Alert archive / Alabama / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1998
Severe Thunderstorm Warning 18, NWS Mobile, AL
NWS Mobile, AL issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Jan 7, 1998, 10:43 AM CST for Covington County, Alabama. It was in force for 62 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 7, 1998, 10:43 AM CST (16:43 UTC)
- Expired
- Jan 7, 1998, 11:45 AM CST
- In force
- 62 min
- Issued by
- NWS Mobile, AL
- Area
- Whole counties
County Covington County, AL
The radar
The Eglin Afb radar (KEVX), 91 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 16:45 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 7, 11:00 AM CST | Thunderstorm Wind 50 | Andalusia, AL | Several trees were blown down along US Hwy 84 just east of Andalusia. |
| Jan 7, 11:15 AM CST | Thunderstorm Wind 50 | Opp, AL | Trees and power lines were blown down around Opp. |
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.
| Issued | Product | Office | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 7, 9:15 AM CST | Tornado Watch | SPC | 6 hr |
The nearest sounding before it
Eglin AFB/Valpar, FL (KVPS), launched 12:00Z, 4.7 hours before the alert went out and 86 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.
- Mixed-layer CAPE
- 346 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -39 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 443 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 58 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 277 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 324 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 1.9
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
826 WUUS1 KMOB 071644 RRA SVRMOB ALC039-071730- BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MOBILE AL 1043 AM CST WED JAN 7 1998 THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN MOBILE AL HAS ISSUED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 1145 AM CST FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATION... IN SOUTHERN ALABAMA ...COVINGTON AT 1041 AM CST...MOBILE DOPPLER WEATHER RADAR INDICATED A LINE OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS ADVANCING ACROSS CENTRAL COVINGTON COUNTY. AS THESE THUNDERSTORMS CONTINUE MOVING EAST AT 30 MPH... GUSTS OF OVER 60 MPH CAN BE EXPECTED BEFORE THE THUNDERSTORMS EXIT THE COUNTY BY 1145 AM. A TORNADO WATCH IS ALSO IN EFFECT FOR THE WARNED AREA. REMEMBER... SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS CAN AND OCCASIONALLY DO PRODUCE TORNADOES WITH LITTLE OR NO ADVANCE WARNING. REMAIN CALM BUT BE ALERT FOR RAPIDLY CHANGING WEATHER CONDITIONS.
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 Mobile, AL wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at Jan 7, 3:17 AM CST, 7 hours 26 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Jan 7, 3:17 AM CST, 7 hours 26 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MOBILE AL 315 AM WED JAN 7 1998 HEAVY RAINS EXPECTED ACROSS ENTIRE FA UP THRU MID TO LATE AFT TODAY AS DEVELOPING SFC LOW MOVES INLAND OVR THE CSTL LA AND MS. AS UPPER TROF DEEPENS OVR CENTRL TX TODAY EXPECT SFC LOW TO PUSH NNE MOVING INTO THE TN VAL BY TONIGHT. LATEST AVN AND ETA FILES SHOW BEST LIFT AND MOISTURE OVR THE REGION UP THROUGH 18Z TODAY WITH 50KT LOW LEVL JET DEVLOPING AROUND 12Z ALONG THE AL AND NWFL CST. WITH THIS AND SOME MID LEVL DRYING BY MIDDAY COULD SEE SOME STRONGER... POSSIBLY SEVERE...TS DEVELOPING NEAR THE CST BEFORE MOST OF THE THIS PRECIP PULLS OUT LATER THIS AFT. ALSO...EXPECT SOME PROBLEMS BEFORE ITS ALL OVER W/ ONE HR TOTALS BELOW 2 INCHES IN SOME AREAS FOR FLOODING TO OCCUR. BEST CHANCE FOR FLASH FLOODING W/ BE FROM WASHINGTON TO CHOCTAW COS IN AL AND ALL OF SE MS. LATEST FCST LOOKS TO BE ON TRACK THOUGH POPS MAY NEED TO BE LOWERED SLIGHTLY FOR TONIGHT AND THU WITH BETTER CLDS RETURNING NEAR THE FRNT ON THU. OVER THE COASTAL WATERS...SELY WINDS INCREASING TO 20 TO 25 KT AS LOW LEVL JET DEVELOPES ALONG THE CST BECOMING SW TONIGHT. COULD SEE SOME STRONG TS OVER THE GULF BEFORE ITS ALL OVR WITH WINDS UP TO OR EXCEEDING GALE FORCE. WENT TO 8 FT ON THE SEAS LATE IN THE PD. LATEST MODEL RUNS INDICATING BETTER FLOW FROM THE W THEN NW AFTER FROPA. MOB 67/57/65/40 +431 PNS 69/59/64/46 +531 DTS 68/62/65/48 +531 EVR 66/57/63/39 +451 32
In the hours before
Special weather statement, Jan 7, 5:56 AM CST, 4 hours 47 minutes before
