Alert archive / Louisiana / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1998

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 14, NWS Lake Charles, LA

January 14, 1998Jefferson Davis Parish, Louisiana

NWS Lake Charles, LA issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Jan 14, 1998, 7:31 PM CST for Jefferson Davis Parish, Louisiana. It was in force for 44 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: Jan 14, 1998, 7:31 PM CST (01:31 UTC)
Expired: Jan 14, 1998, 8:15 PM CST
In force: 44 min
Issued by: NWS Lake Charles, LA
Area: Whole counties

County Jefferson Davis Parish, LA

The radar

The Lake Charles radar (KLCH), 42 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 01:34 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

Time	Report	Where	Remark
Jan 14, 7:37 PM CST	Hail 1.25	Lacassine, LA
Jan 14, 8:07 PM CST	Hail 1	Hathaway, LA

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

Lake Charles Mun, LA (KLCH), launched 00:00Z, 1.5 hours before the alert went out and 41 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-p

Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.

Hodograph

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: 5 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -136 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 479 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 78 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 100 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 80 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 KLCH 150131 RRA
SVRLCH
LAC053-150215-

BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA
731 PM CST WED JAN 14 1998

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN LAKE CHARLES LA HAS ISSUED A
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 815 PM CST
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATION...

IN SOUTHWESTERN LOUISIANA

   ...JEFFERSON DAVIS PARISH

AT 725 PM...WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A SEVERE
THUNDERSTORM MOVING INTO JEFFERSON DAVIS PARISH. THIS STORM WAS
MOVING NORTHEAST AT 35 MPH. THIS STORM WILL MOVE THROUGH THE TOWN
OF LACASSINE AND WELSH ABOUT 745 PM AND ELTON AT ABOUT 810 PM.LARGE
HAIL CAN BE EXPECTED WITH THIS STORM.

SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS PRODUCE WINDS IN EXCESS OF 60 MPH...
DESTRUCTIVE HAIL...DEADLY LIGHTNING...AND TORRENTIAL RAIN. FOR
YOUR PROTECTION...SEEK SHELTER IN A STRONG BUILDING. STAY AWAY
FROM WINDOWS AND AVOID USING TELEPHONES...COMPUTERS...OR OTHER
ELECTRICAL EQUIPMENT UNTIL THE STORM HAS PASSED.

MOGGED

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 Lake Charles, LA wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at Jan 14, 2:25 PM CST, 5 hours 6 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jan 14, 2:25 PM CST, 5 hours 6 minutes before

SOUTHEAST TEXAS..SOUTHWEST AND CENTRAL LOUISIANA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA
225 PM CST WED JAN 14 1998

LOW CLOUDS AND FOG HANGING IN THIS AFTERNOON WITH ONLY A FEW SHOWERS
DEVELOPING ACROSS THE AREA.  THIS SHOULD REMAIN THE CASE FOR TONIGHT
AS THE STRONGER ACTIVITY SHOULD REMAIN OFFSHORE.  SFC LOW WILL TRACK
EAST ALONG STATIONARY BOUNDRY LOCATED ALONG THE LA COAST.

UPPER LEVEL TROF LAGGING BEHIND WILL MOVE THROUGH THE AREA ON THUR
AND WILL KEEP IN THE LOW CLOUDS.  AS LOW TRACKS EASTWARD WINDS WILL
PICK UP FROM THE NORTH WITH DECENT COLD AIR ADVECTION...GIVING
COOLER CONDITIONS.

SUGGEST DROPING FFA FOR ENTIRE AREA. PRECIP AMOUNTS SHOULD AVERAGE
LESS THAN ONE INCH ACROSS FA. STRATUS AND PATCHY FOG WILL CONTINUE
TONIGHT.  WILL HOLD ON TO POPS ON THU FOR AEX AND LFT WITH WRAP
AROUND MOISTURE.

12

BPT 51/60/40/68 3000
LCH 52/60/40/66 6000  LFT 53/57/40/65 8200  AEX 46/50/36/66 4200

In the hours before

Local storm report, Jan 14, 7:21 PM CST, 10 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA
721 PM CST WED JAN 14 1998

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

610 PM     1 N JENNINGS              LA   1.75 INCH HAIL
01/14/98   JEFFERSON DAVIS                JENNINGS POLICE REPORTED
                                          GOLF BALL SIZE HAIL.

The office that day

Everything else NWS Lake Charles, LA issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Jan 14, 10:27 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	LCH	Evangeline	48 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Louisiana, 1998 Every 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.