Alert archive / Ohio / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1997
Severe Thunderstorm Warning 4, NWS Pittsburgh, PA
NWS Pittsburgh, PA issued this severe thunderstorm warning at May 3, 1997, 3:04 PM EDT for Columbiana County, Jefferson County, Ohio; Hancock County, West Virginia. It was in force for 41 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 3, 1997, 3:04 PM EDT (19:04 UTC)
- Expired
- May 3, 1997, 3:45 PM EDT
- In force
- 41 min
- Issued by
- NWS Pittsburgh, PA
- Area
- Whole counties
Counties Columbiana County, OH, Jefferson County, OH, Hancock County, WV
What was reported inside it
| Time | Report | Where | Remark |
|---|---|---|---|
| May 3, 3:05 PM EDT | Thunderstorm Wind | East Liverpool, OH | Trees and power lines were downed throughout the county. Fifteen miles north of East Liverpool several trees were downed and pea size hail was also reported. Three miles northwest of Georgetown, in the northwest part of the county, some large highway signs w |
| May 3, 3:05 PM EDT | Thunderstorm Wind | Steubenville, OH | Some small trees and several large branches were downed by thunderstorm winds throughout the county. |
| May 3, 3:15 PM EDT | Thunderstorm Wind | Weirton, WV | Thunderstorm winds tore a roof off of a trailer near King's Creek and several large trees were downed. |
| May 3, 3:30 PM EDT | Thunderstorm Wind | Hanoverton, OH | Thunderstorm winds downed fifteen 30 foot tall pine trees. A trampoline was blown through a fence. Shingles were blown off of a roof and a television antenna was bent down into power lines that resulted in a house fire. |
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
Pittsburgh, PA (KPIT), launched 12:00Z, 7.1 hours before the alert went out and 54 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.
- Mixed-layer CAPE
- 12 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -73 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 579 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 66 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 478 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 446 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 0.0
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000 TTAA00 KPIT 031903 RRA SVRPIT OHC029-081-WVC029-031945- BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PITTSBURGH PA 304 PM EDT SAT MAY 3 1997 THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN PITTSBURGH HAS ISSUED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 345 PM EDT FOR THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS... IN EAST CENTRAL OHIO ...COLUMBIANA COUNTY...JEFFERSON COUNTY IN THE WEST VIRGINIA PANHANDLE ...HANCOCK COUNTY A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WAS MOVING ACROSS EAST-CENTRAL OHIO. EXPECT VERY GUSTY WINDS TO NEAR 60 MPH. THIS STORM HAS A HISTORY OF DOWNING LARGE TREES AND PRODUCING HAIL. TOWNS IN THE PATH OF THIS STORM INCLUDE...EAST LIVERPOOL IN COLUMBIANA COUNTY OHIO...IRONDALE IN NORTHERN JEFFERSON COU YOHIO AND CHESTER IN HANCOCK COUNTY WEST VIRGINIA. SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS PRODUCE DAMAGING WIND OVER 55 MPH...DESTRUCTIVE HAIL...DEADLY LIGHTNING...AND VERY HEAVY RAIN. FOR YOUR PROTECTION MOVE TO AN INTERIOR ROOM ON THE LOWEST FLOOR OF YOUR BUILDING. HEAVY RAINS FLOOD ROADS QUICKLY SO DO NOT DRIVE INTO AREAS WHERE WATER COVERS THE ROAD. &
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.
