Alert archive / California / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1997

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 3, NWS San Diego, CA

April 2, 1997San Diego County, California

NWS San Diego, CA issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Apr 2, 1997, 12:40 PM PST for San Diego County, California. It was in force for 60 min. No storm report in the archive falls inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued: Apr 2, 1997, 12:40 PM PST (20:40 UTC)
Expired: Apr 2, 1997, 1:40 PM PST
In force: 60 min
Issued by: NWS San Diego, CA
Area: Whole counties

County San Diego County, CA

The radar

The San Diego radar (KNKX), 28 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 20:44 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.

The nearest sounding before it

San Diego, CA (KNKX), launched 12:00Z, 8.7 hours before the alert went out and 47 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: 138 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -88 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 1488 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 42 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 7 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 19 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.

000 
TTAA00 KSAN 022048 RRA
SVRSAN
CAC073-022140-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM AND FLASH FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SAN DIEGO CA
1240 PM PST APR 2 1997

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN SAN DIEGO HAS ISSUED A
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM AND FLASH FLOOD WARNING
EFFECTIVE UNTIL 140 PM PST
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATION...

IN SOUTHWEST CALIFORNIA

     ...SOUTHWEST SAN DIEGO COUNTY...

AT 1230 PM DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WITH LARGE
HAIL OVER THE CITY OF SAN DIEGO.  DAMAGING WINDS TO 60 MPH ALONG WITH
ONE INCH HAIL AND LOCAL FLOODING CAN BE EXPECTED WITH THE STORM AS IT
MOVES ACROSS THE CITY.  MOVEMENT WAS SOUTHWEST ABOUT 15 MPH.

IF YOU ARE CAUGHT OUTSIDE...SEEK SHvELTER FROM THE WEATHER IN A STRONG
BUILDING.  DEADLY LIGHTNING IS ALSO POSSIBLE IN SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS.
STAY INSIDE AWAY FROM WINDOWS IF POSSIBLE UNTIL THE STORM HAS PASSED.

SMALL
NNNN

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.

NWS San Diego, CA wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at Apr 2, 10:15 AM PST, 2 hours 25 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Apr 2, 10:15 AM PST, 2 hours 25 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SAN DIEGO CA
1015 AM PST WED APR 2 1997
                           ...SYNOPSIS...
AN UNSEASONABLY COLD UPPER LEVEL LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM WILL BRING SHOWERS
AND THUNDERSTORMS ALONG WITH GUSTY WINDS TO THE AREAS THROUGH WEDNESDAY.
SNOW IS EXPECTED IN THE MOUNTAINS...AND HAIL IS EXPECTED WITH THE
THUNDERSTORMS IN THE COASTAL AND VALLEY AREAS...PILING UP ON THE GROUND
LIKE SNOW IN SOME AREAS. THE SYSTEM IS EXPECT TO MOVE EASTWARD ON FRIDAY
FOR MOSTLY SUNNY AND WARM CONDITIONS FOR THE WEEKEND.

                           ...DISCUSSION...
MASSIVE UPPER LEVEL LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM APPARENTLY GOT LOST ON ITS WAY
TO THE EAST COAST.  CLASSIC WET SNA CONDITIONS...WITH HIGH WIND WARNINGS
AND THUNDERSTORMS AT THE SAME TIME. ONE WOULD THINK THAT A LOT OF THE
MSTR WOULD EVAPORATE UNDER THE CLOUDS AS IT FALLS THROUGH THE DOWNSLOPE
WINDS BUT THERE IS MORE TO THIS STORY.  WITH WEAK WINDS HERE IN SAN
DIEGO COUNTY...I AM CONCERNED THAT WE MAY HAVE STNRY CELLS.  THE
MOUNTAIN ACTIVITY IS MAINLY SNOW...AND CLOUDINESS FROM THE EARLY
CONVECTION MAY CUT OFF THE HEATING FOR LATER DEVELOPMENTS. SO THIS EASES
MY MIND SOMEWHAT.  WILL KEEP THE FLASH FLOOD PROBLEM IN THE BACK OF MY
MIND FOR NOW.

LOOKS LIKE THU NIGHT AND FRIDAY THE LOW LIFTS NE FOR DRYING AND
STABILIZING CONDITIONS OVER THE FCST AREA.

SAN EE 065/050 062/051 066 03323

SMALL

The office that day

Everything else NWS San Diego, CA issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Apr 2, 12:40 PM PST	Flash Flood Warning	SGX	San Diego	60 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in California, 1997 Every 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; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.