Alert archive / Mississippi / Tornado Watches in 1997

Tornado Watch 241

May 3, 1997Lamar County, Pickens County, Alabama; 62 counties in Mississippi

The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at May 3, 1997, 12:00 AM CDT for Lamar County, Pickens County, Alabama; 62 counties in Mississippi. It was in force for 6 hr.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
May 3, 1997, 12:00 AM CDT (05:00 UTC)
Expired
May 3, 1997, 6:00 AM CDT
In force
6 hr
Issued by
the Storm Prediction Center
All 64 counties

Lamar County, AL, Pickens County, AL, Adams County, MS, Amite County, MS, Attala County, MS, Bolivar County, MS, Calhoun County, MS, Carroll County, MS, Chickasaw County, MS, Choctaw County, MS, Claiborne County, MS, Clarke County, MS, Clay County, MS, Coahoma County, MS, Copiah County, MS, Covington County, MS, Forrest County, MS, Franklin County, MS, Greene County, MS, Grenada County, MS, Hinds County, MS, Holmes County, MS, Humphreys County, MS, Issaquena County, MS, Jasper County, MS, Jefferson County, MS, Jefferson Davis County, MS, Jones County, MS, Kemper County, MS, Lamar County, MS, Lauderdale County, MS, Lawrence County, MS, Leake County, MS, Leflore County, MS, Lincoln County, MS, Lowndes County, MS, Madison County, MS, Marion County, MS, Monroe County, MS, Montgomery County, MS, Neshoba County, MS, Newton County, MS, Noxubee County, MS, Oktibbeha County, MS, Perry County, MS, Pike County, MS, Pontotoc County, MS, Quitman County, MS, Rankin County, MS, Scott County, MS, Sharkey County, MS, Simpson County, MS, Smith County, MS, Sunflower County, MS, Tallahatchie County, MS, Walthall County, MS, Warren County, MS, Washington County, MS, Wayne County, MS, Webster County, MS, Wilkinson County, MS, Winston County, MS, Yalobusha County, MS, Yazoo County, MS

Warnings issued inside it

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 3, 12:15 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMEGChickasaw, Monroe35 min
May 3, 12:17 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANHinds, Rankin43 min
May 3, 12:21 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANMontgomery54 min
May 3, 12:55 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMEGClay, Lowndes, Monroe30 min
May 3, 1:04 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANWarren, Yazoo41 min
May 3, 1:18 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANHinds, Madison42 min
May 3, 1:56 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANMadison, Rankin49 min
May 3, 1:57 AM CDTFlash Flood WarningBMXFayette, Lamar, Marion, Walker4 hr
May 3, 2:22 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANLeake, Scott53 min
May 3, 2:40 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANKemper, Neshoba50 min
May 3, 2:52 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANNoxubee53 min
May 3, 2:57 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANNewton63 min
May 3, 3:16 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANLauderdale44 min
May 3, 4:18 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANClarke42 min
May 3, 4:52 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANLamar, Marion53 min
May 3, 5:15 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANForrest, Jones45 min
May 3, 5:30 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMOBPerry60 min

The nearest sounding before it

Jackson, MS (KJAN), launched 00:00Z, 5.0 hours before the alert went out and 4 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, Jackson, MS at 00:00Z on 1997-05-03Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 2009 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 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, Jackson, MS at 00:00Z on 1997-05-03The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 276 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
2009 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-16 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1075 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
61 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
276 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
400 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
4.0
Supercell composite
14.9

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

382 
WWUS9 KMKC 030425
SEL1  
MKC WW 030425
MSZ000-031100-

BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 241
STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
1125 PM CDT FRI MAY 2 1997

THE STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WATCH FOR ALL OR PORTIONS OF

   MUCH OF MISSISSIPPI                        

EFFECTIVE THIS SATURDAY MORNING FROM MIDNIGHT CDT UNTIL 600 AM CDT.

TORNADOES...HAIL TO 2 INCHES IN DIAMETER...THUNDERSTORM WIND GUSTS
TO 80 MPH...AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE IN THESE AREAS.

THE TORNADO WATCH AREA IS ALONG AND 85 STATUTE MILES EAST AND WEST
OF A LINE FROM 30 MILES EAST SOUTHEAST OF MC COMB MISSISSIPPI TO 35
MILES WEST OF TUPELO MISSISSIPPI.

OTHER WATCH INFORMATION...THIS TORNADO WATCH REPLACES TORNADO WATCH
NUMBER 238.  WATCH NUMBER 238 WILL NOT BE IN EFFECT AFTER MIDNIGHT
CDT.  CONTINUE...WW 239...WW 240...

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.

DISCUSSION...STRONG TO SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS CONTINUE ALONG OUTFLOW
BOUNDARY OVER NORTHERN MS. ALTHOUGH CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN MS HAVE
REMAINED CAPPED FOR MUCH OF THE EVENING...STG/SVR TSTMS SHOULD MOVE
INTO THE AREA FROM NORTHEAST LOUISIANA AS COLD FRONT APPROACHES.
LOW LEVEL FLOW HAS VEERED SOMEWHAT...BUT THERE STILL IS A THREAT
FOR AN ISOLATED TORNADO.


AVIATION...TORNADOES AND A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH HAIL
SURFACE AND ALOFT TO 2 INCHES.  EXTREME TURBULENCE AND SURFACE WIND
GUSTS TO 70 KNOTS.  A FEW CUMULONIMBI WITH MAXIMUM TOPS TO 500. 
MEAN STORM MOTION VECTOR 26035.


...VESCIO

310,0912 341,0905 341,0875 310,0883

SPC that day

Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 2, 8:00 PM CDTTornado WatchSPCAutauga, Bibb, Blount, Calhoun, Chambers, Cherokee and 29 more6 hr
May 3, 2:00 AM CDTTornado WatchSPCAutauga, Bibb, Blount, Calhoun, Chambers, Cherokee and 29 more6 hr
May 3, 6:30 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCAutauga, Baldwin, Barbour, Bullock, Butler, Chambers and 23 more6 hr
May 3, 7:30 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCRussell6 hr
May 2, 10:15 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCIssaquena, Sharkey6 hr
May 3, 2:00 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCGeorge, Hancock, Harrison, Pearl River, Stone6 hr

Nearby

Tornado Watches in Mississippi, 1997Tornado Watches in Alabama, 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.