Alert archive / Texas / Tornado Watches in 1997

Tornado Watch 462

June 17, 19977 parishes in Louisiana; 10 counties in Texas

The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at Jun 17, 1997, 6:30 AM CDT for 7 parishes in Louisiana; 10 counties in Texas. It was in force for 6 hr.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued: Jun 17, 1997, 6:30 AM CDT (11:30 UTC)
Expired: Jun 17, 1997, 12:00 PM CDT
In force: 6 hr
Issued by: the Storm Prediction Center

Counties Allen Parish, LA, Avoyelles Parish, LA, Beauregard Parish, LA, Evangeline Parish, LA, Rapides Parish, LA, Saint Landry Parish, LA, Vernon Parish, LA, Angelina County, TX, Hardin County, TX, Jasper County, TX, Liberty County, TX, Newton County, TX, Polk County, TX, Sabine County, TX, San Jacinto County, TX, Trinity County, TX, Tyler County, TX

Warnings issued inside it

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

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Jun 17, 6:30 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	LCH	Tyler	60 min
Jun 17, 6:37 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	SHV	Angelina	68 min
Jun 17, 7:10 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	LCH	Jasper	65 min
Jun 17, 8:09 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	HGX	Polk	36 min
Jun 17, 8:43 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	HGX	Liberty, Montgomery, San Jacinto	62 min
Jun 17, 9:32 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	LCH	Avoyelles	58 min
Jun 17, 9:37 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	LCH	Hardin	38 min

The nearest sounding before it

Lake Charles Mun, LA (KLCH), launched 00:00Z, 11.5 hours before the alert went out and 118 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: 3629 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -1 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 691 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 29 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 34 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 70 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.4
Supercell composite: 2.1

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

708 
WWUS9 KMKC 171106
SEL2  
MKC WW 171106
TXZ000-LAZ000-171700-

BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 462
STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
606 AM CDT TUE JUN 17 1997

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

   SOUTHEAST TEXAS                              
   SOUTHWEST LOUISIANA                          

EFFECTIVE THIS TUESDAY MORNING FROM 630 AM UNTIL NOON 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 40 STATUTE MILES NORTH AND
SOUTH OF A LINE FROM 55 MILES SOUTHWEST OF LUFKIN TEXAS TO 35 MILES
SOUTHEAST OF ALEXANDRIA 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.

OTHER WATCH INFORMATION...  CONTINUE...WW 461...

DISCUSSION...STRONG THUNDERSTORMS INTENSIFYING SOUTHEAST TX AHEAD
OF UPPER TROF MOVING ACROSS NORTH TEXAS.  VERY UNSTABLE AIRMASS
CONTINUES ACROSS AREA WITH CURRENT SURFACE CAPES NEAR 3000 J/KG. 
WITH SURFACE HEATING ALONG WITH CURRENT FAVORABLE SHEAR
PROFILE...SUPERCELLS AND ISOLATED TORNADOES ARE POSSIBLE.


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
580.  MEAN STORM MOTION VECTOR 24535.


...HALES

311,0952 313,0915 302,0915 300,0952

SPC that day

Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Jun 16, 11:30 PM CDT	Tornado Watch	SPC	Bienville, Bossier, Caddo, Claiborne, De Soto, Red River and 1 more	7 hr
Jun 17, 6:00 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Watch	SPC	Caldwell, Catahoula, Concordia, East Carroll, Franklin, Grant and 13 more	6 hr
Jun 16, 10:00 PM CDT	Tornado Watch	SPC	Archer, Clay, Cooke, Fannin, Grayson, Lamar and 3 more	6 hr
Jun 16, 11:00 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Watch	SPC	Burnet, Concho, Edwards, Gillespie, Kerr, Kimble and 10 more	5 hr
Jun 17, 10:30 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Watch	SPC	Austin, Brazoria, Caldwell, Calhoun, Chambers, Colorado and 22 more	6 hr
Jun 17, 4:00 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Watch	SPC	Aransas, Bee, Brooks, Calhoun, Cameron, Duval and 18 more	6 hr

Nearby

Tornado Watches in Texas, 1997 Tornado Watches in Louisiana, 1997 Every 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.