Alert archive / Pennsylvania / Tornado Warnings in 1998
Tornado Warning 18, NWS Pittsburgh, PA
NWS Pittsburgh, PA issued this tornado warning at Jun 2, 1998, 8:15 PM EDT for Washington County, Pennsylvania. It was in force for 60 min. 3 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
- Jun 2, 1998, 8:15 PM EDT (00:15 UTC)
- Expired
- Jun 2, 1998, 9:15 PM EDT
- In force
- 60 min
- Issued by
- NWS Pittsburgh, PA
- Area
- Whole counties
County Washington County, PA
The radar
The Pittsburgh radar (KPBZ), 38 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 00:16 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 2, 8:20 PM EDT | Thunderstorm Wind | Washington, PA | Thunderstorm winds blew large trees and power lines down. |
| Jun 2, 8:45 PM EDT | Thunderstorm Wind | Van Voorhis, PA | Thunderstorm winds blew a large tree onto an unoccupied house. |
| Jun 2, 9:00 PM EDT | Thunderstorm Wind | Denbo, PA | Thunderstorm winds blew down several large trees. |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 2, 4:15 PM EDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | 6 hr |
The nearest sounding before it
Pittsburgh, PA (KPIT), launched 00:00Z, 0.3 hours before the alert went out and 28 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
- 1770 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -32 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 1107 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 59 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 352 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 383 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 4.1
- Supercell composite
- 19.4
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
084
WFUS1 KPIT 030018 RRA
TORPIT
PAC125-030115-
BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PITTSBURGH PA
815 PM EDT TUE JUN 2 1998
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN PITTSBURGH HAS ISSUED A
* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
WASHINGTON COUNTY IN PENNSYLVANIA
INCLUDING WASHINGTON
* UNTIL 915 PM EDT
* AT 814 PM EDT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
THUNDERSTORM WITH A TORNADO 5 MILES NORTH OF AVELLA... OR ABOUT
7 MILES NORTHEAST OF WELLSBURG...MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 40
MILES PER HOUR.
* TORNADO WILL BE...
NEAR CANNONSBURG BY 830 PM EDT
3 MILES NORTHEAST OF WASHINGTON AT 835 PM EDT
12 MILES EAST OF WASHINGTON AT 850 PM EDT
IF YOU ARE CAUGHT OUTSIDE...SEEK SHELTER IN A NEARBY REINFORCED
BUILDING. AS A LAST RESORT...SEEK SHELTER IN A CULVERT...DITCH OR LOW
SPOT AND COVER YOUR HEAD WITH YOUR HANDS.
THE SAFEST PLACE TO BE DURING A TORNADO IS IN A BASEMENT. GET UNDER A
WORKBENCH OR OTHER PIECE OF STURDY FURNITURE. IF NO BASEMENT IS
AVAILABLE...SEEK SHELTER ON THE LOWEST FLOOR OF THE BUILDING IN AN
INTERIOR HALLWAY OR ROOM SUCH AS A CLOSET. USE BLANKETS OR PILLOWS TO
COVER YOUR BODY AND ALWAYS STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS.
KANEWhat 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
Local storm report, Jun 2, 6:16 PM EDT, 1 hour 59 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PITTSBURGH PENNSYLVANIA
616 PM EDT TUE JUN 02 1998
TIME(EDT) .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE ...EVENT/REMARKS...
....COUNTY LOCATION....
0525 PM SHIPPINGPORT PA WIND DAMAGE
06/02/98 BEAVER LARGE TREES KNOCKED DOWN.
0555 PM WILDWOOD PA .75 INCH HAIL
06/02/98 ALLEGHENY
0556 PM ETNA PA .75 INCH HAIL
06/02/98 ALLEGHENY
0605 PM PITTSBURGH PA TORNADO
06/02/98 ALLEGHENY MOUNT WASHINGTON SECTION.
ROOF OFF BUILDING. LARGE
TREES AND POWER LINES
KNOCKED DOWN.
0610 PM VERONA PA .75 INCH HAIL
06/02/98 ALLEGHENY
0615 PM PLEASANT HILLS PA .75 INCH HAIL
06/02/98 ALLEGHENYLocal storm report, Jun 2, 6:21 PM EDT, 1 hour 54 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PITTSBURGH PENNSYLVANIA
621 PM EDT TUE JUN 02 1998
TIME(EDT) .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE ...EVENT/REMARKS...
