Alert archive / Mississippi / Tornado Watches in 1998

Tornado Watch 2

January 7, 19984 states

The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at Jan 7, 1998, 4:00 AM CST for 4 states. It was in force for 6 hr.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
Jan 7, 1998, 4:00 AM CST (10:00 UTC)
Expired
Jan 7, 1998, 10:00 AM CST
In force
6 hr
Issued by
the Storm Prediction Center

Counties Baldwin County, AL, Conecuh County, AL, Covington County, AL, Escambia County, AL, Mobile County, AL, Washington County, AL, Escambia County, FL, Okaloosa County, FL, Santa Rosa County, FL, Saint Bernard Parish, LA, Forrest County, MS, George County, MS, Greene County, MS, Harrison County, MS, Jackson County, MS, Perry County, MS, Stone County, MS

The radar

The Mobile radar (KMOB), 19 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 10:03 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.

Warnings issued inside it

19 tornado, severe thunderstorm and flash flood warnings for its counties while it was in force.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jan 7, 4:00 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningJANForrest30 min
Jan 7, 4:04 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMOBPerry56 min
Jan 7, 4:25 AM CSTFlash Flood WarningLIXHarrison, Jackson3 hr
Jan 7, 4:36 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMOBGreene69 min
Jan 7, 4:55 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMOBMobile65 min
Jan 7, 5:50 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMOBBaldwin55 min
Jan 7, 6:00 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMOBMobile60 min
Jan 7, 6:38 AM CSTFlash Flood WarningMOBChoctaw, Mobile, Washington3 hr
Jan 7, 7:30 AM CSTFlash Flood WarningLIXHarrison, Jackson90 min
Jan 7, 7:39 AM CSTFlash Flood WarningMOBBaldwin3 hr
Jan 7, 7:53 AM CSTTornado WarningMOBBaldwin52 min
Jan 7, 7:57 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMOBEscambia63 min
Jan 7, 8:14 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMOBEscambia61 min
Jan 7, 8:33 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMOBConecuh57 min
Jan 7, 8:41 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMOBSanta Rosa64 min
Jan 7, 9:05 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMOBEscambia60 min
Jan 7, 9:40 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMOBCovington60 min
Jan 7, 9:45 AM CSTFlash Flood WarningMOBChoctaw, Mobile, Washington3 hr
Jan 7, 9:49 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMOBSanta Rosa31 min

The nearest sounding before it

Slidell Radar S, LA (KSIL), launched 00:00Z, 10.0 hours before the alert went out and 159 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, Slidell Radar S, LA at 00:00Z on 1998-01-07Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 4 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, Slidell Radar S, LA at 00:00Z on 1998-01-07The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 319 square meters per square second.19395878Sfc1 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
4 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-252 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
768 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
63 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
319 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
407 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.

526 
WWUS9 KMKC 070947
SEL2  
MKC WW 070947
MSZ000-ALZ000-FLZ000-071600-

BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 2
STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
347 AM CST WED JAN 7 1998

THE STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF

   SOUTHEAST MISSISSIPPI                        
   SOUTHERN ALABAMA                            
   WESTERN FLORIDA PANHANDLE                            
   AND ADJACENT COASTAL WATERS

EFFECTIVE THIS WEDNESDAY MORNING FROM 400 AM UNTIL 1000 AM CST.

TORNADOES...HAIL TO 1 INCHES IN DIAMETER...THUNDERSTORM WIND GUSTS
TO 80 MPH...AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE IN THESE AREAS.

THE TORNADO WATCH AREA IS ALONG AND 50 STATUTE MILES NORTH AND
SOUTH OF A LINE FROM 20 MILES WEST NORTHWEST OF GULFPORT
MISSISSIPPI TO 15 MILES NORTH NORTHEAST OF CRESTVIEW FLORIDA.

REMEMBER...A TORNADO WATCH MEANS CONDITIONS ARE FAVORABLE FOR
TORNADOES AND SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS IN AND CLOSE TO THE WATCH AREA. 
PERSONS IN THESE AREAS SHOULD BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR THREATENING
WEATHER CONDITIONS AND LISTEN FOR LATER STATEMENTS AND POSSIBLE
WARNINGS.

DISCUSSION...THUNDERSTORMS ASSOCIATED WITH A MESO LOW APPEAR TO BE
INTENSIFYING AND UNDERGOING A CYCLIC BOW-ECHO PROCESS. DAMAGING
WIND GUSTS APPEAR LIKELY...WITH STORM RELATIVE HELICITIES OFF THE
LATEST VWP FROM MOBILE EXCEEDING 600 M2/S2 INDICATING A THREAT FOR
BRIEF TORNADOES.

AVIATION...TORNADOES AND A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH HAIL
SURFACE AND ALOFT TO 1 INCHES.  EXTREME TURBULENCE AND SURFACE WIND
GUSTS TO 70 KNOTS.  A FEW CUMULONIMBI WITH MAXIMUM TOPS TO 450. 
MEAN STORM MOTION VECTOR 23030.

...VESCIO

311,0892 314,0862 301,0862 294,0892

SPC that day

Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jan 7, 9:15 AM CSTTornado WatchSPCBarbour, Butler, Coffee, Covington, Crenshaw, Dale and 4 more6 hr
Jan 7, 3:00 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCColumbia, Dixie, Gilchrist, Hamilton, Jefferson, Lafayette and 4 more6 hr

Nearby

Tornado Watches in Mississippi, 1998Tornado Watches in Alabama, 1998Tornado Watches in Florida, 1998Every tornado watch 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; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.