Alert archive / Mississippi / Tornado Watches in 1997

Tornado Watch 343

May 27, 1997Chicot County, Arkansas; 10 parishes in Louisiana; 35 counties in Mississippi

The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at May 27, 1997, 8:00 PM CDT for Chicot County, Arkansas; 10 parishes in Louisiana; 35 counties in Mississippi. It was in force for 5 hr.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
May 27, 1997, 8:00 PM CDT (01:00 UTC)
Expired
May 28, 1997, 1:00 AM CDT
In force
5 hr
Issued by
the Storm Prediction Center
All 46 counties

Chicot County, AR, Caldwell Parish, LA, Catahoula Parish, LA, East Carroll Parish, LA, Franklin Parish, LA, Grant Parish, LA, LaSalle Parish, LA, Madison Parish, LA, Richland Parish, LA, Tensas Parish, LA, West Carroll Parish, LA, Attala County, MS, Bolivar County, MS, Carroll County, MS, Choctaw County, MS, Claiborne County, MS, Clay County, MS, Copiah County, MS, Grenada County, MS, Hinds County, MS, Holmes County, MS, Humphreys County, MS, Issaquena County, MS, Jefferson County, MS, Jefferson Davis County, MS, Lawrence County, MS, Leake County, MS, Leflore County, MS, Lincoln County, MS, Lowndes County, MS, Madison County, MS, Monroe County, MS, Montgomery County, MS, Neshoba County, MS, Oktibbeha County, MS, Rankin County, MS, Scott County, MS, Sharkey County, MS, Simpson County, MS, Smith County, MS, Sunflower County, MS, Warren County, MS, Washington County, MS, Webster County, MS, Winston County, MS, Yazoo County, MS

Warnings issued inside it

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 27, 8:07 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANBolivar68 min
May 27, 8:10 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANHumphreys, Yazoo50 min
May 27, 8:20 PM CDTTornado WarningJANRichland40 min
May 27, 8:26 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANWashington49 min
May 27, 8:28 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANCarroll32 min
May 27, 8:41 PM CDTTornado WarningJANMadison, Rankin, Scott49 min
May 27, 8:41 PM CDTTornado WarningJANLeake49 min
May 27, 8:56 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANRichland34 min
May 27, 9:10 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANEast Carroll, Madison50 min
May 27, 9:29 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningJANRankin, Scott61 min
May 27, 9:29 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANRankin, Scott61 min
May 27, 9:35 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANHumphreys, Sunflower, Washington55 min
May 27, 9:41 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANScott, Smith49 min
May 27, 9:45 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANIssaquena, Warren45 min
May 27, 9:48 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANAdams, Jefferson42 min
May 27, 10:03 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANHinds57 min
May 27, 10:27 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANHumphreys, Yazoo63 min
May 27, 10:31 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANCopiah44 min
May 27, 10:38 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANMadison, Rankin67 min
May 27, 10:43 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANHolmes62 min
May 27, 10:56 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANHinds34 min
May 27, 11:01 PM CDTTornado WarningJANMadison29 min
May 27, 11:11 PM CDTTornado WarningJANRankin49 min
May 27, 11:32 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANSimpson43 min
May 27, 11:35 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANLeake, Scott55 min
May 27, 11:35 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANSmith55 min
May 28, 12:04 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANJefferson Davis41 min
May 28, 12:08 AM CDTTornado WarningJANScott37 min
May 28, 12:31 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANOktibbeha44 min

The nearest sounding before it

Jackson, MS (KJAN), launched 00:00Z, 1.0 hours before the alert went out and 72 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 1997-05-28Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 3525 joules per kilogram.LCLEL10008507005003002001001 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 1997-05-28The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 32 square meters per square second.1939Sfc1 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
3525 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-4 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1180 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
10 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
32 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
76 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.

132 
WWUS9 KMKC 280041
SEL3  
MKC WW 280041
ARZ000-LAZ000-MSZ000-280600-

BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 343
STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
741 PM CDT TUE MAY 27 1997

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

   EXTREME SOUTHEAST ARKANSAS                           
   NORTHEAST LOUISIANA                          
   MISSISSIPPI                        

EFFECTIVE THIS TUESDAY NIGHT AND WEDNESDAY MORNING FROM 800 PM
UNTIL 100 AM CDT.

TORNADOES...HAIL TO 2 1/2 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 10 MILES SOUTHEAST OF NATCHEZ MISSISSIPPI TO 40
MILES NORTHEAST OF GREENWOOD MISSISSIPPI.

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.

OTHER WATCH INFORMATION...  CONTINUE...WW 339...WW 340...WW
341...WW 342...

DISCUSSION...STRONG TO SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS ARE DEVELOPING AHEAD OF
PRIMARY CONVECTIVE CLUSTER OVER NORTHERN LOUISIANA.  AIR MASS OVER
THE AREA IS VERY UNSTABLE ACCORDING TO 00Z JAN SOUNDING WITH CAPE
ABV 3500 J/KG AND LIFTED INDEX TO -10.  WIND PROFILE SHOWS VEERING
WITH HEIGHT SUGGESTING ENHANCED THREAT OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORM
DEVELOPMENT...INCLUDING CHANCE OF ISOLATED TORNADOES.


AVIATION...TORNADOES AND A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH HAIL
SURFACE AND ALOFT TO 2 1/2 INCHES.  EXTREME TURBULENCE AND SURFACE
WIND GUSTS TO 70 KNOTS.  A FEW CUMULONIMBI WITH MAXIMUM TOPS TO
550.  MEAN STORM MOTION VECTOR 27020.


...WEISS

313,0923 335,0910 335,0880 313,0894

SPC that day

Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 27, 10:00 PM CDTTornado WatchSPCArkansas, Crittenden, Cross, Jackson, Jefferson, Lee and 9 more5 hr
May 27, 7:00 PM CDTTornado WatchSPCBienville, Bossier, Caddo, Caldwell, Claiborne, De Soto and 13 more6 hr
May 28, 1:30 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCAcadia, Ascension, Assumption, Avoyelles, East Baton Rouge, East Feliciana and 22 more6 hr
May 28, 12:15 AM CDTTornado WatchSPCAttala, Carroll, Choctaw, Clarke, Clay, Covington and 31 more5 hr

Nearby

Tornado Watches in Mississippi, 1997Tornado Watches in Louisiana, 1997Tornado Watches in Arkansas, 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.