Alert archive / Texas / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1998

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 13, NWS Houston/Galveston, TX

January 13, 1998Brazoria County, Matagorda County, Texas

NWS Houston/Galveston, TX issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Jan 13, 1998, 3:05 PM CST for Brazoria County, Matagorda County, Texas. It was in force for 75 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
Jan 13, 1998, 3:05 PM CST (21:05 UTC)
Expired
Jan 13, 1998, 4:20 PM CST
In force
75 min
Issued by
NWS Houston/Galveston, TX
Area
Whole counties

Counties Brazoria County, TX, Matagorda County, TX

The radar

The Houston radar (KHGX), 83 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 21:08 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

Corpus Christi, TX (KCRP), launched 12:00Z, 9.1 hours before the alert went out and 211 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, Corpus Christi, TX at 12:00Z on 1998-01-13Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1933 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, Corpus Christi, TX at 12:00Z on 1998-01-13The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 38 square meters per square second.1939587897Sfc1 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
1933 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-1 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
468 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
47 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
38 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
57 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.2
Supercell composite
1.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

890 
WUUS1 KHOU 132106 RRA
SVRHOU
TXC039-321-132220-

BULLETIN - IMMEDITATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HOUSTON/GALVESTON TX
305 PM CST TUE JAN 13 1998

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN HOUSTON/GALVESTON TX HAS ISSUED A
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 420 PM CST
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS...

IN SOUTHEASTERN TEXAS

   ...SOUTHERN BRAZORIA COUNTY
   ...SOUTHEASTERN MATAGORDA COUNTY

AT 304 PM CST... WEATHER RADAR INDICATED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM
8 MILES SOUTHWEST OF CEDAR LANE MOVING EAST AT 35 MPH.

SOME CITIES AND LOCATIONS IN THE PATH OF THIS STORM ARE...
SARGENT BY 315 PM CST
LAKE JACKSON BY 335 PM CST
FREEPORT BY 340 PM CST
ANGLETON BY 340 PM CST

IF YOU ARE CAUGHT OUTSIDE...SEEK REFUGE FROM THE WEATHER IN A
STRONG BUILDING.  DAMAGING WIND...LARGE HAIL...VERY HEAVY RAIN...
AND DEADLY LIGHTNING ARE ALL POSSIBLE IN SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS.
STAY INSIDE AWAY FROM WINDOWS UNTIL THE STORM HAS PASSED.  PLEASE
RELAY SEVERE WEATHER REPORTS TO YOUR LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY
FOR RELAY TO THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE.

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 Houston/Galveston, TX wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at Jan 13, 2:34 PM CST, 31 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jan 13, 2:34 PM CST, 31 minutes before
SOUTHEAST TEXAS FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HOUSTON/GALVESTON TX
234 PM CST TUE JAN 13 1998

COLD FRONT CONTINUES ITS SLOW PROGRESS TOWARD THE UPPER TX COAST.
BOUNDARY IS BETWEEN IAH AND HOU...AND IS JUST OFFSHORE AROUND
MATAGORDA BAY.  EXPECT FRONT TO CONTINUE HEADING OFFSHORE AND CLEAR
THE COAST BY EARLY THIS EVENING. SCATTERED SHRA/TSRA CONTINUE TO FIRE
BEHIND THE FRONT IN OUR COASTAL COUNTIES.  ACTIVITY IS MOVING TO THE
NE AROUND 30 MPH...AND THIS FAST SPEED ALONG WITH EXPECTED DECREASE IN
COVERAGE SHOULD KEEP FLASH FLOOD THREAT AT A MINIMUM.  WILL ALLOW
FLASH FLOOD WATCH TO EXPIRE FOR OUR CWA WITH THE NEXT ZONES ISSUANCE.
WILL KEEP -RA/-DZ/BR IN THE OVERNIGHT INLAND FORECAST...WITH SHRA/TSRA
CHANCES CONFINED TO THE COASTAL COUNTIES.  SHORTWAVE TO MOVE THROUGH
SE TX TOMORROW GIVING US ANOTHER SHOT OF SHRA/TSRA.  EXPECT THE
GREATEST CONCENTRATION TO REMAIN IN THE COASTAL COUNTIES AND OVER
OFFSHORE WATERS WHERE BEST PW POOLS AND INSTABILITIES WILL EXIST.  NGM
MOS TEMPS ARE RUNNING TOO WARM.  WILL LEAN TOWARD COOLER AVN HIGHS AND
LOWS.

PRELIMS...
CLL C/T C/B 43/55 41/63 2640 (RA/DZ/BR     1ST PD...SHRA/TSRA 2ND PD)
IAH C/T C/B 47/58 45/63 2640 (RA/DZ/BR     1ST PD...SHRA/TSRA 2ND PD)
GLS C/T T/B 54/57 49/60 3650 (SHRA/TSRA/BR 1ST PD...SHRA/TSRA 2ND PD)

42/47

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Jan 13, 9:05 AM CST, 6 hours before
TXZ-200-213-214-226-227-235>238-132100-

HEAVY RAINFALL OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HOUSTON/GALVESTON TX
905 AM CST TUE JAN 13 1998

...THREAT HEAVY RAINFALL ACROSS SOUTHEAST TEXAS THROUGH THIS
AFTERNOON...

