Alert archive / Mississippi / Tornado Warnings in 1997

Tornado Warning 34, NWS Jackson, MS

May 2, 1997Issaquena County, Sharkey County, Mississippi

NWS Jackson, MS issued this tornado warning at May 2, 1997, 5:12 PM CDT for Issaquena County, Sharkey County, Mississippi. It was in force for 63 min. 3 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 2, 1997, 5:12 PM CDT (22:12 UTC)
Expired
May 2, 1997, 6:15 PM CDT
In force
63 min
Issued by
NWS Jackson, MS
Area
Whole counties

Counties Issaquena County, MS, Sharkey County, MS

What was reported inside it

TimeReportWhereRemark
May 2, 5:42 PM CDTThunderstorm WindRolling Fork, MSSeveral trees and large limbs were blown down.
May 2, 6:00 PM CDTHail 1.5Anguilla, MS
May 2, 6:00 PM CDTThunderstorm WindRolling Fork, MSNumerous trees were blown down in Rolling fork and several other locations throughout Sharkey county.

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.

IssuedProductOfficeLasted
May 2, 12:15 PM CDTTornado WatchSPC7 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Jackson, MS (KJAN), launched 12:00Z, 10.2 hours before the alert went out and 94 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, Jackson, MS at 12:00Z on 1997-05-02Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 750 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, Jackson, MS at 12:00Z on 1997-05-02The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 256 square meters per square second.19395878Sfc1 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
750 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-166 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
543 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
39 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
256 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
345 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
4.1

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.

097 
WFUS1 KJAN 022214 RRA
TORJAN
MSC055-125-022315-
 
BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JACKSON MS
512 PM CDT FRI MAY 2 1997
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN JACKSON HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL  615 PM CDT
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS...
 
IN WEST CENTRAL MISSISSIPPI
 
   ...NORTHERN ISSAQUENA COUNTY...SHARKEY COUNTY
 
AT 508 PM DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A TORNADO ABOUT 4 MILES EAST OF OAK
GROVE LA...OR ABOUT 8 MILES WEST OF MAYERSVILLE. THIS STORM WAS MOVING
EAST NORTHEAST AT 45 MPH...AND WILL MOVE NEAR ROLLING FORK...ANGUILLA
AND MAYERSVILLE. A TORNADO WAS REPORTED NEAR OAK GROVE AROUND 455 PM.
IN ADDITION THIS STORM WILL LIKELY PRODUCE HAIL UP TO BASEBALL SIZE.
 
THIS IS A DANGEROUS STORM.  MOVE QUICKLY TO UNDERGROUND SHELTER IF
AVAILABLE.  OTHERWISE...GO TO AN INTERIOR ROOM ON THE LOWEST FLOOR.
AVOID WINDOWS.  LEAVE CARS AND MOBILE HOMES FOR A STURDY BUILDING.
<
69
 
 
&

The office that day

Everything else NWS Jackson, MS issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 2, 11:48 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANBolivar42 min
May 2, 12:06 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANSunflower39 min
May 2, 1:51 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANHolmes54 min
May 2, 2:05 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANCarroll55 min
May 2, 2:26 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANMontgomery49 min
May 2, 2:43 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANWebster47 min
May 2, 2:53 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANChoctaw52 min
May 2, 3:18 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANOktibbeha42 min
May 2, 3:57 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANSunflower33 min
May 2, 4:03 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANLeflore57 min
May 2, 4:18 PM CDTTornado WarningJANLeflore42 min
May 2, 4:34 PM CDTTornado WarningJANCarroll, Grenada56 min
May 2, 4:53 PM CDTTornado WarningJANMontgomery52 min
May 2, 5:19 PM CDTTornado WarningJANWashington41 min
May 2, 5:22 PM CDTTornado WarningJANWebster53 min
May 2, 5:55 PM CDTTornado WarningJANHumphreys65 min
May 2, 6:08 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANWashington52 min
May 2, 6:11 PM CDTTornado WarningJANHolmes64 min
May 2, 6:29 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANIssaquena, Sharkey46 min
May 2, 6:47 PM CDTTornado WarningJANAttala, Carroll, Montgomery58 min
May 2, 6:59 PM CDTTornado WarningJANHumphreys46 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Mississippi, 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.