Alert archive / Texas / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1997
Severe Thunderstorm Warning 49, NWS Houston/Galveston, TX
NWS Houston/Galveston, TX issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Apr 22, 1997, 12:43 PM CDT for Polk County, Texas. It was in force for 62 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 22, 1997, 12:43 PM CDT (17:43 UTC)
- Expired
- Apr 22, 1997, 1:45 PM CDT
- In force
- 62 min
- Issued by
- NWS Houston/Galveston, TX
- Area
- Whole counties
County Polk County, TX
The radar
The Houston radar (KHGX), 149 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 17:45 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 22, 12:45 PM CDT | Hail 0.75 | Ace, TX | |
| Apr 22, 12:45 PM CDT | Thunderstorm Wind | Ace, 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
Lake Charles Mun, LA (KLCH), launched 12:00Z, 5.7 hours before the alert went out and 173 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
- 1498 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -233 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 595 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 37 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 144 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 184 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 1.0
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000 TTAA00 KHOU 221742 RRA SVRHOU TXC373-221845- BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HOUSTON/GALVESTON TX 1243 PM CDT TUE APR 22 1997 THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN HOUSTON/GALVESTON HAS ISSUED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 145 PM CDT FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATION... IN SOUTHEAST TEXAS ...SOUTHERN POLK COUNTY AT 1237 PM CDT...RADAR INDICATED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM IN SOUTHERN POLK COUNTY 3 MILES SOUTHEAST OF GOODRICH. THIS STORM WAS MOVING EAST AT 15 MPH AND WILL SOUTH OF SEGNO IN THE NEXT HALF HOUR. THIS SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WILL LIKELY PRODUCE DAMAGING WIND IN EXCESS OF 55 MPH...DESTRUCTIVE HAIL...AND VERY HEAVY RAIN. MOVEH TO AN INTERIOR ROOM ON THE LOWEST FLOOR OF YOUR HOME OR BUSINESS. STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS.
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 Apr 22, 10:50 AM CDT, 1 hour 53 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Apr 22, 10:50 AM CDT, 1 hour 53 minutes before
SOUTHEAST TEXAS FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HOUSTON/GALVESTON TX 1050 AM CDT TUE APR 22 1997 FRONT KEEPS MOVING ALONG. AS PER COORDINATION WITH EWX..HAVE DECIDED TO DROP THE MENTION OF SEVERE FOR SE TX. WILL KEEP AT LEAST CHC POPS IN FOR THE FIRST PD TO ACCOUNT FOR THE 85H FRONT/UPPER TROF STILL YET TO COME. 41 PRELIMS... CLL B/E B/B 80/56 82/55 3000 IAH E/E B/B 82/58 84/56 4000 GLS E/C B/B 77/64 76/63 4000
In the hours before
Special weather statement, Apr 22, 10:01 AM CDT, 2 hours 42 minutes before
TXZ176>179-195>200-210>214-226-227-235>238-22200- SEVERE WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HOUSTON/GALVESTON TX 1005 AM CDT TUE APR 22 1997 THERE IS SLIGHT RISK OF SEVERE WEATHER FOR ALL OF SOUTHEAST TEXAS TODAY. THE RISK AREA INCLUDES BRYAN/COLLEGE STATION...THE HOUSTON METROPOLITAN AREA...GALVESTON...HUNTSVILLE...CROCKETT...BAY CITY... COLUMBUS...LIVINGSTON...AND LIBERTY. A COLD FRONT WILL CONTINUE TO MOVE TOWARD SOUTHEAST TEXAS THIS MORNING. THE FRONT COUPLED WITH A STRONG UPPER LEVEL DISTURBANCE WILL BE MOVING INTO A VERY WARM AND UNSTABLE AIRMASS OVER THE AREA. AS A RESULT...STRONG THUNDERSTORMS WILL LIKELY DEVELOP ALONG AND AHEAD OF THE FRONT. SOME OF THESE STORMS COULD BECOME SEVERE. THE FRONT IS EXPECTED TO APPROACH THE COLLEGE STATION AREA LATE THIS MORNING...THE HOUSTON AREA EARLY THIS AFTERNOON...AND OFF THE UPPER TEXAS COAST BY LATE AFTERNOON. STRONG WINDS AND LARGE HAIL WILL BE THE MAIN THREAT ASSOCIATED WITH THESE STORMS. HOWEVER...FAVORABLE WIND SHEARS NEAR THE FRONT COULD PRODUCE ISOLATED TORNADOES AS WELL. MARINERS CAN EXPECT WINDS TO SHIFT TO THE NORTH AND INCREASE TO NEAR 25 KNOTS WITH HIGHER GUSTS AS THE FRONT PASSES. EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT OFFICIALS AND SKYWARN SPOTTERS SHOULD BE READY FOR POSSIBLE ACTIVATION LATER THIS MORNING ACROSS THE NORTHERN SECTIONS OF SOUTHEAST TEXAS...AND THEN ACROSS THE ENTIRE AREA THIS AFTERNOON. STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO...RADIO...COMMERCIAL FOR CABLE TELEVISION FOR FURTHER UPDATES ON THIS DEVELOPING WEATHER SITUATION.
Special weather statement, Apr 22, 10:05 AM CDT, 2 hours 38 minutes before
TXZ176>179-195>200-210>214-226-227-235>238-22200- SEVERE WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HOUSTON/GALVESTON TX 1005 AM CDT TUE APR 22 1997 THERE IS SLIGHT RISK OF SEVERE WEATHER FOR ALL OF SOUTHEAST TEXAS TODAY. THE RISK AREA INCLUDES BRYAN/COLLEGE STATION...THE HOUSTON METROPOLITAN AREA...GALVESTON...HUNTSVILLE...CROCKETT...BAY CITY... COLUMBUS...LIVINGSTON...AND LIBERTY. A COLD FRONT WILL CONTINUE TO MOVE TOWARD SOUTHEAST TEXAS THIS MORNING. THE FRONT COUPLED WITH A STRONG UPPER LEVEL DISTURBANCE WILL BE MOVING INTO A VERY WARM AND UNSTABLE AIRMASS OVER THE AREA. AS A RESULT...STRONG THUNDERSTORMS WILL LIKELY DEVELOP ALONG AND AHEAD OF THE FRONT. SOME OF THESE STORMS COULD BECOME SEVERE. THE FRONT IS EXPECTED TO APPROACH THE COLLEGE STATION AREA LATE THIS MORNING...THE HOUSTON AREA EARLY THIS AFTERNOON...AND OFF THE UPPER TEXAS COAST BY LATE AFTERNOON. STRONG WINDS AND LARGE HAIL WILL BE THE MAIN THREAT ASSOCIATED WITH THESE STORMS. HOWEVER...FAVORABLE WIND SHEARS NEAR THE FRONT COULD PRODUCE ISOLATED TORNADOES AS WELL. MARINERS CAN EXPECT WINDS TO SHIFT TO THE NORTH AND INCREASE TO NEAR 25 KNOTS WITH HIGHER GUSTS AS THE FRONT PASSES. EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT OFFICIALS AND SKYWARN SPOTTERS SHOULD BE READY FOR POSSIBLE ACTIVATION LATER THIS MORNING ACROSS THE NORTHERN SECTIONS OF SOUTHEAST TEXAS...AND THEN ACROSS THE ENTIRE AREA THIS AFTERNOON. STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO...RADIO...COMMERCIAL OR CABLE TELEVISION FOR FURTHER UPDATES ON THIS DEVELOPING WEATHER SITUATION.
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.