ALZ051>064-MSZ067-075-076-078-079-FLZ001>006-081200- HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK FOR SOUTHWEST AL...NORTHWEST FL AND SOUTHEAST MS NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MOBILE AL 556 AM CST WED JAN 07 1998 ...A TORNADO WATCH IS IN EFFECT FOR PARTS SOUTHWEST ALABAMA... SOUTHEAST MISSISSIPPI AND NORTHWEST FLORIDA UNTIL 1000 AM CST.. ...A FLASH FLOOD WATCH IS ALSO IN EFFECT FOR THESE AREAS FOR TODAY... NUMEROUS SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WERE MOVING INTO MUCH OF SOUTHEAST MISSISSIPPI...SOUTHWEST ALABAMA AND NORTHWEST FLORIDA THIS MORNING AND WILL CONTINUE TO DEVELOP THROUGH MUCH OF TODAY. SOME THUNDERSTORMS MAY BECOME SEVERE AT TIMES WITH DAMAGING WINDS...LARGE HAIL AND POSSIBLE TORNADOES. AT THIS TIME VERY HEAVY RAIN...DANGEROUS CLOUD TO GROUND LIGHTNING STRIKES AND WIND GUSTS UP TO 50 MPH WERE OCCURRING OVER MOBILE COUNTY ALABAMA. THUNDERSTORMS WERE MOVING NORTHEAST AT 30 TO 50 MPH. WITH MOST GROUND SURFACES SATURATED FLOODING OF SMALL STREAMS...LOW TERRAIN AND ROADWAYS WILL BE POSSIBLE THROUGHOUT TODAY. MOTORISTS SHOULD USE CAUTION AND ALLOW FOR EXTRA TRAVELING TIME WHEN DRIVING TO MORNING DESTINATIONS. AT THIS TIME ACTIVATION OF STORM SPOTTERS AND EMA PERSONNEL WILL BE REQUIR@ED.
Special weather statement, Jan 7, 5:56 AM CST, 4 hours 47 minutes before
ALZ051>064-MSZ067-075-076-078-079-FLZ001>006-081200- HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK FOR SOUTHWEST AL...NORTHWEST FL AND SOUTHEAST MS NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MOBILE AL 556 AM CST WED JAN 07 1998 ...A TORNADO WATCH IS IN EFFECT FOR PARTS SOUTHWEST ALABAMA... SOUTHEAST MISSISSIPPI AND NORTHWEST FLORIDA UNTIL 1000 AM CST.. ...A FLASH FLOOD WATCH IS ALSO IN EFFECT FOR THESE AREAS FOR TODAY... NUMEROUS SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WERE MOVING INTO MUCH OF SOUTHEAST MISSISSIPPI...SOUTHWEST ALABAMA AND NORTHWEST FLORIDA THIS MORNING AND WILL CONTINUE TO DEVELOP THROUGH MUCH OF TODAY. SOME THUNDERSTORMS MAY BECOME SEVERE AT TIMES WITH DAMAGING WINDS...LARGE HAIL AND POSSIBLE TORNADOES. AT THIS TIME VERY HEAVY RAIN...DANGEROUS CLOUD TO GROUND LIGHTNING STRIKES AND WIND GUSTS UP TO 50 MPH WERE OCCURRING OVER MOBILE COUNTY ALABAMA. THUNDERSTORMS WERE MOVING NORTHEAST AT 30 TO 50 MPH. WITH MOST GROUND SURFACES SATURATED FLOODING OF SMALL STREAMS...LOW TERRAIN AND ROADWAYS WILL BE POSSIBLE THROUGHOUT TODAY. MOTORISTS SHOULD USE CAUTION AND ALLOW FOR EXTRA TRAVELING TIME WHEN DRIVING TO MORNING DESTINATIONS. AT THIS TIME ACTIVATION OF STORM SPOTTERS AND EMA PERSONNEL WILL BE REQUIR@ED.
The office that day
Everything else NWS Mobile, AL issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 7, 4:55 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MOB | Mobile | 65 min |
| Jan 7, 5:50 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MOB | Baldwin | 55 min |
| Jan 7, 6:00 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MOB | Mobile | 60 min |
| Jan 7, 6:38 AM CST | Flash Flood Warning | MOB | Choctaw, Mobile, Washington | 3 hr |
| Jan 7, 7:10 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MOB | Choctaw | 20 min |
| Jan 7, 7:39 AM CST | Flash Flood Warning | MOB | Baldwin | 3 hr |
| Jan 7, 7:53 AM CST | Tornado Warning | MOB | Baldwin | 52 min |
| Jan 7, 7:57 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MOB | Escambia | 63 min |
| Jan 7, 8:08 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MOB | Monroe | 67 min |
| Jan 7, 8:33 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MOB | Conecuh | 57 min |
| Jan 7, 9:01 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MOB | Wilcox | 59 min |
| Jan 7, 9:05 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MOB | Escambia | 60 min |
| Jan 7, 9:40 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MOB | Covington | 60 min |
| Jan 7, 9:45 AM CST | Flash Flood Warning | MOB | Choctaw, Mobile, Washington | 3 hr |
| Jan 7, 10:09 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MOB | Butler | 61 min |
| Jan 7, 10:38 AM CST | Flash Flood Warning | MOB | Escambia | 112 min |
| Jan 7, 10:55 AM CST | Flash Flood Warning | MOB | Baldwin | 110 min |
| Jan 7, 4:41 PM CST | Flash Flood Warning | MOB | Baldwin | 5 hr |
Nearby
Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Alabama, 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.