Alert archive / Texas / Tornado Warnings in 1997

Tornado Warning 21, NWS Lubbock, TX

May 22, 1997Swisher County, Texas

NWS Lubbock, TX issued this tornado warning at May 22, 1997, 8:10 PM CDT for Swisher County, Texas. It was in force for 35 min. 4 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 22, 1997, 8:10 PM CDT (01:10 UTC)
Expired
May 22, 1997, 8:45 PM CDT
In force
35 min
Issued by
NWS Lubbock, TX
Area
Whole counties

County Swisher County, TX

The radar

The Amarillo radar (KAMA), 78 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 01:12 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

TimeReportWhereRemark
May 22, 8:10 PM CDTHail 0.75Tulia, TX
May 22, 8:25 PM CDTHail 1Tulia, TX
May 22, 8:40 PM CDTTornado F0Kress, TX
May 22, 8:55 PM CDTHail 1.75Tulia, 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

Amarillo Airport, TX (KAMA), launched 00:00Z, 1.2 hours before the alert went out and 78 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, Amarillo Airport, TX at 00:00Z on 1997-05-23Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1543 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, Amarillo Airport, TX at 00:00Z on 1997-05-23The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 145 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
1543 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-6 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
937 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
27 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
145 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
358 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
1.4
Supercell composite
9.6

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
TTAA00 KLBB 230110 RRA
TORLBB
TXC437-230145-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LUBBOCK TX
810 PM CDT THU MAY 22 1997

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN LUBBOCK TX HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 845 PM CDT
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATION...

IN THE TEXAS PANHANDLE

   ...SWISHER COUNTY
 
AT 808 PM CDT...A DEVELOPING TORNADO WAS REPORTED BY CASTRO COUNTY
SHERIFFS OFFICE 12 MILES SOUTHWEST OF TULIA OR 11 MILES WEST
NORTHWEST OF KRESS ALONG FM 928 MOVING EAST AT 15 MPH.

THE TORNADO IS EXPECTED TO REMAIN OVER RURAL AREAS.

IF YOU ARE IN THE PATH OF A TORNADO...THE SAFEST PLACE IS A
BASEMENT. GET UNDER A WORKBENCH OR PIECE OF STURDY FURNITURE. IF NO
BASEMENTT IS AVAILABLE...SEEK SAFETY IN AN INTERIOR ROOM SUCH AS A
CLOSET ON THE LOWEST FLOOR. USE BLANKETS...PILLOWS...OR CUSHIONS TO
COVER YOUR BODY. AVOID WINDOWS.

RB/JL

The office that day

Everything else NWS Lubbock, TX issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 22, 7:15 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLUBCastro50 min
May 22, 7:32 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLUBSwisher63 min
May 22, 8:09 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLUBCastro46 min
May 22, 8:32 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningLUBSwisher118 min
May 22, 8:48 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLUBSwisher62 min
May 22, 9:47 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLUBSwisher43 min
May 22, 10:34 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLUBHale, Swisher46 min
May 23, 4:20 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLUBHall65 min
May 23, 5:08 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLUBBriscoe37 min
May 23, 5:47 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLUBBriscoe, Hall48 min
May 23, 6:19 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningLUBBriscoe, Hall2 hr

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; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.