....COUNTY LOCATION....
0605 PM PITTSBURGH PA .75 INCH HAIL
06/02/98 ALLEGHENY EAST LIBERTY SECTION.
0610 PM IRWIN PA .75 INCH HAIL
06/02/98 WESTMORELANDLocal storm report, Jun 2, 7:18 PM EDT, 57 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PITTSBURGH PENNSYLVANIA
718 PM EDT TUE JUN 02 1998
TIME(EDT) .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE ...EVENT/REMARKS...
....COUNTY LOCATION....
0530 PM GREEN GARDEN PA TORNADO
06/02/98 BEAVER ALSO RACCOON TWP. MANY
LARGE TREES AND POWER
LINES KNOCKED DOWN.
0615 PM TURTLE CREEK PA WIND DAMAGE
06/02/98 ALLEGHENY LARGE TREES KNOCKED DOWN.
0620 PM ARONA PA 1 INCH HAIL
06/02/98 WESTMORELAND
0628 PM IRWIN PA TORNADO
06/02/98 WESTMORELAND EOC SIGHTING ON GROUND.
0630 PM CHARLESTON PA .75 INCH HAIL
06/02/98 MERCER
0640 PM TRAFFORD PA WIND DAMAGE
06/02/98 WESTMORELAND LARGE TREES KNOCKED DOWN.
0640 PM BESSEMER PA 2 INCH HAIL
06/02/98 LAWRENCE ALSO MOUNT JACKSON AREA.
0640 PM CHAMPION PA 2 INCH HAIL
06/02/98 FAYETTE
0642 PM NORVELT PA 1.75 INCH HAIL
06/02/98 WESTMORELAND ALSO MOUNT PLEASANT.
0645 PM HILLSVILLE PA .75 INCH HAIL
06/02/98 LAWRENCE
0645 PM NEW STANTON PA 1 INCH HAIL
06/02/98 WESTMORELAND
0646 PM IRWIN PA 1 INCH HAIL
06/02/98 WESTMORELAND
0652 PM DONEGAL PA 1 INCH HAIL
06/02/98 WESTMORELAND
0654 PM CHAMPION PA 1.75 INCH HAIL
06/02/98 FAYETTE
0655 PM COULTER PA .75 INCH HAIL
06/02/98 JEFFERSON
0655 PM COLUMBIANA OH 3 INCH HAIL
06/02/98 COLUMBIANA ALSO NEAR LETONIA.
0655 PM PERRYSVILLE PA .75 INCH HAIL
06/02/98 ALLEGHENY
0700 PM DONEGAL PA WIND DAMAGE
06/02/98 WESTMORELAND LARGE TREES KNOCKED DOWN
ACROSS THE PA TURNPIKE.Local storm report, Jun 2, 7:18 PM EDT, 57 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PITTSBURGH PENNSYLVANIA
718 PM EDT TUE JUN 02 1998
TIME(EDT) .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE ...EVENT/REMARKS...
....COUNTY LOCATION....
0530 PM GREEN GARDEN PA TORNADO
06/02/98 BEAVER ALSO RACCOON TWP. MANY
LARGE TREES AND POWER
LINES KNOCKED DOWN.
0615 PM TURTLE CREEK PA WIND DAMAGE
06/02/98 ALLEGHENY LARGE TREES KNOCKED DOWN.
0620 PM ARONA PA 1 INCH HAIL
06/02/98 WESTMORELAND
0628 PM IRWIN PA TORNADO
06/02/98 WESTMORELAND EOC SIGHTING ON GROUND.
0630 PM CHARLESTON PA .75 INCH HAIL
06/02/98 MERCER
0640 PM TRAFFORD PA WIND DAMAGE
06/02/98 WESTMORELAND LARGE TREES KNOCKED DOWN.
0640 PM BESSEMER PA 2 INCH HAIL
06/02/98 LAWRENCE ALSO MOUNT JACKSON AREA.
0640 PM CHAMPION PA 2 INCH HAIL
06/02/98 FAYETTE
0642 PM NORVELT PA 1.75 INCH HAIL
06/02/98 WESTMORELAND ALSO MOUNT PLEASANT.
