Alert archive / Arkansas / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1997

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 154, NWS Memphis, TN

May 26, 1997Mississippi County, Arkansas; Lauderdale County, Tennessee

NWS Memphis, TN issued this severe thunderstorm warning at May 26, 1997, 7:19 PM CDT for Mississippi County, Arkansas; Lauderdale County, Tennessee. It was in force for 46 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
May 26, 1997, 7:19 PM CDT (00:19 UTC)
Expired
May 26, 1997, 8:05 PM CDT
In force
46 min
Issued by
NWS Memphis, TN
Area
Whole counties

Counties Mississippi County, AR, Lauderdale County, TN

The radar

The Memphis radar (KNQA), 47 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 00:18 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 26, 7:20 PM CDTHail 0.75Halls, TN

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

Little Rock, AR (KLZK), launched 00:00Z, 0.3 hours before the alert went out and 104 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, Little Rock, AR at 00:00Z on 1997-05-27Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 4008 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, Little Rock, AR at 00:00Z on 1997-05-27The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 30 square meters per square second.193958Sfc1 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
4008 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-14 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
884 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
30 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
30 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
121 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.8
Supercell composite
4.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

471 
WUUS1 KMEM 270020 RRA
SVRMEM
ARC093-TNC097-270105-

BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEMPHIS TN
719 PM CDT MON MAY 26 1997

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN MEMPHIS TN HAS ISSUED A
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 805 PM CDT
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS...

IN NORTHEASTERN ARKANSAS

   ...MISSISSIPPI COUNTY

IN WESTERN TENNESSEE

   ...LAUDERDALE COUNTY
 
AT 718 PM CDT...DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WITH
LARGE HAIL 5 MILES NORTHEAST OF BLYTHEVILLE. THIS STORM IS MOVING
SOUTHEAST AT 30 MPH AND WILL CROSS THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER INTO
LAUDERDALE COUNTY BY 730 PM.

.SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS PRODUCE DAMAGING WIND IN EXCESS OF 55 MPH...
DESTRUCTIVE HAIL...DEADLY LIGHTNING...AND VERY HEAVY RAIN. FOR YOUR
PROTECTION...MOVE TO AN INTERIOR ROOM ON THE LOWEST FLOOR OF YOUR
HOME OR BUSINESS.  HEAVY RAINS FLOOD ROADS QUICKLY SO DO NOT DRIVE
INTO AREAS WHERE WATER COVERS THE ROAD.

The office that day

Everything else NWS Memphis, TN issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 26, 8:15 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMEGRandolph45 min
May 26, 10:10 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMEGRandolph50 min
May 26, 10:31 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMEGLawrence49 min
May 26, 11:01 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMEGRandolph34 min
May 26, 11:16 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMEGLawrence49 min
May 26, 11:21 PM CDTTornado WarningMEGLawrence34 min
May 26, 11:48 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMEGGreene47 min
May 26, 11:57 PM CDTTornado WarningMEGCraighead48 min
May 27, 1:06 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMEGLawrence34 min
May 27, 1:12 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMEGCraighead48 min
May 27, 1:40 AM CDTTornado WarningMEGCraighead30 min
May 27, 2:11 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMEGPoinsett49 min
May 27, 2:39 AM CDTTornado WarningMEGCross, Poinsett31 min
May 27, 3:06 AM CDTTornado WarningMEGCrittenden49 min
May 27, 3:12 AM CDTTornado WarningMEGMississippi, Poinsett48 min
May 26, 7:37 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMEGHaywood48 min
May 26, 7:58 PM CDTTornado WarningMEGHaywood32 min
May 26, 8:09 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMEGMadison46 min
May 26, 8:30 PM CDTTornado WarningMEGMadison35 min
May 26, 9:02 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMEGChester33 min
May 26, 9:04 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMEGHardeman51 min
May 26, 9:12 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMEGMcNairy48 min
May 26, 9:39 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMEGHardin46 min
May 27, 3:24 AM CDTTornado WarningMEGTipton31 min
May 27, 3:37 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMEGShelby48 min
May 27, 4:12 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMEGFayette33 min
May 27, 4:44 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMEGHardeman46 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Arkansas, 1997Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Tennessee, 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.