Alert archive / Louisiana / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1997

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 4, NWS Lake Charles, LA

January 24, 1997St. Mary Parish, Louisiana

NWS Lake Charles, LA issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Jan 24, 1997, 3:35 AM CST for St. Mary Parish, Louisiana. It was in force for 55 min. No storm report in the archive falls inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
Jan 24, 1997, 3:35 AM CST (09:35 UTC)
Expired
Jan 24, 1997, 4:30 AM CST
In force
55 min
Issued by
NWS Lake Charles, LA
Area
Whole counties

County St. Mary Parish, LA

The nearest sounding before it

Lake Charles Mun, LA (KLCH), launched 00:00Z, 9.6 hours before the alert went out and 175 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, Lake Charles Mun, LA at 00:00Z on 1997-01-24Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 530 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°0°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Lake Charles Mun, LA at 00:00Z on 1997-01-24The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 150 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
530 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-23 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
649 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
45 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
150 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
217 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.4
Supercell composite
3.3

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
TTAA00 KLCH 240935 RRA
SVRLCH
LAC101-241030-
 
BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA
335 AM CST FRI JAN 24 1997
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN LAKE CHARLES HAS ISSUED A
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL  430 AM CST
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATION...
 
IN SOUTH CENTRAL LOUISIANA
 
   ...ST. MARY PARISH
 
AND ADJACENT COASTAL WATERS
 
 
AT 335 AM DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS 30 MILES
SOUTHWEST OF MORGAN CITY...JUST SOUTH OF MARSH ISLAND...MOVING
NORTHEAST AT 30 MPH. LARGE HAIL AND GUSTS GREATER THAN 55 MPH
ARE LIKELY WITH THIS STORM. RAINFALL RATES IN EXCESS OF 1 TO 2 INCHES
AN HOUR ARE ALSO LIKELY. EXPECT PONDING OF WATER IN LOW LYING AREAS.
A TORNADO WATCH IS ALSO IN EFFECT. SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS CAN AND
OCCASIONALLY DO PRODUCE TORNADOS.
 
 
THIS IS A DANGEROUS STORM.  IF YOU ARE IN ITS PATH YOU SHOULD
PREPARE FOR DAMAGING WIND IN EXCESS OF 55 MPH...LA8RGE HAIL...AND
DEADLY LIGHTNING.  PEOPLE OUTSIDE SHOULD MOVE TO A SHELTER...
PREFERABLY INSIDE A STRONG BUILDING BUT 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 Lake Charles, LA wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at Jan 23, 7:50 PM CST, 7 hours 45 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jan 23, 7:50 PM CST, 7 hours 45 minutes before
SOUTHEAST TEXAS..SOUTHWEST AND CENTRAL LOUISIANA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA
750 PM CST THU JAN 23 1997

LOW TEMPS FOR FA NR 60 LK GOOD. MAY WANT TO TWEAK AEX UP A BIT.
CHC POPS FOR BPT...GOOD CHC LCH AND LFT...LIKELY FOR AEX SUGGESTED
AS CLRNG TROF APPCHNG AND SHOWERS WEAKENING IN THE FA. TROF SHUD
MOVE THRU ARND MIDNITE. LKS LIKE SVR ACTIVITY WILL REMAIN TO THE
NORTH. ANTICIPATE WATCH BEING LIFTED BY UPDATE TIME FOR FA.
11

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Jan 23, 9:56 PM CST, 5 hours 39 minutes before
LAZ028-027-TXZ201-181-215-182-216-180-240500-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA
957 PM CST THU JAN 23 1997

...TORNADO WATCH FOR SOUTHEAST TEXAS AND PORTIONS OF SOUTHWEST
LOUISIANA HAS BEEN CANCELLED...

...TORNADO WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF CENTRAL LOUISIANA REMAINS IN EFFECT
UNTIL 11 PM...

RADARS INDICATE ONLY WEAK AND WIDELY SCATTERED SHOWERS FROM SOUTHEAST
TEXAS EAST THROUGH SOUTH LOUISIANA. STRONG THUNDERSTORMS CONTINUE
IN NORTH LOUISIANA. ONLY THE NORTHERN PORTIONS OF VERNON AND RAPIDES
PARISHES REMAIN IN THE WATCH...GENERALLY NORTH OF A LINE FROM LEESVILLE
TO ALEXANDRIA.

STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO...LOCAL TV AND RADIO STATIONS AS WELL
AS CRABLE TV OUTLETS FOR FURTHER UPDATES.
Special weather statement, Jan 23, 9:57 PM CST, 5 hours 38 minutes before
LAZ028-027-TXZ201-181-215-182-216-180-240500-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA
957 PM CST THU JAN 23 1997

...TORNADO WATCH FOR SOUTHEAST TEXAS AND PORTIONS OF SOUTHWEST
LOUISIANA HAS BEEN CANCELLED...

...TORNADO WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF CENTRAL LOUISIANA REMAINS IN EFFECT
UNTIL 11 PM...

RADARS INDICATE ONLY WEAK AND WIDELY SCATTERED SHOWERS FROM SOUTHEAST
TEXAS EAST THROUGH SOUTH LOUISIANA. STRONG THUNDERSTORMS CONTINUE
IN NORTH LOUISIANA. ONLY THE NORTHERN PORTIONS OF VERNON AND RAPIDES
PARISHES REMAIN IN THE WATCH...GENERALLY NORTH OF A LINE FROM LEESVILLE
TO ALEXANDRIA.

STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO...LOCAL TV AND RADIO STATIONS AS WELL
AS CABLE TV OUTLETS FOR FURTHER UPDATES.
Local storm report, Jan 24, 3:18 AM CST, 17 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA
318 AM CST FRI JAN 24 1997

TIME(CST)  .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

228 AM     BALDWIN                   LA   58 MPH TSTM GUST
01/24/97   SAINT MARY
Local storm report, Jan 24, 3:23 AM CST, 12 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA
318 AM CST FRI JAN 24 1997

TIME(CST)  .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

228 AM     BALDWIN                   LA   58 MPH TSTM GUST
01/24/97   SAINT MARY

The office that day

Everything else NWS Lake Charles, LA issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jan 24, 2:06 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLCHIberia, Saint Martin, St. Mary69 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Louisiana, 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; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive.