Alert archive / California / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1997

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 93, NWS Las Vegas, NV

September 14, 1997San Bernardino County, California; Mohave County, Arizona

NWS Las Vegas, NV issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Sep 14, 1997, 4:43 PM PDT for San Bernardino County, California; Mohave County, Arizona. It was in force for 62 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
Sep 14, 1997, 4:43 PM PDT (23:43 UTC)
Expired
Sep 14, 1997, 5:45 PM PDT
In force
62 min
Issued by
NWS Las Vegas, NV
Area
Whole counties

Counties Mohave County, AZ, San Bernardino County, CA

What was reported inside it

TimeReportWhereRemark
Sep 14, 5:30 PM PDTThunderstorm WindLake Havasu City, AZA Skywarn Spotter in Lake Havasu City reported thunderstorm winds had downed a few power lines and some trees.

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

Mercury/Desert R, NV (KDRA), launched 12:00Z, 11.7 hours before the alert went out and 176 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, Mercury/Desert R, NV at 12:00Z on 1997-09-14Temperature 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 km15 km-30°-20°-10°0°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Mercury/Desert R, NV at 12:00Z on 1997-09-14The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 111 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
0 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL
3608 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
35 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
111 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
198 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 142346 RRA
SVRLAS
AZC015-CAC071-150045-
 
BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAS VEGAS NV
443 PM PDT (443 PM MST) SUN SEP 14 1997
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN LAS VEGAS HAS ISSUED A
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL  545 PM PDT (545 PM MST)
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS...S...
 
IN NORTHWEST ARIZONA
 
   ...EXTREME SOUTHWESTERN MOHAVE COUNTY...INCLUDING LAKE HAVASU CITY
 
 
IN EAST CALIFORNIA
 
   ...EXTREME SOUTHEASTERN SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY
 
AT 440 PM...LAS VEGAS DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM OVER
EXTREME SOUTHEAST SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY IN CALIFORNIA ABOUT 20 MILES
SOUTHWEST OF LAKE HAVASU CITY OR 5 MILES NORTH OF VIDAL JUNCTION.
 
MOVEMENT OF THIS STORM WAS TO THE NORTHEAST AT 15 TO 20 MPH.
 
SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS PRODUCE DAMAGING WIND IN EXCESS OF 55
MPH...DESTRUCTIVE HAIL...DEADLY LIGHTNING...AND VERY HEAVY RAIN.
FOR YOUR PROTECTION MOVE TO A"N 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.
 
KOSIER

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 Sep 14, 2:06 PM PDT, 2 hours 37 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Sep 14, 2:06 PM PDT, 2 hours 37 minutes before
MOJAVE DESERT/SOUTHERN GREAT BASIN AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAS VEGAS NV
200 PM PDT SUN SEP 14 1997

STLT/88D DETECTING SHWRS/ISOLD TSTMS XTNDDG FRM ERN CA NE INTO SW
UT AT 2030Z.  MDLS VRY SIMILAR IN THE OVRALL LARGE SCALE FEATURES
THRU THE SHORT TERM PERIOD.  LOW LVL MSTR AN INDIRECT EFFECT FM
HRCN LINDA HAS PRODUCED A MSTR SURGE INTO SE CA DSRTS WITH DWPTS AT
20Z IN THE LOW TO MID 70S IN SE CA AND THE 50S/60 AS FAR N AS SW
UT. A VRY SHARP GRADIENT EXISTS BASICALLY ON A LINE FRM DAG-DRA-
P38.  MDLS SIMILAR KEEPING THIS VRY JUICY AIRMASS OVR THE ERN HALF
OF FA TNGT AND MOST OF MON BEFORE DRIER AIR STARTS TO PUNCH INTO
SRN NV LATE MON AFTN AS TROF WEAKENS AND MOVS ACRS NRN NV. THE MSTR
IS THEN SUPPRESS S AND E MON NGT AND TUE...BUT STILL APRS ENUF LOW
LVL MSTR LINGERING OVR NW AZ TUE FOR SLGT THREAT OF MTN TSTMS.
WINDS TO ADV LVLS IN S CNTRL NV AND WILL CONT WAD UNTIL 04Z.  APRS
LESS WND MON BUT STILL BREEZY OR LCLY WNDY AS TROF MOVS ACRS GRT
BASIN.  TROF LACKING ANY SIGNIFICANT MSTR BUT WILL INCLUDE A SLGT
CHC OF SHWRS OVR THE MTNS OVR CNTRL NV.  THE THREAT OF TSTMS STILL
POSSIBLE IN THE XNTDD.  SIMILAR TO THE LAST TROF PASSAGE TO OUR N
SRN NV DRIED OUT WHILE LOW LVL MSTR LINGERED OVR AZ.  ANOTHER TROF
WILL DROP S INTO OR/WA LATER IN THE WEEK.  ANY BACKING OF THE LOW
LVL WNDS WILL PULL MSTR BACK W-NW INTO SRN NV/ERN CA.  FOR NOW WILL
MENTION THREAT ALL THREE DAYS.  LAS 2200.  PIERCE