In the hours before
Special weather statement, May 3, 11:10 AM EDT, 3 hours 54 minutes before
PAZ007>009-013>016-020>023-029>032-WVZ001>004-012-021>023-041-MDZ001- OHZ039>041-O48>050-057>059-068-069-041200- SEVERE WEATHER POTENTIAL OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PITTSBURGH PA 1110 AM EDT SAT MAY 3 1997 ...THUNDERSTORMS WITH STRONG WIND GUSTS AND POSSIBLY HAIL THIS AFTERNOON ACROSS THESE FOLLOWING AREAS.. EAST CENTRAL OHIO... WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA... EXTREME NORTHERN WEST VIRGINIA... EXTREME WESTERN MARYLAND. ...HAZARD SPECIFICS... BEWARE OF RAPIDLY MOVING THUNDERSTORMS THIS AFTERNOON THAT CAN GENERATE WIND GUSTS OVER 50 MPH AND SOME HAIL. THE WIND GUSTS MAY GET HIGH ENOUGH TO CAUSE DAMAGE. THE HAIL SHOULD BE LIMITED IN SIZE BUT THE POSSIBILITY OF SMALL HAILSTONES COVERING THE GROUND TO A DEPTH OF AN INCH OR SO CANNOT BE RULED OUT. REGARDING RAINFALL...ANY DOWNPOURS SHOULD BE BE BRIEF. REGARDING LIGHTNING...THERE CAN BE CLOUD TO GROUND STROKES...WHICH OF COURSE ARE ALWAYS DANGEROUS. BUT THESE STROKES SHOULD NOT BE FREQUENT. ...HAZARD TIMING... THE PERIOD FOR THE MOST HEIGHTENED SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WEATHER AWARENESS ARE AS FOLLOWS... IN EAST CENTRAL OHIO...EARLY THIS AFTERNOON...TIL AROUND 3 OR 4 PM. IN FAR WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA AND NORTHERN WEST VIRGINIA AND WESTERN MARYLAND...ALL AFTERNOON TIL AROUND 6 TO 7 PM. THE FOCUS OF THE STRONGEST STORMS WILL BE WITH THE PASSAGE OF THE COLD FRONT AND FOR UP TO ABOUT 3 HOURS AFTERWARDS AS COLD AIR ARRIVES ALOFT TO INCREASE THE ATMOSPHERES INSTABILITY. THE TIMES OF FRONTAL PASSAGE WILL BE AS FOLLOWS... ZANESVILLE OH....AROUND 11 AM. WHEELING WV AROUND 12 NOON FRANKLIN PA...PITTSBURGH PA AND MORGANTOWN...AROUND 1 PM. BROOKVILLE PA...LATROBE PA AND CONNELLSVILLE PA...AROUND 2 PM. DEEP CREEK LAKE MD...AROUND 3 PM. STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO FOR UPDATES FROM YOUR NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE. ...SKYWARN... SKYWARN OBSERVERS...CALL IN REPORTS OF DAMAGE AND SIGNIFICANT WIND GUSTS AND HAIL AS NEEDED. GIORDANO/MURPHY
Local storm report, May 3, 2:22 PM EDT, 42 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OFFICE PITTSBURGH PA
230 PM EDT THU MAY 03 1997
TIME(EST) .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE ...EVENT/REMARKS...
....COUNTY LOCATION....
127 PM SHARON PA .75 INCH HAIL
05/03/97 MERCER AMATEUR RADIO/SKYWARN
145 PM FREDONIA PA .75 INCH HAIL
05/03/97 MERCER SKYWARN
GIORDANO/MURPHY
&Local storm report, May 3, 2:25 PM EDT, 39 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OFFICE PITTSBURGH PA
230 PM EDT SAT MAY 03 1997
TIME(EST) .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE ...EVENT/REMARKS...
....COUNTY LOCATION....
127 PM SHARON PA .75 INCH HAIL
05/03/97 MERCER AMATEUR RADIO/SKYWARN
145 PM FREDONIA PA .75 INCH HAIL
05/03/97 MERCER SKYWARN
GIORDANO/MURPHY
0Local storm report, May 3, 2:30 PM EDT, 34 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OFFICE PITTSBURGH PA
230 PM EDT SAT MAY 03 1997
TIME(EST) .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE ...EVENT/REMARKS...
....COUNTY LOCATION....
