Alert archive / Tennessee / Tornado Warnings in 1997

Tornado Warning 3, NWS Morristown, TN

March 5, 19974 counties in Tennessee

NWS Morristown, TN issued this tornado warning at Mar 5, 1997, 11:30 AM EST for 4 counties in Tennessee. It was in force for 60 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
Mar 5, 1997, 11:30 AM EST (16:30 UTC)
Expired
Mar 5, 1997, 12:30 PM EST
In force
60 min
Issued by
NWS Morristown, TN
Area
Whole counties

Counties Anderson County, TN, Campbell County, TN, Morgan County, TN, Scott County, TN

The radar

The Knoxville radar (KMRX), 88 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 16:33 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
Mar 5, 11:45 AM ESTThunderstorm WindNrn Part Of County, 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

Peachtre/Fal Fld, GA (KFFC), launched 12:00Z, 4.5 hours before the alert went out and 323 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, Peachtre/Fal Fld, GA at 12:00Z on 1997-03-05Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 11 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, Peachtre/Fal Fld, GA at 12:00Z on 1997-03-05The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 81 square meters per square second.1939587897Sfc1 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
11 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-224 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
672 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
45 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
81 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
153 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

051 
WFUS01 KMRX 051632 RRA
TORMRX
TNC001-013-129-151-051730-
 
BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE KNOXVILLE TRI CITIES TN
1130 AM EST (1030 AM CST) WED MAR 5 1997
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN KNOXVILLE TRI CITIES HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 1230 PM EST (1130 AM CST)
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS...
 
IN EAST TENNESSEE
 
   ...ANDERSON COUNTY...SOUTHERN CAMPBELL COUNTY
   ...EASTERN MORGAN COUNTY...SOUTHERN SCOTT COUNTY
 
AT 1130 AM DOPPLER RADAR INDICATES AN INTENSE THUNDERSTORM WITH A
TORNADO IN MORGAN COUNTY JUST NORTH OF WARTBURG.
 
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 SHELTER 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 Morristown, TN issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Mar 5, 8:38 AM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMRXFentress52 min
Mar 5, 8:54 AM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMRXScott66 min
Mar 5, 9:39 AM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMRXCumberland, Fentress66 min
Mar 5, 9:59 AM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMRXMorgan61 min
Mar 5, 10:04 AM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMRXScott56 min
Mar 5, 10:21 AM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMRXCampbell69 min
Mar 5, 10:47 AM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMRXClaiborne, Union58 min
Mar 5, 10:53 AM ESTTornado WarningMRXCampbell37 min
Mar 5, 11:35 AM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMRXHancock55 min
Mar 5, 11:41 AM ESTFlash Flood WarningMRXCumberland, Fentress, Morgan, Scott4 hr
Mar 5, 11:41 AM ESTFlash Flood WarningMRXClaiborne, Hancock4 hr
Mar 5, 11:41 AM ESTFlash Flood WarningMRXAnderson, Campbell, Union4 hr
Mar 5, 11:59 AM ESTFlash Flood WarningMRXClaiborne, Union46 min
Mar 5, 11:59 AM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMRXClaiborne, Union46 min
Mar 5, 12:49 PM ESTFlash Flood WarningMRXGrainger, Hawkins4 hr
Mar 5, 2:10 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMRXRhea, Roane35 min
Mar 5, 2:36 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMRXKnox, Loudon39 min
Mar 5, 2:54 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMRXBlount, Sevier36 min
Mar 5, 3:29 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMRXCocke, Greene61 min
Mar 5, 4:09 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMRXCarter51 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Tennessee, 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.