Alert archive / Louisiana / Tornado Watches in 1997

Tornado Watch 134

April 4, 199712 counties in Arkansas; 26 parishes in Louisiana; Adams County, Mississippi

The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at Apr 4, 1997, 4:00 PM CST for 12 counties in Arkansas; 26 parishes in Louisiana; Adams County, Mississippi. It was in force for 6 hr.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
Apr 4, 1997, 4:00 PM CST (22:00 UTC)
Expired
Apr 4, 1997, 10:00 PM CST
In force
6 hr
Issued by
the Storm Prediction Center
All 39 counties

Ashley County, AR, Bradley County, AR, Calhoun County, AR, Chicot County, AR, Columbia County, AR, Drew County, AR, Hempstead County, AR, Lafayette County, AR, Miller County, AR, Nevada County, AR, Ouachita County, AR, Union County, AR, Bienville Parish, LA, Bossier Parish, LA, Caddo Parish, LA, Caldwell Parish, LA, Catahoula Parish, LA, Claiborne Parish, LA, Concordia Parish, LA, De Soto Parish, LA, East Carroll Parish, LA, Franklin Parish, LA, Grant Parish, LA, Jackson Parish, LA, LaSalle Parish, LA, Lincoln Parish, LA, Madison Parish, LA, Morehouse Parish, LA, Natchitoches Parish, LA, Ouachita Parish, LA, Red River Parish, LA, Richland Parish, LA, Sabine Parish, LA, Tensas Parish, LA, Union Parish, LA, Webster Parish, LA, West Carroll Parish, LA, Winn Parish, LA, Adams County, MS

The radar

The Shreveport radar (KSHV), 99 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 22:00 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.

Warnings issued inside it

16 tornado, severe thunderstorm and flash flood warnings for its counties while it was in force.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Apr 4, 4:11 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningSHVBossier, Caddo49 min
Apr 4, 4:23 PM CSTFlash Flood WarningSHVBossier, Caddo3 hr
Apr 4, 4:48 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningSHVWebster27 min
Apr 4, 4:52 PM CSTTornado WarningSHVWebster38 min
Apr 4, 5:10 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningSHVClaiborne50 min
Apr 4, 5:22 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningSHVUnion68 min
Apr 4, 6:48 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningSHVBossier42 min
Apr 4, 7:19 PM CSTFlash Flood WarningSHVClaiborne4 hr
Apr 4, 7:56 PM CSTFlash Flood WarningSHVUnion4 hr
Apr 4, 8:12 PM CSTFlash Flood WarningSHVBossier, Caddo, De Soto5 hr
Apr 4, 8:12 PM CSTFlash Flood WarningSHVWebster5 hr
Apr 4, 8:23 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLZKBradley47 min
Apr 4, 8:40 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningSHVBossier35 min
Apr 4, 9:17 PM CSTFlash Flood WarningLZKBradley, Calhoun, Cleveland3 hr
Apr 4, 9:17 PM CSTFlash Flood WarningLZKDrew3 hr
Apr 4, 9:35 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningSHVBossier25 min

The nearest sounding before it

Shreveport, LA (KSHV), launched 12:00Z, 10.0 hours before the alert went out and 90 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, Shreveport, LA at 12:00Z on 1997-04-04Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 0 joules per kilogram.LCL10008507005003002001001 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, Shreveport, LA at 12:00Z on 1997-04-04The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 154 square meters per square second.19395878Sfc1 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
0 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL
533 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
21 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
154 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
237 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.3

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

302 
WWUS9 KMKC 042139
SEL4  
MKC WW 042139
ARZ000-LAZ000-050400-

BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 134
STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
339 PM CST FRI APR 4 1997

A...THE STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WATCH FOR

   PARTS OF SOUTHERN ARKANSAS                           
   MUCH OF NORTHERN LOUISIANA                          

EFFECTIVE THIS FRIDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING UNTIL 1000 PM CST.

TORNADOES...LARGE HAIL...DANGEROUS LIGHTNING AND DAMAGING
THUNDERSTORM WINDS ARE POSSIBLE IN THESE AREAS.


THE TORNADO WATCH AREA IS ALONG AND 80 STATUTE MILES NORTH AND
SOUTH OF A LINE FROM 25 MILES NORTHWEST OF SHREVEPORT LOUISIANA TO
55 MILES EAST OF MONROE LOUISIANA.

REMEMBER...A TORNADO WATCH MEANS CONDITIONS ARE FAVORABLE FOR
TORNADOES AND SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS IN AND CLOSE TO THE WATCH AREA. 
PERSONS IN THESE AREAS SHOULD BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR THREATENING
WEATHER CONDITIONS AND LISTEN FOR LATER STATEMENTS AND POSSIBLE
WARNINGS.
$$

C...TORNADOES AND A FEW SVR TSTMS WITH HAIL SFC AND ALF TO 1 3/4
INCHES.  EXTRM TURBC AND SFC WIND GUSTS TO 70 KNOTS.  A FEW CBS
WITH MAX TOPS TO 450.  MEAN WIND VECTOR 22040.

D...LARGE SUPERCELL STM OVR EXTRM NE TX WL MOVE INTO NWRN LA DURG
THE NEXT HR. OTR STMS ARE DVLPG ALONG RETREATING WRMFNT OVR N CNTRL
LA. MDT INSTBY AND INCRG DEEP LYR SHEAR WL SUPPORT A CONTD THREAT
FOR SUPERCELL STMS AND ISOLD TORNADOES...ESP INVOF WRMFNT.

E...OTR TSTMS...  CONT..WW 131..WW 132..WW 133..

...VESCIO

SPC that day

Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Apr 4, 5:15 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCHoward, Little River, Pike, Polk, Sevier6 hr
Apr 4, 2:15 PM CSTTornado WatchSPCDe Soto6 hr

Nearby

Tornado Watches in Louisiana, 1997Tornado Watches in Arkansas, 1997Tornado Watches in Mississippi, 1997Every tornado watch 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.