Alert archive / Ohio / Tornado Watches in 1997

Tornado Watch 301

May 18, 19978 counties in Indiana; 6 counties in Michigan; 55 counties in Ohio

The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at May 18, 1997, 10:00 PM EST for 8 counties in Indiana; 6 counties in Michigan; 55 counties in Ohio. It was in force for 6 hr.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
May 18, 1997, 10:00 PM EST (03:00 UTC)
Expired
May 19, 1997, 4:00 AM EST
In force
6 hr
Issued by
the Storm Prediction Center
All 69 counties

Adams County, IN, Allen County, IN, Blackford County, IN, DeKalb County, IN, Jay County, IN, Randolph County, IN, Steuben County, IN, Wells County, IN, Branch County, MI, Calhoun County, MI, Hillsdale County, MI, Jackson County, MI, Lenawee County, MI, Monroe County, MI, Allen County, OH, Ashland County, OH, Ashtabula County, OH, Auglaize County, OH, Belmont County, OH, Carroll County, OH, Champaign County, OH, Columbiana County, OH, Coshocton County, OH, Crawford County, OH, Cuyahoga County, OH, Darke County, OH, Defiance County, OH, Delaware County, OH, Erie County, OH, Fulton County, OH, Geauga County, OH, Guernsey County, OH, Hancock County, OH, Hardin County, OH, Harrison County, OH, Henry County, OH, Holmes County, OH, Huron County, OH, Jefferson County, OH, Knox County, OH, Lake County, OH, Licking County, OH, Logan County, OH, Lorain County, OH, Lucas County, OH, Mahoning County, OH, Marion County, OH, Medina County, OH, Mercer County, OH, Morrow County, OH, Muskingum County, OH, Ottawa County, OH, Paulding County, OH, Portage County, OH, Putnam County, OH, Richland County, OH, Sandusky County, OH, Seneca County, OH, Shelby County, OH, Stark County, OH, Summit County, OH, Trumbull County, OH, Tuscarawas County, OH, Union County, OH, Van Wert County, OH, Wayne County, OH, Williams County, OH, Wood County, OH, Wyandot County, OH

The radar

The Cleveland radar (KCLE), 134 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 02:59 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

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 18, 10:02 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCLEGeauga43 min
May 18, 10:18 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDTXLenawee57 min
May 18, 10:21 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningIWXAllen39 min
May 18, 10:24 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCLEFulton, Henry51 min
May 18, 10:28 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningILNPaulding32 min
May 18, 10:37 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCLEAshtabula53 min
May 18, 10:41 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningILNPutnam, Van Wert49 min
May 18, 10:55 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCLEHancock, Wood50 min
May 18, 11:08 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningILNAllen37 min
May 18, 11:12 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCLESeneca, Wyandot63 min
May 18, 11:12 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCLEOttawa, Sandusky63 min
May 18, 11:28 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCLEErie, Huron62 min
May 18, 11:37 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCLECrawford, Marion68 min
May 18, 11:50 PM ESTFlash Flood WarningCLEAshtabula115 min
May 18, 11:55 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCLELorain65 min

The nearest sounding before it

Detroit, MI (KDTX), launched 00:00Z, 3.0 hours before the alert went out and 155 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, Detroit, MI at 00:00Z on 1997-05-19Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 17 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, Detroit, MI at 00:00Z on 1997-05-19The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 296 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
17 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-791 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
754 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
62 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
296 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
450 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.

014 
WWUS9 KMKC 190224
SEL1  
MKC WW 190224
MIZ000-INZ000-OHZ000-LEZ000-190900-

BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 301
STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
1024 PM EDT SUN MAY 18 1997

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

   SOUTHERN LOWER MICHIGAN                           
   EASTERN INDIANA                            
   CENTRAL AND NORTHERN OHIO                               
   LAKE ERIE                          

EFFECTIVE THIS SUNDAY NIGHT AND MONDAY MORNING FROM 1100 PM UNTIL
500 AM EDT.

TORNADOES...HAIL TO 2 INCHES IN DIAMETER...THUNDERSTORM WIND GUSTS
TO 85 MPH...AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE IN THESE AREAS.

THE TORNADO WATCH AREA IS ALONG AND 75 STATUTE MILES NORTH AND
SOUTH OF A LINE FROM 20 MILES NORTH NORTHWEST OF FORT WAYNE INDIANA
TO 25 MILES SOUTH OF YOUNGSTOWN OHIO.

OTHER WATCH INFORMATION...  CONTINUE...WW 297...WW 298...WW
299...WW 300...

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...INTENSE BOW ECHO/SQUALL LINE CONTINUES TO MOVE RAPIDLY
EAST ACROSS NORTHERN IND/SOUTHWESTERN MI INTO NORTHERN OH WHERE
CONVERGENCE BOUNDARY LOCATED.  WITH AIRMASS SOUTH OF BOUNDARY
REMAINING QUITE UNSTABLE AND WIND PROFILES FAVORABLY SHEARED HIGH
POTENTIAL OF WIND DAMAGE AND ISOLATED TORNADOES WILL CONTINUE ALONG
AND AHEAD OF LINE.


AVIATION...TORNADOES AND A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH HAIL
SURFACE AND ALOFT TO 2 INCHES.  EXTREME TURBULENCE AND SURFACE WIND
GUSTS TO 75 KNOTS.  A FEW CUMULONIMBI WITH MAXIMUM TOPS TO 550. 
MEAN STORM MOTION VECTOR 28045.


...HALES

422,0851 415,0804 394,0804 400,0851

SPC that day

Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 18, 8:00 PM ESTTornado WatchSPCBenton, Carroll, Cass, DeKalb, Elkhart, Fulton and 19 more5 hr
May 19, 12:45 AM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCAdams, Allen, Bartholomew, Benton, Blackford, Boone and 50 more5 hr
May 19, 4:15 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCBelmont, Guernsey, Harrison, Jefferson, Monroe, Noble6 hr
May 19, 5:00 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCAthens, Gallia, Hocking, Jackson, Lawrence, Meigs and 7 more4 hr

Nearby

Tornado Watches in Ohio, 1997Tornado Watches in Indiana, 1997Tornado Watches in Michigan, 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.