Alert archive / Pennsylvania / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1998

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 285, NWS Cleveland, OH

July 19, 1998Erie County, Pennsylvania

NWS Cleveland, OH issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Jul 19, 1998, 8:39 PM EDT for Erie County, Pennsylvania. It was in force for 61 min. No storm report in the archive falls inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
Jul 19, 1998, 8:39 PM EDT (00:39 UTC)
Expired
Jul 19, 1998, 9:40 PM EDT
In force
61 min
Issued by
NWS Cleveland, OH
Area
Whole counties

County Erie County, PA

The radar

The Buffalo radar (KBUF), 145 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 00:43 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.

The nearest sounding before it

Buffalo Intl Airport, NY (KBUF), launched 00:00Z, 0.7 hours before the alert went out and 146 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, Buffalo Intl Airport, NY at 00:00Z on 1998-07-20Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 75 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 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, Buffalo Intl Airport, NY at 00:00Z on 1998-07-20The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 168 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
75 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-36 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1779 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
42 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
168 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
290 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.1

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
TTAA00 KCLE 200038
SVRCLE
PAC049-PAZ520-200140-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION/IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CLEVELAND OH
839 PM EDT SUN JUL 19 1998

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN CLEVELAND HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  ERIE COUNTY PA INCLUDING ADJACENT COASTAL WATERS IN NORTHWESTERN
  PENNSYLVANIA

* UNTIL 940 PM EDT

* AT 839 PM EDT... NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  BAND OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS OVER LAKE ERIE OFFSHORE OF THE CITY OF
  ERIE. THE STORMS WERE MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 30 MPH.

* THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE NEAR...
  AVONIA
  LAKE CITY
  FAIRVIEW
  ERIE

SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS PRODUCE DAMAGING WINDS AND LARGE HAIL. GO INSIDE
A STURDY BUILDING AND STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS!

GABRIC

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 Cleveland, OH wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at Jul 19, 3:08 PM EDT, 5 hours 31 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jul 19, 3:08 PM EDT, 5 hours 31 minutes before
FORECAST COORDINATION MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WILMINGTON OH
308 PM EDT SUN JUL 19 1998

TSRA EXITING FA TO THE SE ATTM BUT WARM FNT REMAINS ACROSS FA.  TSRA
SHOULD FIRE TO THE NW OF FA AND TRACK SEWD THIS EVENING AND TONIGHT
ALONG THE 850-300 MB THICKNESS LINES.  ALSO...S/WV SHOWN ON WV
IMAGERY HEADED FOR FA OVERNIGHT.  WITH VERY UNSTABLE ENVIRONMENT IN
PLACE...PREFER TO GO WITH HIGH CHC POPS.  SVR WORDING STILL NEEDED
AS SOUNDINGS STILL SUPPORT WIND AND HAIL.  BY 12Z MON...THE ETA
INDICATEST THAT THE AREA OF TSRA SHOULD BE DROPPING TOWARD THE OH
RIVER.  WOULD LIKE TO LEAVE CHC POPS IN FM DAY-CMH AND SWD.

WITH H5 RIDGE BUILDING NWD TSRA WL BE WDLY SCT AT BEST MON NIGHT AND
TU
E SO CAN LEAVE DRY ATTM.

MOS TEMPS A BIT LOW ON TUE.

WILKINSON

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Jul 19, 3:53 PM EDT, 4 hours 46 minutes before
KYZ094>100-200000-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WILMINGTON OH
353 PM EDT SUN JUL 19 1998

...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH NO LONGER IN EFFECT FOR PARTS OF NORTHERN
   KENTUCKY...

THUNDERSTORMS HAVE EXITED NORTHERN KENTUCKY AND THE REST OF THE
EVENING HOURS SHOULD BE DRY.  HOWEVER...SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS WILL
MOVE BACK INTO NORTHERN KENTUCKY AROUND OR AFTER MIDNIGHT AND SOME
OF THESE STORMS COULD BE SEVERE.

