Alert archive / Alabama / Tornado Warnings in 1998
Tornado Warning 6, NWS Birmingham, AL
NWS Birmingham, AL issued this tornado warning at Feb 17, 1998, 1:49 AM CST for Chilton County, Alabama. It was in force for 56 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
- Feb 17, 1998, 1:49 AM CST (07:49 UTC)
- Expired
- Feb 17, 1998, 2:45 AM CST
- In force
- 56 min
- Issued by
- NWS Birmingham, AL
- Area
- Whole counties
County Chilton County, AL
What was reported inside it
| Time | Report | Where | Remark |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 17, 2:00 AM CST | Hail 0.75 | Clanton, AL | Dime size hail was reported near Hill Trinity Church west of Clanton. |
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
Birmingham, AL (KBMX), launched 00:00Z, 7.8 hours before the alert went out and 37 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.
- Mixed-layer CAPE
- 572 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -33 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 635 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 40 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 255 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 271 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.9
- Supercell composite
- 5.8
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
539 WFUS1 KBHM 170751 RRA TORBHM ALC021-170835- BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED TORNADO WARNING NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL 149 AM CST TUE FEB 17 1998 THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN BIRMINGHAM AL HAS ISSUED A TORNADO WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 245 AM CST FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATION... IN CENTRAL ALABAMA ...CHILTON COUNTY... AT 146 AM CST... WEATHER RADAR SHOWED A TORNADO NEAR BILLINGSLEY MOVING NORTHEAST AT 35 MPH TOWARDS CLANTON. <<CALL TO ACTION>> IF YOU LIVE IN A HOME OR APARTMENT... SEEK REFUGE IN THE INNERMOST PORTION OF THE BUILDING ON THE LOWEST FLOOR. GET TO A BASEMENT IF ONE IS AVAILABLE. AVOID WINDOWS AND PROTECT YOUR BODY FROM FLYING DEBRIS WITH CUSHIONS... BLANKETS... OR PILLOWS.
The office that day
Everything else NWS Birmingham, AL issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 17, 12:48 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Dallas | 47 min |
| Feb 17, 1:13 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Chilton | 47 min |
| Feb 17, 1:19 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Autauga | 46 min |
| Feb 17, 1:45 AM CST | Tornado Warning | BMX | Autauga | 50 min |
| Feb 17, 2:18 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Shelby | 47 min |
| Feb 17, 2:22 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Coosa, Talladega | 63 min |
| Feb 17, 2:31 AM CST | Tornado Warning | BMX | Coosa, Talladega | 64 min |
| Feb 17, 2:37 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Chilton | 18 min |
| Feb 17, 3:12 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Chilton | 48 min |
| Feb 17, 3:36 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Calhoun | 64 min |
| Feb 17, 3:44 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Autauga, Lowndes | 46 min |
| Feb 17, 3:54 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Coosa | 46 min |
| Feb 17, 4:03 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Tallapoosa | 47 min |
| Feb 17, 4:19 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Clay | 51 min |
| Feb 17, 4:37 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Cleburne | 63 min |
| Feb 17, 4:44 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Randolph | 51 min |
| Feb 17, 5:04 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Tallapoosa | 46 min |
| Feb 17, 5:25 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Chambers | 50 min |
| Feb 17, 6:14 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Chambers | 31 min |
| Feb 17, 4:08 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Calhoun, Cleburne | 62 min |
| Feb 17, 4:08 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Clay, Randolph | 62 min |
Nearby
Tornado Warnings in Alabama, 1998Every tornado warning in 1998Tornadoes in 1998
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.