Alert archive / Tennessee / Tornado Warnings in 1998

Tornado Warning 20, NWS Morristown, TN

April 16, 1998Polk County, Tennessee

NWS Morristown, TN issued this tornado warning at Apr 16, 1998, 5:47 PM EDT for Polk County, Tennessee. It was in force for 63 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
Apr 16, 1998, 5:47 PM EDT (21:47 UTC)
Expired
Apr 16, 1998, 6:50 PM EDT
In force
63 min
Issued by
NWS Morristown, TN
Area
Whole counties

County Polk County, TN

The watch it was issued in

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

IssuedProductOfficeLasted
Apr 16, 2:00 PM EDTTornado WatchSPC6 hr
Apr 16, 5:00 PM EDTTornado WatchSPC6 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Peachtre/Fal Fld, GA (KFFC), launched 12:00Z, 9.8 hours before the alert went out and 195 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, Peachtre/Fal Fld, GA at 12:00Z on 1998-04-16Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 0 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, Peachtre/Fal Fld, GA at 12:00Z on 1998-04-16The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 265 square meters per square second.1939587897117136Sfc1 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
0 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL
498 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
55 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
265 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
266 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
TTAA00 KMRX 162147 RRA
TORMRX
TNC139-162250-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE KNOXVILLE/TRI-CITIES TN
547 PM EDT THU APR 16 1998

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN KNOXVILLE/TRI-CITIES HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  POLK COUNTY IN EASTERN TENNESSEE

* UNTIL 650 PM EDT

* AT 545 PM EDT... NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  POSSIBLE TORNADO 20 MILES EAST OF CLEVELAND... MOVING NORTHEAST AT
  40 MPH.

* vTHE TORNADO IS EXPECTED TO BE NEAR...
  BENTON BY 555 PM
  DELANO BY 605 PM

GO TO THE BASEMENT OR A SMALL INTERIOR ROOM ON THE LOWEST FLOOR!

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.

NWS Morristown, TN wrote its last area forecast discussion before this tornado warning went out at Apr 16, 3:30 PM EDT, 2 hours 17 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Apr 16, 3:30 PM EDT, 2 hours 17 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE KNOXVILLE/TRI-CITIES TN
330 PM EDT THU APR 16 1998

ONCE AGAIN...VERY BUSY LIKE EVERYONE ELSE.  BIGGEST PROB O THE DAY
IS TORNADO WATCH...BUT AS EVENING COMES THIS WILL DIMINISH AND FLASH
FLOODING WILL BECOME THE THREAT OVERNIGHT.  RECOMMEND FFA FOR ENTIRE
CWA...THIS INCLUDES VA AND NC COUNTIES.  REASONING INCLUDES EXTREME
PW VALUES (1.5)...UNIDIRECTIONAL WIND PROFILE...AND THICKNESS DIFLUENCE
WHICH ALLOW FOR REDEVELOPMENT OF CELLS AND TRAINING OF ECHOES.

BELV POPS COULD BE RAISED TO REFLECT HEAVY RAIN OVER NIGHT.  ALL AREAS
ARE GOING TO RECEIVE MEASURABLE RAIN TONIGHT AND TOMORROW.

BB

In the hours before

Local storm report, Apr 16, 1:24 PM EDT, 4 hours 23 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE KNOXVILLE/TRI-CITIES TN
124 PM EDT THU APR 16 1998

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

1240 PM    GRANDVIEW MOUNTAIN        TN   TORNADO
04/16/98   RHEA                           RHEA COUNTY DISPATCH
                                          REPORTED PUBLIC SIGHTING OF
                                          A FUNN\EL CLOUD OVER
                                          GRANDVIEW MOUNTAIN MOVING
                                          TOWARD SPRING CITY.

The office that day

Everything else NWS Morristown, TN issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Apr 16, 10:02 AM EDTTornado WarningMRXCumberland, Fentress, Morgan63 min
Apr 16, 10:30 AM EDTTornado WarningMRXAnderson, Scott65 min
Apr 16, 10:33 AM EDTFlash Flood WarningMRXClaiborne, Grainger, Hancock4 hr
Apr 16, 10:33 AM EDTFlash Flood WarningMRXCumberland, Fentress, Morgan, Scott4 hr
Apr 16, 10:33 AM EDTFlash Flood WarningMRXAnderson, Campbell, Union4 hr
Apr 16, 12:27 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMRXRhea33 min
Apr 16, 1:14 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMRXMonroe46 min
Apr 16, 4:13 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMRXClaiborne47 min
Apr 16, 4:34 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMRXHancock46 min
Apr 16, 4:39 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMRXHamilton61 min
Apr 16, 5:17 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMRXBradley, McMinn, Meigs63 min
Apr 16, 5:17 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMRXRhea63 min
Apr 16, 5:22 PM EDTTornado WarningMRXMeigs, Rhea33 min
Apr 16, 5:24 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMRXSullivan46 min
Apr 16, 5:36 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMRXLoudon, Roane64 min
Apr 16, 5:39 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMRXMcMinn, Polk61 min
Apr 16, 6:00 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMRXAnderson, Knox65 min
Apr 16, 6:00 PM EDTTornado WarningMRXMonroe45 min
Apr 16, 6:19 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMRXCumberland1 min
Apr 16, 6:23 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMRXCumberland57 min
Apr 16, 6:27 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMRXGrainger, Union58 min
Apr 16, 6:37 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMRXFentress, Morgan63 min
Apr 16, 6:38 PM EDTTornado WarningMRXCumberland62 min
Apr 16, 6:44 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMRXMonroe31 min
Apr 16, 6:49 PM EDTTornado WarningMRXMorgan66 min
Apr 16, 6:53 PM EDTTornado WarningMRXClaiborne67 min
Apr 16, 7:07 PM EDTTornado WarningMRXHancock48 min
Apr 16, 7:12 PM EDTTornado WarningMRXCampbell33 min
Apr 16, 7:13 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMRXBradley, Hamilton62 min
Apr 16, 7:13 PM EDTTornado WarningMRXUnion37 min
Apr 16, 7:15 PM EDTTornado WarningMRXAnderson35 min
Apr 16, 7:21 PM EDTTornado WarningMRXGrainger34 min
Apr 16, 7:23 PM EDTTornado WarningMRXScott32 min
Apr 16, 7:45 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMRXCampbell65 min
Apr 16, 7:48 PM EDTTornado WarningMRXAnderson, Union47 min
Apr 16, 7:53 PM EDTTornado WarningMRXGrainger47 min
Apr 16, 7:58 PM EDTTornado WarningMRXClaiborne47 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Tennessee, 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; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive.