TX 155 PM CST TUE DEC 23 1997 ...TORNADO WATCH ISSUED FOR PORTIONS OF SOUTHEAST TEXAS... THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED A TORNADO WATCH FOR A LARGE PORTION OF SOUTHEAST TEXAS UNTIL 800 PM. THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES ARE INCLUDED IN THIS TORNADO WATCH: BURLESON...BRAZOS...WASHINGTON...GRIMES...WALKER...TRINITY...COLORADO... AUSTIN...WALLER...MONTGOMERY...SAN JACINTO...POLK...JACKSON...FORT BEND...WHARTON...HARRIS...LIBERTY...MATAGORDA...BRAZORIA...GALVESTON... CHAMBERS...AND THE ADJACENT COASTAL WATERS. SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL CONTINUE TO DEVELOP THIS AFTERNOON ACROSS SOUTHEAST TEXAS AS A STRONG UPPER LOW PRESSURE PRESSURE SYSTEM APPROACHETHE REGION FROM THE WEST. CONDITIONS ARE FAVORABLE FOR SOME OF THESE THUNDERSTORMS TO RAPIDLY BECOME SEVERE. THE GREATEST THREAT WILL BE LARGE HAIL...DAMAGING WINDS...AND TORNADOES. THE GREATEST THREAT FOR SEVERE THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT IN THE WESTERN COUNTIES WEST OF A LINE FROM EDNA TO COLUMBUS TO BRENHAM WILL BE AS EARLAS 300 PM...AND OVER THE REMAINDER OF SOUTHEAST TEXAS BETWEEN 500 PM AND 700 PM. STAY TUNED FOR FURTHER UPDATES AND POSSIBLE WARNINGS ON THIS DEVELOPING DANGEROUS SEVERE WEATHER THREAT.
Special weather statement, Dec 23, 2:01 PM CST, 3 hours 15 minutes before
TXZ211-237-210-227-198-213-200-511-236-199-179-178-164-177-212- 197-226-196-195-214-238-235-240200- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HOUSTON/GALVESTON TX 155 PM CST TUE DEC 23 1997 ...TORNADO WATCH ISSUED FOR PORTIONS OF SOUTHEAST TEXAS... THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED A TORNADO WATCH FOR A LARGE PORTION OF SOUTHEAST TEXAS UNTIL 800 PM. THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES ARE INCLUDED IN THIS TORNADO WATCH: BURLESON...BRAZOS...WASHINGTON...GRIMES...WALKER...TRINITY...COLORADO... AUSTIN...WALLER...MONTGOMERY...SAN JACINTO...POLK...JACKSON...FORT BEND...WHARTON...HARRIS...LIBERTY...MATAGORDA...BRAZORIA...GALVESTON... CHAMBERS...AND THE ADJACENT COASTAL WATERS. SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL CONTINUE TO DEVELOP THIS AFTERNOON ACROSS SOUTHEAST TEXAS AS A STRONG UPPER LOW PRESSURE PRESSURE SYSTEM APPROACHES THE REGION FROM THE WEST. CONDITIONS ARE FAVORABLE FOR SOME OF THESE THUNDERSTORMS TO RAPIDLY BECOME SEVERE. THE GREATEST THREAT WILL BE LARGE HAIL...DAMAGING WINDS...AND TORNADOES. THE GREATEST THREAT FOR SEVERE THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT IN THE WESTERN COUNTIES WEST OF A LINE FROM EDNA TO COLUMBUS TO BRENHAM WILL BE AS EARLY AS 300 PM...AND OVER THE REMAINDER OF SOUTHEAST TEXAS BETWEEN 500 PM AND 700 PM. STAY TUNED FOR FURTHER UPDATES AND POSSIBLE WARNINGS ON THIS DEVELOPING DANGEROUS SEVERE WEATHER THREAT.
The office that day
Everything else NWS Houston/Galveston, TX issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 23, 1:19 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | HGX | Chambers | 61 min |
| Dec 23, 9:16 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | HGX | Burleson | 44 min |
| Dec 23, 3:32 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | HGX | Burleson, Washington | 58 min |
| Dec 23, 3:32 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | HGX | Austin, Colorado | 58 min |
| Dec 23, 4:07 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | HGX | Grimes, Waller | 53 min |
| Dec 23, 4:19 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | HGX | Montgomery, Walker | 56 min |
| Dec 23, 4:27 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | HGX | Harris | 63 min |
| Dec 23, 4:33 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | HGX | Fort Bend, Wharton | 57 min |
| Dec 23, 5:00 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | HGX | San Jacinto | 60 min |
| Dec 23, 5:12 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | HGX | Brazoria | 63 min |
| Dec 23, 5:16 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | HGX | Liberty, Polk | 59 min |
| Dec 23, 5:16 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | HGX | Chambers, Galveston, Harris | 59 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.