127 PM SHARON PA .75 INCH HAIL
05/03/97 MERCER AMATEUR RADIO/SKYWARN
145 PM FREDONIA PA .75 INCH HAIL
05/03/97 MERCER SKYWARN
GIORDANO/MURPHYSpecial weather statement, May 3, 2:58 PM EDT, 6 minutes before
MDZ001-OHZ039>041-048>050-057>059-068-069-PAZ007>009-013>016- 020>023-029>032-WVZ001>004-012-021>023-041-032005- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PITTSBURGH PA 259 PM EDT SAT MAY 3 1997 ...THUNDERSTORMS WERE MOVING ACROSS THE REGION WITH SMALL HAIL AND GUSTY WINDS... A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 800 PM. EXPECT THUNDERSTORMS TO PUSH ACROSS WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA...NORTHERN WEST VIRGINIA...EAST-CENTRAL OHIO AND GARRETT COUNTY MARYLAND. THEY WILL PRODUCE HAIL RANGING IN SIZE FROM ONE QUARTER OF AN INCH TO ONE HALF INCH. A FEW OF THE STORMS COULD PRODUCE HAIL UP TO THREE QUARTERS OF AN INCH. WINDS WILL ALSO GUST OUT OF THE WEST TO NEAR 50 MPH ALONG WITH OCCASIONAL LIGHTNING AND SOME BRIEF HEAVY RAIN. SOME OF THE STRONGEST STORMS AT 255 PM WERE OVER BUTLER AND ARMSTRONG COUNTIES IN PENNSYLVANIA. ANOTHER LINE OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WAS MOVING INTO COLUMBIANA...CARROLL...AND BELMONT COUNTIES. THESE STORMS WILL ALSO HAVE SMALL HAIL AND GUSTY WINDS. A FRONTAL SYSTEM ACROSS EASTERN OHIO WILL PUSH ACROSS THE REGION THIS AFTERNOON. SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL POP UP AS THE FRONT COMES THROUGH. THE SHOWERS AND STORMS WILL DIMINISH AFTER SUNSET AS COOLER DRIER AIR MOVES INTO THE REGION.
Special weather statement, May 3, 2:59 PM EDT, 5 minutes before
MDZ001-OHZ039>041-048>050-057>059-068-069-PAZ007>009-013>016- 020>023-029>032-WVZ001>004-012-021>023-041-032005- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PITTSBURGH PA 259 PM EDT SAT MAY 3 1997 ...THUNDERSTORMS WERE MOVING ACROSS THE REGION WITH SMALL HAIL AND GUSTY WINDS... A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 800 PM. EXPECT THUNDERSTORMS TO PUSH ACROSS WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA...NORTHERN WEST VIRGINIA...EAST-CENTRAL OHIO AND GARRETT COUNTY MARYLAND. THEY WILL PRODUCE HAIL RANGING IN SIZE FROM ONE QUARTER OF AN INCH TO ONE HALF INCH. A FEW OF THE STORMS COULD PRODUCE HAIL UP TO THREE QUARTERS OF AN INCH. WINDS WILL ALSO GUST OUT OF THE WEST TO NEAR 50 MPH ALONG WITH OCCASIONAL LIGHTNING AND SOME BRIEF HEAVY RAIN. SOME OF THE STRONGEST STORMS AT 255 PM WERE OVER BUTLER AND ARMSTRONG COUNTIES IN PENNSYLVANIA. ANOTHER LINE OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WAS MOVING INTO COLUMBIANA...CARROLL...AND BELMONT COUNTIES. THESE STORMS WILL ALSO HAVE SMALL HAIL AND GUSTY WINDS. A FRONTAL SYSTEM ACROSS EASTERN OHIO WILL PUSH ACROSS THE REGION THIS AFTERNOON. SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL POP UP AS THE FRONT COMES THROUGH. THE SHOWERS AND STORMS WILL DIMINISH AFTER SUNSET AS COOLER DRIER AIR MOVES INTO THE REGION.
The office that day
Everything else NWS Pittsburgh, PA issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 3, 2:31 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | PBZ | Muskingum | 44 min |
| May 3, 3:48 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | PBZ | Brooke, Ohio | 42 min |
| May 3, 3:48 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | PBZ | Marshall | 42 min |
Nearby
Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Ohio, 1997Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in West Virginia, 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.