Alert archive / Massachusetts / Tornado Watches in 1998
Tornado Watch 482
The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at May 31, 1998, 5:45 PM EDT for 4 states. It was in force for 5 hr.
The area
The outline as issued.
The facts
- Issued
- May 31, 1998, 5:45 PM EDT (21:45 UTC)
- Expired
- May 31, 1998, 11:00 PM EDT
- In force
- 5 hr
- Issued by
- the Storm Prediction Center
Counties Bristol County, MA, Essex County, MA, Hampden County, MA, Hampshire County, MA, Middlesex County, MA, Norfolk County, MA, Plymouth County, MA, Suffolk County, MA, Worcester County, MA, York County, ME, Cheshire County, NH, Hillsborough County, NH, Merrimack County, NH, Rockingham County, NH, Strafford County, NH, Sullivan County, NH, Bristol County, RI, Kent County, RI, Providence County, RI
The radar
The Boston radar (KBOX), 69 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 21:49 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
22 tornado, severe thunderstorm and flash flood warnings for its counties while it was in force.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 31, 5:49 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BOX | Hillsborough | 46 min |
| May 31, 5:53 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BOX | Worcester | 47 min |
| May 31, 6:00 PM EDT | Tornado Warning | BOX | Hillsborough | 35 min |
| May 31, 6:13 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BOX | Middlesex | 47 min |
| May 31, 6:13 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | GYX | Merrimack, Rockingham | 47 min |
| May 31, 6:34 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BOX | Essex | 61 min |
| May 31, 7:58 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BOX | Cheshire | 32 min |
| May 31, 8:10 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BOX | Hampshire | 50 min |
| May 31, 8:26 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | GYX | Merrimack, Rockingham | 64 min |
| May 31, 8:28 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BOX | Cheshire, Hillsborough | 47 min |
| May 31, 9:14 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BOX | Hampden | 61 min |
| May 31, 9:21 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BOX | Hampshire | 64 min |
| May 31, 9:53 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BOX | Worcester | 62 min |
| May 31, 10:05 PM EDT | Tornado Warning | BOX | Worcester | 35 min |
| May 31, 10:19 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BOX | Middlesex | 66 min |
| May 31, 10:25 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BOX | Providence | 35 min |
| May 31, 10:30 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BOX | Norfolk | 45 min |
| May 31, 10:33 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BOX | Bristol | 47 min |
| May 31, 10:40 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BOX | Kent | 50 min |
| May 31, 10:40 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BOX | Bristol | 50 min |
| May 31, 10:51 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BOX | Essex, Suffolk | 49 min |
| May 31, 11:00 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BOX | Providence | 35 min |
The nearest sounding before it
Chatham, MA (KCHH), launched 12:00Z, 9.8 hours before the alert went out and 169 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
- 0 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- No buoyant parcel
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 2280 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 56 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 198 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 308 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 0.0
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
474 WWUS9 KMKC 312118 SEL2 MKC WW 312118 MAZ000-RIZ000-NHZ000-010300- BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 482 STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK 518 PM EDT SUN MAY 31 1998 THE STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A TORNADO WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF CENTRAL AND EASTERN MASSACHUSETTS NORTHERN RHODE ISLAND SOUTHERN NEW HAMPSHIRE EFFECTIVE THIS SUNDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING FROM 545 PM UNTIL 1100 PM EDT. 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 55 STATUTE MILES EAST AND WEST OF A LINE FROM 25 MILES WEST SOUTHWEST OF PROVIDENCE RHODE ISLAND TO 25 MILES NORTHEAST OF CONCORD NEW HAMPSHIRE. 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 477...WW 478...WW 479...WW 480...WW 481... DISCUSSION...THUNDERSTORM CLUSTER ADVANCING INTO WATCH AREA WHERE CAPES FROM 1000 TO 2000 J/KG. INCREASING MID LEVEL FLOW AND 40 TO 50 KT LOW LEVEL JET WILL PROVIDE SUFFICIENT SHEAR FOR A FEW TORNADIC SUPERCELLS WELL AS NUMEROUS DOWNBURSTS. 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 450. MEAN STORM MOTION VECTOR 26040. ...ROGASH 413,0725 432,0721 432,0700 413,0704
SPC that day
Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 31, 3:00 PM EDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | 5 hr | |
| May 31, 5:00 PM EDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | 5 hr |
Nearby
Tornado Watches in Massachusetts, 1998Tornado Watches in New Hampshire, 1998Tornado Watches in Rhode Island, 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.