Alert archive / Louisiana / Tornado Warnings in 1998

Tornado Warning 17, NWS Jackson, MS

March 5, 1998Franklin Parish, Louisiana

NWS Jackson, MS issued this tornado warning at Mar 5, 1998, 8:42 PM CST for Franklin Parish, Louisiana. It was in force for 63 min. 2 reports 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
Mar 5, 1998, 8:42 PM CST (02:42 UTC)
Expired
Mar 5, 1998, 9:45 PM CST
In force
63 min
Issued by
NWS Jackson, MS
Area
Whole counties

County Franklin Parish, LA

What was reported inside it

TimeReportWhereRemark
Mar 5, 9:04 PM CSTHail 2.75Baskin, LABaseball size hail damaged the roofs of houses and automobiles.
Mar 5, 9:20 PM CSTThunderstorm WindWinnsboro, LAA framed post office was destroyed. A mobile home was blown off its foundation. Many trees and power lines were blown down.

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
Mar 5, 6:45 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPC3 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Jackson, MS (KJAN), launched 00:00Z, 2.7 hours before the alert went out and 151 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, Jackson, MS at 00:00Z on 1998-03-06Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 776 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, Jackson, MS at 00:00Z on 1998-03-06The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 48 square meters per square second.1939587897117Sfc1 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
776 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-40 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
661 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
45 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
48 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
134 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.5
Supercell composite
3.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

340 
WFUS1 KJAN 060243 RRA
TORJAN
LAC041-060345-
 
BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JACKSON MS
842 PM CST THU MAR 5 1998
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN JACKSON HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL  945 PM CST
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATION...
 
IN NORTHEAST LOUISIANA
 
   ...FRANKLIN PARISH
 
AT 841 PM...JACKSON DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM
CONTAINING A POSSIBLE TORNADO MOVING INTO FRANKLIN PARISH ALONG HIGHWAY
15...NORTH OR BASKIN. THIS STORM WAS MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 35 MPH AND WILL
PASS NEAR WINNSBORO BY 910 PM. PEOPLE IN THIS STORMS PATH SHOULD TAKE
COVER NOW
 
IF YOU ARE IN THE PATH OF A TORNADO...THE SAFEST PLACE IS IN AN
INTERIOR ROOM ON THE LOWEST FLOOR.  GET UNDER STURDY FURNITURE.
USE PILLOWS OR CUSHIONS TO COVER YOUR HEAD.
<
 
74

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before this tornado warning went out, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Mar 5, 7:13 PM CST, 1 hour 29 minutes before
ARZ074-075-060215-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JACKSON MS
713 PM CST THU MAR 5 1998

...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH NO. 77 EXPIRED FOR ASHLEY AND CHICOT
COUNTIES...
...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH NO. 78 IN EFFECT FOR NORTHEAST LOUISIANA UNTIL
10 PM...

THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH ISSUED EARLIER FOR ASHLEY AND CHICOT COUNTIES
HAS EXPIRED. SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH NO. 78 REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR
NORTHEAST LOUISIANA PARISHES THROUGH 10 PM.
Special weather statement, Mar 5, 7:13 PM CST, 1 hour 29 minutes before
ARZ074-075-060215-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JACKSON MS
713 PM CST THU MAR 5 1998

...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH NO. 77 EXPIRED FOR ASHLEY AND CHICOT
COUNTIES...
...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH NO. 78 IN EFFECT FOR NORTHEAST LOUISIANA UNTIL
10 PM...

THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH ISSUED EARLIER FOR ASHLEY AND CHICOT COUNTIES
HAS EXPIRED. SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH NO. 78 REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR
NORTHEAST LOUISIANA PARISHES THROUGH 10 PM.
Local storm report, Mar 5, 7:47 PM CST, 55 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JACKSON MS
747 PM CST THU MAR 05 1998

TIME(CST)  .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE  ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....PARISH/COUNTY LOCATION....

0735 PM    ELWOOD                    MS   1 INCH HAIL
03/05/98   CLARKE                         REPORTED BY CLARKE CO.
                                          S.O.

0741 PM    QUITMAN                   MS   1.75 INCH HAIL
03/05/98   CLARKE                         REPORTED BY CLARKE CO.
                                          S.O.

The office that day

Everything else NWS Jackson, MS issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Mar 5, 8:12 PM CSTTornado WarningJANRichland63 min
Mar 5, 9:27 PM CSTTornado WarningJANTensas63 min
Mar 5, 9:52 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANFranklin53 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Louisiana, 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.