A WEAK UPPER LEVEL DISTURBANCE COUPLED WITH A COLD FRONT ACROSS THE
NORTHERN SECTIONS AND ABUNDANT GULF MOISTURE WILL COMBINE TO PRODUCE
SCATTERED TO NUMEROUS SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS TODAY...MAINLY ALONG
AND SOUTH OF AN EDNA TO RICHMOND TO LIBERTY LINE.  OTHER CITIES
INCLUDED IN THE OUTLOOK AREA ARE...HOUSTON... ANAHUAC... GALVESTON...
ANGLETON AND BAY CITY.

AT 9 AM...WEATHER RADAR WAS SHOWING A LARGE AREA OF SHOWERS AND
THUNDERSTORMS JUST OFFSHORE AND SLOWLY PROGRESSING TO THE NORHTEAST.
SCATTERED SHOWERS WERE ALSO NOTED DEVELOPING ACROSS THE OUTLOOK AREA
AND EXPECTED TO BECOME MORE NUMEROUS THROUGHOUT THE DAY.  RAINFALL
AMOUNTS COULD AVERAGE FROM 1 TO 2 INCHES WITH ISOLATED TOTALS OF 3 TO
4 INCHES POSSIBLE.

WITH RECENT HEAVY RAINS ACROSS A LARGE PORTION OF SOUTHEAST
TEXAS...ADDITIONAL HEAVY RAINFALL COULD LEAD TO A THREAT OF FLASH
FLOODING.  THEREFORE...RESIDENTS ACROSS SOUTHEAST TEXAS ARE STRONGLY
URGED TO STAY ABREAST OF THIS DEVELOPING WEATHER SITUATION.  IF
CONDITIONS WORSEN AND APPEAR TO POINT TOWARD A FLOOD THREAT...A FLASH
FLOOD WATCH MAY BE REQUIRED.

STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO OR OTHER WEATHER NEWS SOURCES FOR
FURTHER UPDATES.
Special weather statement, Jan 13, 9:05 AM CST, 6 hours before
TXZ-200-213-214-226-227-235>238-132100-

HEAVY RAINFALL OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HOUSTON/GALVESTON TX
905 AM CST TUE JAN 13 1998

...THREAT HEAVY RAINFALL ACROSS SOUTHEAST TEXAS THROUGH THIS
AFTERNOON...

A WEAK UPPER LEVEL DISTURBANCE COUPLED WITH A COLD FRONT ACROSS THE
NORTHERN SECTIONS AND ABUNDANT GULF MOISTURE WILL COMBINE TO PRODUCE
SCATTERED TO NUMEROUS SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS TODAY...MAINLY ALONG
AND SOUTH OF AN EDNA TO RICHMOND TO LIBERTY LINE.  OTHER CITIES
INCLUDED IN THE OUTLOOK AREA ARE...HOUSTON... ANAHUAC... GALVESTON...
ANGLETON AND BAY CITY.

AT 9 AM...WEATHER RADAR WAS SHOWING A LARGE AREA OF SHOWERS AND
THUNDERSTORMS JUST OFFSHORE AND SLOWLY PROGRESSING TO THE NORHTEAST.
SCATTERED SHOWERS WERE ALSO NOTED DEVELOPING ACROSS THE OUTLOOK AREA
AND EXPECTED TO BECOME MORE NUMEROUS THROUGHOUT THE DAY.  RAINFALL
AMOUNTS COULD AVERAGE FROM 1 TO 2 INCHES WITH ISOLATED TOTALS OF 3 TO
4 INCHES POSSIBLE.

WITH RECENT HEAVY RAINS ACROSS A LARGE PORTION OF SOUTHEAST
TEXAS...ADDITIONAL HEAVY RAINFALL COULD LEAD TO A THREAT OF FLASH
FLOODING.  THEREFORE...RESIDENTS ACROSS SOUTHEAST TEXAS ARE STRONGLY
URGED TO STAY ABREAST OF THIS DEVELOPING WEATHER SITUATION.  IF
CONDITIONS WORSEN AND APPEAR TO POINT TOWARD A FLOOD THREAT...A FLASH
FLOOD WATCH MAY BE REQUIRED.

STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO OR OTHER WEATHER NEWS SOURCES FOR
FURTHER UPDATES.

The office that day

Everything else NWS Houston/Galveston, TX issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jan 13, 11:49 AM CSTFlash Flood WarningHGXChambers, Liberty3 hr
Jan 13, 2:05 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningHGXMatagorda60 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Texas, 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.