Alert archive / Mississippi / Tornado Watches in 1998

Tornado Watch 236

April 16, 1998Choctaw County, Greene County, Sumter County, Alabama; 28 counties in Mississippi

The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at Apr 16, 1998, 6:30 PM CDT for Choctaw County, Greene County, Sumter County, Alabama; 28 counties in Mississippi. It was in force for 4 hr.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
Apr 16, 1998, 6:30 PM CDT (23:30 UTC)
Expired
Apr 16, 1998, 10:00 PM CDT
In force
4 hr
Issued by
the Storm Prediction Center
All 31 counties

Choctaw County, AL, Greene County, AL, Sumter County, AL, Amite County, MS, Claiborne County, MS, Clarke County, MS, Copiah County, MS, Covington County, MS, Forrest County, MS, Franklin County, MS, Hinds County, MS, Jasper County, MS, Jefferson County, MS, Jefferson Davis County, MS, Jones County, MS, Kemper County, MS, Lamar County, MS, Lauderdale County, MS, Lawrence County, MS, Leake County, MS, Lincoln County, MS, Madison County, MS, Marion County, MS, Neshoba County, MS, Newton County, MS, Rankin County, MS, Scott County, MS, Simpson County, MS, Smith County, MS, Wayne County, MS, Yazoo County, MS

The nearest sounding before it

Jackson, MS (KJAN), launched 12:00Z, 11.5 hours before the alert went out and 48 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, Jackson, MS at 12:00Z on 1998-04-16Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 971 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, Jackson, MS at 12:00Z on 1998-04-16The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 418 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
971 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-107 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
593 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
65 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
418 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
464 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
2.1
Supercell composite
5.7

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

118 
WWUS9 KMKC 162309
SEL6  
MKC WW 162309
MSZ000-ALZ000-170300-

BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 236
STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
609 PM CDT THU APR 16 1998

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

   CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN MISSISSIPPI                        
   WEST CENTRAL ALABAMA                            

EFFECTIVE THIS THURSDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING FROM 630 PM UNTIL
1000 PM CDT.

TORNADOES...HAIL TO 2 INCHES IN DIAMETER...THUNDERSTORM WIND GUSTS
TO 80 MPH...AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE IN THESE AREAS.

THE TORNADO WATCH AREA IS ALONG AND 80 STATUTE MILES EAST AND WEST
OF A LINE FROM 25 MILES EAST OF MC COMB MISSISSIPPI TO 50 MILES
NORTH NORTHWEST OF MERIDIAN MISSISSIPPI.

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.

OTHER WATCH INFORMATION...  CONTINUE...WW 229...WW 231...WW
232...WW 233...WW 234...WW 235...

DISCUSSION...STRONG THUNDERSTORMS ARE DEVELOPING WITHIN UNSTABLE
AIR MASS OVER SOUTHERN MISSISSIPPI /LIFTED INDEX TO -8/.  VAD WINDS
FROM JAN SHOW VERY STRONG DEEP LAYER SHEAR AND HELICITY AROUND 200-
250 M2/S2 INDICATING POTENTIAL FOR SUPERCELLS TO FORM.


AVIATION...TORNADOES AND A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH HAIL
SURFACE AND ALOFT TO 2 INCHES.  EXTREME TURBULENCE AND SURFACE WIND
GUSTS TO 70 KNOTS.  A FEW CUMULONIMBI WITH MAXIMUM TOPS TO 480. 
MEAN STORM MOTION VECTOR 25040.


...WEISS

311,0912 330,0902 330,0874 311,0884

SPC that day

Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Apr 16, 10:00 AM CDTTornado WatchSPCLauderdale6 hr
Apr 16, 4:00 PM CDTTornado WatchSPCColbert, Cullman, Fayette, Franklin, Jackson, Lamar and 10 more6 hr
Apr 16, 7:30 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCDeSoto, Marshall, Tate, Tunica6 hr

Nearby

Tornado Watches in Mississippi, 1998Tornado Watches in Alabama, 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.