Alert archive / Ohio / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1998

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 71, NWS Wilmington, OH

May 20, 1998Greene County, Ohio

NWS Wilmington, OH issued this severe thunderstorm warning at May 20, 1998, 10:53 PM EDT for Greene County, Ohio. It was in force for 57 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
May 20, 1998, 10:53 PM EDT (02:53 UTC)
Expired
May 20, 1998, 11:50 PM EDT
In force
57 min
Issued by
NWS Wilmington, OH
Area
Whole counties

County Greene County, OH

The radar

The Cincinnati radar (KILN), 31 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 02:55 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
May 20, 11:15 PM EDTHail 0.75Bellbrook, OH

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 watch it was issued in

The SPC watch in force over the same counties when this warning went out.

IssuedProductOfficeLasted
May 20, 7:45 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPC5 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Cncnati-Daytn, OH (KILN), launched 00:00Z, 2.9 hours before the alert went out and 30 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, Cncnati-Daytn, OH at 00:00Z on 1998-05-21Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1019 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, Cncnati-Daytn, OH at 00:00Z on 1998-05-21The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 28 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
1019 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-49 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1461 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
39 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
28 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
21 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.1
Supercell composite
1.7

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

309 
WUUS01 KILN 210255 RRA
SVRILN
OHC057-210350-

BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WILMINGTON OH
1053 PM EDT WED MAY 20 1998

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN WILMINGTON HAS ISSUED A

*SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  GREENE COUNTY IN WEST CENTRAL OHIO.

* EFFECTIVE UNTIL 1150 PM EDT.

* AT 1050 PM EDT... NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR
  INDICATED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM 5 MILES WEST OF BEAVERCREEK
  MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 25 MPH.

* SOME LOCATIONS AFFECTED...
        BEAVERCREEK             BY 1054 PM EDT..
        BELLBROOK               BY 1100 PM EDT..
        SPRING VALLEY           BY 1109 PM EDT..
        XENIA                   BY 1111 PM EDT..
        WILBERFORCE             BY 1115 PM EDT..

LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS CAN BE EXPECTED WITH THESE STORMS.

IF YOU ARE CAUGHT OUTSIDE...SEEK REFUGE FROM THE STORM IN A
STRONG BUILDING. DAMAGING WIND...LARGE HAIL...VERY HEAVY RAIN...
AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE ALL LIKELY.

WILKINSON

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 Wilmington, OH wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at May 20, 9:02 PM EDT, 1 hour 51 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, May 20, 9:02 PM EDT, 1 hour 51 minutes before
FORECAST COORDINATION MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WILMINGTON OH
902 PM EDT WED MAY 20 1998

00Z SFC ANALYSIS INDICATED A FRONT ON FAR NRN FRINGE OF FA.  SOUTH OF
THE FNT AN AREA OF LWR 70S DEWPOINTS WERE LOCATED ACROSS CNTRL IN AND
SWRN OH.  KILN 88D SHOWED AN AREA OF TSRA MOVG ALONG THE FNT TOWARD THE
NRN MIAMI VLY.  XPCT THIS ACTIVITY TO MOVE ALONG THE FNT AND STAY N OF
THE HIGHER INSTABILITY OVR SRN FA.  WL NEED TO KEEP SCT SHRA/TSRA IN
THE FCST.

FNT SHOULD DROP SLOWLY SWD TONIGHT BUT WITH CURRENT DEWPOINTS SUGGEST
RAISING TEMPS OVR SRN FA AT LEAST A CAT.

WILKINSON

In the hours before

Special weather statement, May 20, 4:59 PM EDT, 5 hours 54 minutes before
INZ050-058-059-066-073>075-080-KYZ089-090-094>100-210200-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WILMINGTON OH
459 PM EDT WED MAY 20 1998

...A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 1000 PM EDT FOR
   MUCH OF NORTHERN KENTUCKY...

SOME CITIES IN THE WATCH AREA INCLUDE CARROLTON...MAYSVILLE AND
OWENTOWN.

THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH FOR EAST-CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST
INDIANA HAS BEEN CANCELED.

A WARM AND HUMID AIRMASS HAS DEVELOPED ACROSS THE OHIO VALLEY THIS
AFTERNOON AHEAD OF A COLD FRONT PUSHING SOUTH OUT OF THE GREAT
LAKES. SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS MOVING ACROSS ILLINOIS...
INDIANA...AND WESTERN KENTUCKY THIS AFTERNOON ARE EXPECTED TO
INTENSIFY AS THEY MOVE INTO NORTHERN KENTUCKY LATE THIS AFTERNOON. THESE
STORMS WILL BE CAPABLE OF PRODUCING LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS.

SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS ARE STILL POSSIBLE ACROSS SOUTHEAST AND
EAST-CENTRAL INDIANA...BUT NO SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED THIS
EVENING.

RESIDENTS OF SOUTHEASTERN INDIANA AND NORTHERN KENTUCKY SHOULD KEEP
AN EYE TO THE SKY AND STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO.

WILKINSON
Special weather statement, May 20, 6:50 PM EDT, 4 hours 3 minutes before
KYZ089-090-094>100-210300-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WILMINGTON OH
650 PM EDT WED MAY 20 1998

THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH FOR MUCH OF NORTHERN KENTUCKY HAS BEEN
CANCELED.

A LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS WITH DAMAGING WINDS PASSED FROM LOUISVILLE TO
JUST SOUTH OF LEXINGTON LATE THIS AFTERNOON.  NORTHERN KENTUCKY
REMAINED NORTH OF THESE SEVERE STORMS.

SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS ARE STILL POSSIBLE THIS EVENING AND TONIGHT BUT
SEVERE STORMS ARE NO LONGER EXPECTED.

WILKINSON
Special weather statement, May 20, 6:50 PM EDT, 4 hours 3 minutes before
KYZ089-090-094>100-210300-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WILMINGTON OH
650 PM EDT WED MAY 20 1998

THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH FOR MUCH OF NORTHERN KENTUCKY HAS BEEN
CANCELED.

A LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS WITH DAMAGING WINDS PASSED FROM LOUISVILLE TO
JUST SOUTH OF LEXINGTON LATE THIS AFTERNOON.  NORTHERN KENTUCKY
REMAINED NORTH OF THESE SEVERE STORMS.

SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS ARE STILL POSSIBLE THIS EVENING AND TONIGHT BUT
SEVERE STORMS ARE NO LONGER EXPECTED.

WILKINSON

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 20, 10:33 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningILNMontgomery57 min
May 20, 11:05 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningILNClinton60 min
May 21, 12:34 AM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningILNPike61 min
May 21, 1:04 AM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningILNScioto56 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Ohio, 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; verification from NCEI's Storm Data; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.