Alert archive / Pennsylvania / Tornado Warnings in 1998

Tornado Warning 9, NWS Pittsburgh, PA

June 2, 1998Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania

NWS Pittsburgh, PA issued this tornado warning at Jun 2, 1998, 6:09 PM EDT for Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania. It was in force for 61 min. 11 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, 6:09 PM EDT (22:09 UTC)
Expired: Jun 2, 1998, 7:10 PM EDT
In force: 61 min
Issued by: NWS Pittsburgh, PA
Area: Whole counties

County Westmoreland County, PA

The radar

The Pittsburgh radar (KPBZ), 68 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 22:12 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, 6:10 PM EDT	Hail 0.75	Irwin, PA
Jun 2, 6:20 PM EDT	Tornado F1	Irwin, PA
Jun 2, 6:20 PM EDT	Hail 1	Arona, PA
Jun 2, 6:40 PM EDT	Thunderstorm Wind	Trafford, PA	Thunderstorm winds blew down several large trees.
Jun 2, 6:42 PM EDT	Hail 1.75	Norvelt, PA
Jun 2, 6:42 PM EDT	Hail 1.75	Mt Pleasant, PA
Jun 2, 6:45 PM EDT	Hail 0.75	New Stanton, PA
Jun 2, 6:46 PM EDT	Hail 1	Irwin, PA
Jun 2, 6:50 PM EDT	Tornado F1	Donegal, PA
Jun 2, 6:50 PM EDT	Hail 1.75	Pleasant Vly, PA
Jun 2, 6:52 PM EDT	Hail 1	Donegal, PA

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 12:00Z, 10.2 hours before the alert went out and 55 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: 158 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -77 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 1288 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 57 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 224 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 261 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.0
Supercell composite: 1.1

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

255 
WFUS1 KPIT 022210 RRA
TORPIT
PAC129-022310-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PITTSBURGH PA
609 PM EDT TUE JUN 2 1998

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN PITTSBURGH HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  WESTMORELAND COUNTY IN SOUTHWESTERN PENNSYLVANIA.

* UNTIL 710 PM EDT.

* AT 609 PM... NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  TORNADO ENTERING WESTERN WESTMORELAND COUNTY
  BETWEEN MURRYSVILLE AND MCKEESPORT...MOVING EAST AROUND
  35 MPH.

* THE TORNADO WILL BE NEAR...
  TRAFFORD AROUND 615 PM.
  MANOR AROUND 620 PM.
  JEANNETTE AND GREENSBURG AROUND 635 PM.

<<CALL-TO-ACTION>>ABANDON MOBILE HOMES GO IN A NEARBY STURDY
BUILDING. AS A LAST RESORT LIE FLAT IN A DITCH AND COVER YOUR HEAD.

.END/MURPHY/PALKO

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

Local storm report, Jun 2, 4:54 PM EDT, 1 hour 15 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PITTSBURGH PENNSYLVANIA
454 PM EDT TUE JUN 02 1998

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

0425 PM    NORTH GEORGETOWN          OH   1 INCH HAIL
06/02/98   COLUMBIANA

0435 PM    SALEM                     OH   .88 INCH HAIL
06/02/98   COLUMBIANA

0437 PM    SHARPSVILLE               PA   .88 INCH HAIL
06/02/98   MERCER

0442 PM    SALEM                     OH   1.13 INCH HAIL
06/02/98   COLUMBIANA

0450 PM    SALEM                     OH   FLOODING
06/02/98   COLUMBIANA                     STREET FLOODING

Local storm report, Jun 2, 4:54 PM EDT, 1 hour 15 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PITTSBURGH PENNSYLVANIA
454 PM EDT TUE JUN 02 1998

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

0425 PM    NORTH GEORGETOWN          OH   1 INCH HAIL
06/02/98   COLUMBIANA

0435 PM    SALEM                     OH   .88 INCH HAIL
06/02/98   COLUMBIANA

0437 PM    SHARPSVILLE               PA   .88 INCH HAIL
06/02/98   MERCER

0442 PM    SALEM                     OH   1.13 INCH HAIL
06/02/98   COLUMBIANA

0450 PM    SALEM                     OH   FLOODING
06/02/98   COLUMBIANA                     STREET FLOODING

Local storm report, Jun 2, 5:18 PM EDT, 51 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PITTSBURGH PENNSYLVANIA
518 PM EDT TUE JUN 02 1998

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

0505 PM    OIL CITY                  PA   .75 INCH HAIL
06/02/98   VENANGO

0508 PM    COOPERSTOWN               PA   1 INCH HAIL
06/02/98   VENANGO

Local storm report, Jun 2, 5:18 PM EDT, 51 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PITTSBURGH PENNSYLVANIA
518 PM EDT TUE JUN 02 1998

