Alert archive / Arizona / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1997

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 33, NWS Las Vegas, NV

August 8, 1997Mohave County, Arizona

NWS Las Vegas, NV issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Aug 8, 1997, 11:30 PM MST for Mohave County, Arizona. It was in force for 60 min. 1 report came from inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The counties it named, with what was reported inside it.

The facts

Issued
Aug 8, 1997, 11:30 PM MST (06:30 UTC)
Expired
Aug 9, 1997, 12:30 AM MST
In force
60 min
Issued by
NWS Las Vegas, NV
Area
Whole counties

County Mohave County, AZ

The radar

The Las Vegas radar (KESX), 102 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 06:29 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.

What was reported inside it

TimeReportWhereRemark
Aug 8, 11:50 PM MSTThunderstorm WindBullhead City, AZThe Bullhead City Fire Department reported damaging winds resulting in broken tree branches, downed power lines, awnings torn off mobile homes and a blown down shed.

NCEI Storm Data entries that began inside the alert's area while it was in force. Before 2003 the local storm report archive is thin, so this is the record of what happened rather than what was phoned in.

The nearest sounding before it

Flgstf/Belemont, AZ (KFGZ), launched 00:00Z, 6.5 hours before the alert went out and 185 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, Flgstf/Belemont, AZ at 00:00Z on 1997-08-09Temperature 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 km-30°-20°-10°0°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Flgstf/Belemont, AZ at 00:00Z on 1997-08-09The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity -15 square meters per square second.193958Sfc1 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
1807 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
23 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
-15 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
11 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.

000 
TTAA00 KLAS 090632 RRA
SVRLAS
AZC015-090730-
 
BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAS VEGAS NV
1130 PM PDT (1130 PM MST) FRI AUG 8 1997
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN LAS VEGAS HAS ISSUED A
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 1230 AM PDT (1230 AM MST)
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS......
 
IN NORTHWEST ARIZONA
 
   ...SOUTHERN MOHAVE COUNTY
 
AT 1130 PM LAS VEGAS DOPPLER WEATHER RADAR INDICATED SEVERE
THUNDERSTORMS 20 MILES EAST OF KINGMAN ALONG INTERSTATE 40 AND IN THE
VICINITY OF LAKE HAVASU CITY. MOVEMENT WAS TOWARD THE SOUTHEAST
AROUND 10 MPH.
 
 
SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS PRODUCE DAMAGING WIND IN EXCESS OF 55
MPH...DESTRUCTIVE HAIL...DEADLY LIGHTNING...AND VERY HEAVY RAIN.
FOR YOUR PROTECTION MOVE TO AN INTERIOR ROOM ON THE LOWEST FLOOR
OF YOUR HOME OR BUSINESS.  HEAVY RAINS FLOOD ROADS QUICKLY SO
DON'T DRIVE INTO AREAS WHERE WATER COVERS THE ROAD.

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before this severe thunderstorm warning went out, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Las Vegas, NV wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at Aug 8, 9:49 PM MST, 1 hour 41 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Aug 8, 9:49 PM MST, 1 hour 41 minutes before
MOJAVE DESERT/SOUTHERN GREAT BASIN AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAS VEGAS NV
930 PM PDT FRI AUG 8 1997

KESX RADAR SHOWED THE MOST INTENSE TRW NOW ACRS ERN MOHAVE COUNTY N
OF INTERSTATE 40.  OTHER LESS INTENSE ACTIVITY WAS LIFTING NE ACRS
PTNS OF S CNTRL NEVADA.  UPDATED ALL ZONES TO REFLECT A TREND
TOWARD TRW DYING OUT ACRS S CNTRL NEVADA BY MIDNIGHT BUT CONTINUING
ACRS MAINLY ERN PTNS OF MOHAVE COUNTY ARIZONA THRU MOST OF THE
NIGHT DUE TO NEW DEVELOPMENT WITH MERGERS AND OUTFLOW BOUNDARY
INTERACTIONS. BRIEFLY LOOKED AT 00Z PROGS. THEY DID INDICATE SOME
SORT OF GRADUAL DRYING TREND...WHICH IS REFLECTED IN THE CURRENT
FSCT PACKAGE. NEW FSCT PACKAGE REFLECTING FIRST PD UPDlATES FOR ALL
ZONES ALREADY OUT.  LAS0100  MATUSIEWICZ

SRN NV...NONE
ERN CA...NONE
NW AZ ...NONE

The office that day

Everything else NWS Las Vegas, NV issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Aug 9, 12:29 AM MSTFlash Flood WarningVEFMohave61 min
Aug 9, 12:29 AM MSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningVEFMohave61 min
Aug 9, 1:24 AM MSTFlash Flood WarningVEFMohave66 min
Aug 9, 1:24 AM MSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningVEFMohave66 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Arizona, 1997Every severe thunderstorm warning 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; verification from NCEI's Storm Data; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.