SRN NV...WIND ADVISORY NV ZONES 13/14 TIL 04Z.
ERN CA...NONE
NW AZ ...NONE

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Sep 14, 11:39 AM PDT, 5 hours 4 minutes before
AZZ001>003-031-CAZ027>029-NVZ015>022-150000-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT...UPDATED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAS VEGAS NV
1135 AM PDT (1130 AM MST) SUN SEP 14 1997

...POTENTIAL IMPACT FROM REMNANTS OF HURRICANE LINDA DECREASING AS
   IT CONTINUES TO WEAKEN AND MOVE AWAY FROM SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA...

AT 8 AM PDT (8 AM MST) SUNDAY...HURRICANE LINDA WAS CENTERED NEAR
21.9 DEGREES NORTH LATITUDE...119.5 WEST LONGITUDE OR ABOUT 620
MILES WEST OF THE SOUTHERN TIP OF BAJA CALIFORNIA.

MAXIMUM SUSTAINED WINDS HAD DECREASED TO 105 MPH...WITH HIGHER
GUSTS...AND GRADUAL WEAKENING IS LIKELY TO CONTINUE TODAY.  LINDA
WAS MOVING TOWARD THE WEST NORTHWEST AT 13 MPH AND THIS GENERAL
MOTION IS EXPECTED THROUGH TONIGHT.

SINCE LATE SATURDAY...SATELLITE IMAGERY HAS SHOWN LINDA TO BE
MOVING ON A MORE WESTWARD TRACK...TAKING IT AWAY FROM THE BAJA
COAST AND FARTHER OUT INTO THE PACIFIC OCEAN.  THIS MOTION
SIGNIFICANTLY DECREASES THE CHANCE FOR THE REMNANTS OF LINDA
TO MOVE INTO THE DESERT SOUTHWEST.

SINCE THE THREAT OF HEAVY RAIN LATER THIS WEEK FROM THE REMNANTS
OF LINDA HAS DIMINISHED...THIS WILL BE THE LAST REGULAR STATEMENT
CONCERNING HURRICANE LINDA ISSUED BY THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE
FORECAST OFFICE IN LAS VEGAS.

B. FUIS
Local storm report, Sep 14, 2:29 PM PDT, 2 hours 14 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAS VEGAS NEVADA
129 PM PST SUN SEP 14 1997

TIME(PST)  .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE  ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

0530 PM    BULLHEAD CITY             AZ   WIND DAMAGE
09/14/97   MOHAVE                         TREES AND POWER LINES
                                          DOWN SEVERAL MOBILE HOMES
                                          DAMAGED.  MINOR FLOODING
                                          AND THREE TELEPHONE POLES
                                          SNAPPED.

0630 PM    SEARCHLIGHT               NV   .5 INCH HAIL
09/14/97   CLARK                          MARBLE SIZED HAIL AND
                                          0.70 OF AND INCH OF RAIN.

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in California, 1997Severe 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.