Alert archive / Mississippi / Tornado Warnings in 1997

Tornado Warning 1, NWS Memphis, TN

March 1, 1997Calhoun County, Pontotoc County, Mississippi

NWS Memphis, TN issued this tornado warning at Mar 1, 1997, 12:44 AM CST for Calhoun County, Pontotoc County, Mississippi. It was in force for 51 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: Mar 1, 1997, 12:44 AM CST (06:44 UTC)
Expired: Mar 1, 1997, 1:35 AM CST
In force: 51 min
Issued by: NWS Memphis, TN
Area: Whole counties

Counties Calhoun County, MS, Pontotoc County, MS

What was reported inside it

Time	Report	Where
Mar 1, 12:47 AM CST	Tornado F1	Shepherd, MS
Mar 1, 12:52 AM CST	Hail 0.75	Pontotoc, MS
Mar 1, 1:00 AM CST	Thunderstorm Wind	Pontotoc, MS
Mar 1, 1:00 AM CST	Tornado F1	Robbs, MS

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, 6.7 hours before the alert went out and 109 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-p

Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.

Hodograph

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: 3 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -249 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 490 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 63 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 285 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 344 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.0
Supercell composite: 0.5

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
TTAA00 KMEM 010644 RRA
TORMEM
MSC013-115-010735-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEMPHIS TN
1244 AM CST SAT MAR 1 1997

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN MEMPHIS TN HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 135 AM CST
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATION...

IN NORTHEASTERN MISSISSIPPI

   ...NORTHEASTERN CALHOUN COUNTY
   ...PONTOTOC COUNTY
 
AT 1243 AM CST...A DEVELOPING TORNADO WAS INDICATED BY DOPPLER
WEATHER RADAR 14 MILES SOUTHWEST OF PONTOTOC OR 13 MILES SOUTH OF
THAXTON MOVING NORTHEAST AT 40 MPH.

THIS TORNADO WILL PASS NEAR THAXTON BY 1250 AM CST... PONTOTOC BY
1255 AM CST AND ECRU BY 100 AM CST.

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
BASEMENT 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.

The office that day

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

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Mar 1, 12:41 AM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MEG	Calhoun, Pontotoc	49 min
Mar 1, 1:09 AM CST	Tornado Warning	MEG	Lee, Union	31 min
Mar 1, 2:08 AM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MEG	Yalobusha	32 min
Mar 1, 2:20 AM CST	Tornado Warning	MEG	Yalobusha	35 min
Mar 1, 2:33 AM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MEG	Tishomingo	32 min
Mar 1, 2:35 AM CST	Tornado Warning	MEG	Calhoun	35 min
Mar 1, 2:41 AM CST	Tornado Warning	MEG	Tishomingo	19 min
Mar 1, 2:49 AM CST	Tornado Warning	MEG	Lafayette	31 min
Mar 1, 3:04 AM CST	Tornado Warning	MEG	Pontotoc, Union	51 min
Mar 1, 5:28 AM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MEG	Tippah	32 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Mississippi, 1997 Every tornado warning in 1997 Tornadoes 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.