STAY TUNED nTO NOAA WEATHER RADIO FOR FURTHER UPDATES.

.END/WILKINSON
Special weather statement, Jul 19, 4:40 PM EDT, 3 hours 59 minutes before
OHZ003-006>008-017-018-027-028-036-037-192225-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CLEVELAND OH
440 PM EDT SUN JUL 19 1998

A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH IS IN EFFECT FOR NORTHWEST OHIO AND A
PORTION OF NORTH CENTRAL OHIO UNTIL 10 PM.

THE COMBINATION OF A WARM AND HUMID AIRMASS AND AN UPPER LEVEL
DISTURBANCE MOVING ACROSS THE AREA IS EXPECTED TO TRIGGER A FEW SEVERE
THUNDERSTORMS THIS EVENING OVER PORTIONS NORTHWEST AND NORTH CENTRAL
OHIO.

AT 440 PM...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR IN CLEVELAND WAS
NOT SHOWING ANY THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY IN THE WATCH AREA. HOWEVER...
THUNDERSTORMS COULD DEVELOP RAPIDLY OVER NORTHERN INDIANA BY 6 PM AND
THEN MOVE EASTWARD TOWARD OHIO.

IF THREATENING WEATHER DEVELOPS...TAKE SHELTER IN A STURDY BUILDING
AWAY FROM WINDOWS. LISTEN TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO OR YOUR LOCAL MEDIA
FOR UPDATES.

SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS PRODUCE DAMAGING WINDS (GREATER THAN 58 MPH)
AND/OR LARGE HAIL (3/4 INCH IN DIAMETER OR LARGER).

GABRIC
Special weather statement, Jul 19, 5:15 PM EDT, 3 hours 24 minutes before
OHZ026-034-035-042>046-051-052-200200-
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT...CORRECTED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WILMINGTON OH
515 PM EDT SUN JUL 19 1998

...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH FOR WEST CENTRAL OHIO AND NORTHERN
PORTIONS OF THE MIAMI VALLEY AND CENTRAL OHIO UNTIL 10 PM EDT...

THUNDERSTORMS ARE DEVELOPING OVER NORTHEAST ILLINOIS.  THE ACTIVITY
IS EXPECTED TO BECOME SEVERE DURING THE NEXT HOUR AS IT MOVES INTO A
VERY UNSTABLE AIR MASS OVER INDIANA AND OHIO.  THE MAIN THREATS FROM
THE STORMS WILL BE DAMAGING WINDS AND LARGE HAIL.

SITES
...CORRECTED GRAMMAR...
Special weather statement, Jul 19, 8:05 PM EDT, 34 minutes before
OHZ003-006>014-017>023-027>033-036>038-047-089-200500-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CLEVELAND OH
805 PM EDT SUN JUL 19 1998

A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH HAS BEEN ISSUED FOR NORTHEAST OHIO TIL 1 AM
EDT.

THIS INCLUDES THE CITIES OF CLEVELAND...AKRON-CANTON...
MANSFIELD AND YOUNGSTOWN.

A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH CONTINUES FOR NORTHWEST OHIO TIL 10 PM.

THIS INCLUDES THE CITIES OF TOLEDO...FINDLAY...FREMONT AND MARION.

RADAR CONTINUED TO SHOW AN AREA OF STRONG THUNDERSTORMS OVER NORTHWEST
OHIO. THESE THUNDERSTORMS WERE MOVING EAST AT 30 MPH.

SOME REPORTS OF WIND DAMAGE HAVE BEEN REPORTED IN HANCOCK COUNTY.

PEOPLE IN THE WATCH AREA NEED TO KEEP AN EYE ON THE SKY AND BE READY TO
MOVE TO SAFETY IF NEEDED.

KIELTYKA

The office that day

Everything else NWS Cleveland, OH issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jul 19, 11:28 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCLEErie47 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Pennsylvania, 1998Every severe thunderstorm warning 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; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.