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

0505 PM    OIL CITY                  PA   .75 INCH HAIL
06/02/98   VENANGO

0508 PM    COOPERSTOWN               PA   1 INCH HAIL
06/02/98   VENANGO

Local storm report, Jun 2, 5:52 PM EDT, 17 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PITTSBURGH PENNSYLVANIA
552 PM EDT TUE JUN 02 1998

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

0517 PM    FREDERICKTOWN             OH   1 INCH HAIL
06/02/98   COLUMBIANA

0525 PM    MONACA                    PA   .75 INCH HAIL
06/02/98   BEAVER

0528 PM    CONWAY                    PA   1 INCH HAIL
06/02/98   BEAVER

0542 PM    SHIPPINGPORT              PA   .75 INCH HAIL
06/02/98   BEAVER

0542 PM    MONACA                    PA   WIND DAMAGE
06/02/98   BEAVER                         LARGE TREE KNOCKED DOWN.

0547 PM    INGOMAR                   PA   1 INCH HAIL
06/02/98   ALLEGHENY

0550 PM    WEXFORD                   PA   1 INCH HAIL
06/02/98   ALLEGHENY

Local storm report, Jun 2, 5:52 PM EDT, 17 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PITTSBURGH PENNSYLVANIA
552 PM EDT TUE JUN 02 1998

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

0517 PM    FREDERICKTOWN             OH   1 INCH HAIL
06/02/98   COLUMBIANA

0525 PM    MONACA                    PA   .75 INCH HAIL
06/02/98   BEAVER

0528 PM    CONWAY                    PA   1 INCH HAIL
06/02/98   BEAVER

0542 PM    SHIPPINGPORT              PA   .75 INCH HAIL
06/02/98   BEAVER

0542 PM    MONACA                    PA   WIND DAMAGE
06/02/98   BEAVER                         LARGE TREE KNOCKED DOWN.

0547 PM    INGOMAR                   PA   1 INCH HAIL
06/02/98   ALLEGHENY

0550 PM    WEXFORD                   PA   1 INCH HAIL
06/02/98   ALLEGHENY

The office that day

Everything else NWS Pittsburgh, PA issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Jun 2, 4:33 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	PBZ	Mercer	57 min
Jun 2, 4:49 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	PBZ	Venango	56 min
Jun 2, 4:57 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	PBZ	Beaver, Lawrence	63 min
Jun 2, 5:17 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	PBZ	Allegheny, Butler	58 min
Jun 2, 5:25 PM EDT	Tornado Warning	PBZ	Beaver	45 min
Jun 2, 5:29 PM EDT	Tornado Warning	PBZ	Allegheny	51 min
Jun 2, 5:40 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	PBZ	Washington	50 min
Jun 2, 5:50 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	PBZ	Westmoreland	55 min
Jun 2, 5:54 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	PBZ	Clarion	51 min
Jun 2, 6:13 PM EDT	Tornado Warning	PBZ	Allegheny	27 min
Jun 2, 6:20 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	PBZ	Lawrence, Mercer	60 min
Jun 2, 6:25 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	PBZ	Jefferson	65 min
Jun 2, 6:35 PM EDT	Flash Flood Warning	PBZ	Allegheny, Westmoreland	2 hr
Jun 2, 6:36 PM EDT	Tornado Warning	PBZ	Jefferson	59 min
Jun 2, 6:45 PM EDT	Tornado Warning	PBZ	Fayette	45 min
Jun 2, 6:53 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	PBZ	Venango	57 min
Jun 2, 6:56 PM EDT	Tornado Warning	PBZ	Indiana	34 min
Jun 2, 6:58 PM EDT	Tornado Warning	PBZ	Beaver, Lawrence	62 min
Jun 2, 7:05 PM EDT	Tornado Warning	PBZ	Allegheny, Butler	70 min
Jun 2, 7:14 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	PBZ	Clarion	61 min
Jun 2, 7:15 PM EDT	Flash Flood Warning	PBZ	Beaver	105 min
Jun 2, 7:28 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	PBZ	Jefferson	62 min
Jun 2, 7:40 PM EDT	Flash Flood Warning	PBZ	Allegheny, Westmoreland	2 hr
Jun 2, 7:53 PM EDT	Tornado Warning	PBZ	Westmoreland	67 min
Jun 2, 7:57 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	PBZ	Washington	58 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Pennsylvania, 1998 Every tornado warning in 1998 Tornadoes 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.