0645 PM HILLSVILLE PA .75 INCH HAIL
06/02/98 LAWRENCE
0645 PM NEW STANTON PA 1 INCH HAIL
06/02/98 WESTMORELAND
0646 PM IRWIN PA 1 INCH HAIL
06/02/98 WESTMORELAND
0652 PM DONEGAL PA 1 INCH HAIL
06/02/98 WESTMORELAND
0654 PM CHAMPION PA 1.75 INCH HAIL
06/02/98 FAYETTE
0655 PM COULTER PA .75 INCH HAIL
06/02/98 JEFFERSON
0655 PM COLUMBIANA OH 3 INCH HAIL
06/02/98 COLUMBIANA ALSO NEAR LETONIA.
0655 PM PERRYSVILLE PA .75 INCH HAIL
06/02/98 ALLEGHENY
0700 PM DONEGAL PA WIND DAMAGE
06/02/98 WESTMORELAND LARGE TREES KNOCKED DOWN
ACROSS THE PA TURNPIKE.Special weather statement, Jun 2, 8:10 PM EDT, 5 minutes before
MDZ001-OHZ039>041-048>050-057>059-068-069-PAZ007>009-013>016-020>023- 029>032-WVZ001>004-012-021>023-041-030400- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT - PORTION OF WATCH CANCELLATION. NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PITTSBURGH PA 810 PM EDT TUE JUN 2 1998 ...TORNADO WATCH HAS BEEN CANCELED FOR EAST CENTRAL OHIO... THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN PITTSBURGH HAS CANCELED THE TORNADO WATCH FOR EAST CENTRAL OHIO. SEVERE WEATHER HAS MOVED TO THE EAST OF THIS AREA. THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES IN EAST CENTRAL OHIO ARE NO LONGER IN THE TORNADO WATCH... TUSCARAWAS... CARROLL... COLUMBIANA... COSHOCTON... HARRISON... JEFFERSON... MUSKINGUM... GUERNSEY... BELMONT... NOBLE AND MONROE. THE TORNADO WATCH CONTINUES IN EFFECT FOR WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA AND EXTREME NORTHERN WEST VIRGINIA UNTIL 10 PM. LISTEN TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO OR COMMERCIAL MEDIA OUTLETS FOR THE LATEST WARNINGS AND UPDATES ON THIS DANGEROUS SITUATION. ALSO CHECK OUT OUR WEB SITE... WWW.NWS.NOAA.GOV/ER/PIT
Local storm report, Jun 2, 8:15 PM EDT, 0 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PITTSBURGH PENNSYLVANIA
815 PM EDT TUE JUN 02 1998
TIME(EDT) .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE ...EVENT/REMARKS...
....COUNTY LOCATION....
0640 PM WORTHVILLE PA .75 INCH HAIL
06/02/98 JEFFERSON
0700 PM BROOKVILLE PA 1 INCH HAIL
06/02/98 JEFFERSON
0730 PM MONACA PA 1.75 INCH HAIL
06/02/98 BEAVER
0745 PM GREEN GARDEN PA 1 INCH HAIL
06/02/98 BEAVER ALSO NEAR HOPEWELL AND
ALIQUIPPA. ALSO STREET
FLOODING.
0750 PM RUSSELTON PA 1 INCH HAIL
06/02/98 ALLEGHENY
0756 PM WEST LEECHBURG PA TORNADO
06/02/98 WESTMORELAND SKYWARN SIGHTING ON THE
GROUND.
0801 PM PENN HILLS PA .75 INCH HAIL
06/02/98 ALLEGHENY
0813 PM MONROEVILLE PA TORNADO
06/02/98 ALLEGHENY EMA SIGHTING ON THE
GROUND.The office that day
Everything else NWS Pittsburgh, PA issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 2, 8:07 PM EDT | Tornado Warning | PBZ | Allegheny | 53 min |
| Jun 2, 8:40 PM EDT | Tornado Warning | PBZ | Fayette | 50 min |
| Jun 2, 8:48 PM EDT | Tornado Warning | PBZ | Westmoreland | 57 min |
| Jun 2, 9:13 PM EDT | Tornado Warning | PBZ | Greene | 47 min |
| Jun 2, 9:23 PM EDT | Tornado Warning | PBZ | Fayette | 52 min |
Nearby
Tornado Warnings in Pennsylvania, 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; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.