Alert archive / Alabama / Tornado Watches in 1998
Tornado Watch 90
The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at Mar 7, 1998, 9:45 PM CST for 17 counties in Alabama; 10 counties in Florida; Clay County, Early County, Quitman County, Georgia. It was in force for 6 hr.
The area
The outline as issued.
The facts
- Issued
- Mar 7, 1998, 9:45 PM CST (03:45 UTC)
- Expired
- Mar 8, 1998, 4:00 AM CST
- In force
- 6 hr
- Issued by
- the Storm Prediction Center
All 30 counties
Baldwin County, AL, Barbour County, AL, Butler County, AL, Clarke County, AL, Coffee County, AL, Conecuh County, AL, Covington County, AL, Crenshaw County, AL, Dale County, AL, Escambia County, AL, Geneva County, AL, Henry County, AL, Houston County, AL, Mobile County, AL, Monroe County, AL, Pike County, AL, Washington County, AL, Bay County, FL, Calhoun County, FL, Escambia County, FL, Gulf County, FL, Holmes County, FL, Jackson County, FL, Okaloosa County, FL, Santa Rosa County, FL, Walton County, FL, Washington County, FL, Clay County, GA, Early County, GA, Quitman County, GA
The radar
The Eglin Afb radar (KEVX), 116 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 03:45 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
14 tornado, severe thunderstorm and flash flood warnings for its counties while it was in force.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 7, 11:14 PM CST | Flash Flood Warning | MOB | Mobile | 116 min |
| Mar 8, 12:19 AM CST | Flash Flood Warning | MOB | Baldwin | 2 hr |
| Mar 8, 12:46 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MOB | Conecuh | 64 min |
| Mar 8, 12:53 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Bullock, Pike | 47 min |
| Mar 8, 12:59 AM CST | Flash Flood Warning | MOB | Mobile | 3 hr |
| Mar 8, 1:08 AM CST | Flash Flood Warning | MOB | Conecuh, Escambia | 2 hr |
| Mar 8, 1:19 AM CST | Tornado Warning | BMX | Pike | 31 min |
| Mar 8, 1:33 AM CST | Flash Flood Warning | MOB | Covington | 117 min |
| Mar 8, 1:55 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Pike | 20 min |
| Mar 8, 2:00 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Barbour | 45 min |
| Mar 8, 2:18 AM CST | Flash Flood Warning | MOB | Baldwin, Escambia, Mobile | 4 hr |
| Mar 8, 2:18 AM CST | Flash Flood Warning | MOB | Conecuh, Covington | 4 hr |
| Mar 8, 3:50 AM CST | Flash Flood Warning | MOB | Escambia | 2 hr |
| Mar 8, 3:57 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MOB | Covington | 63 min |
The nearest sounding before it
Birmingham, AL (KBMX), launched 00:00Z, 3.8 hours before the alert went out and 240 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
- 589 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 59 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 188 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 120 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 0.0
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
201 WWUS9 KMKC 080309 SEL0 MKC WW 080309 ALZ000-FLZ000-081000- BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 90 STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK 909 PM CST SAT MAR 7 1998 THE STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A TORNADO WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF SOUTHERN ALABAMA FLORIDA PANHANDLE AND ADJACENT COASTAL WATERS EFFECTIVE THIS SATURDAY NIGHT AND SUNDAY MORNING FROM 945 PM UNTIL 400 AM CST. 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 NORTH AND SOUTH OF A LINE FROM 15 MILES NORTHWEST OF MOBILE ALABAMA TO 20 MILES EAST SOUTHEAST OF MARIANNA 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 HAVE INTENSIFIED OVER EXTREME SERN MS DURING THE PAST HOUR. OUTFLOW BOUNDARY OVER THE GULF OF MEXICO IS RETREATING NORTHWARD AND ALLOWING FOR AIR MASS RECOVERY. SHEAR PROFILES ARE QUITE FAVORABLE FOR SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS...WITH 0-3 KM HELICITY VALUES OF NEAR 1000 M2/S2 OFF THE LATEST VWP FROM MOBILE ALABAMA. 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 25540. ...VESCIO 315,0882 315,0845 293,0845 294,0882
SPC that day
Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 8, 4:00 AM CST | Tornado Watch | SPC | Baldwin, Barbour, Butler, Choctaw, Clarke, Coffee and 13 more | 6 hr |
| Mar 8, 10:00 AM CST | Tornado Watch | SPC | Baldwin, Barbour, Butler, Clarke, Coffee, Conecuh and 9 more | 5 hr |
| Mar 8, 11:45 AM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Watch | SPC | Barbour, Bullock, Chambers, Clay, Cleburne, Coosa and 10 more | 6 hr |
| Mar 8, 3:00 PM CST | Tornado Watch | SPC | Coffee, Conecuh, Covington, Crenshaw, Dale, Escambia and 4 more | 6 hr |
| Mar 8, 3:45 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Watch | SPC | Autauga, Barbour, Blount, Bullock, Butler, Calhoun and 25 more | 5 hr |
| Mar 8, 2:15 AM CST | Tornado Watch | SPC | Alachua, Baker, Columbia, Dixie, Franklin, Gadsden and 11 more | 6 hr |
| Mar 8, 8:00 AM CST | Tornado Watch | SPC | Baker, Bradford, Clay, Columbia, Duval, Franklin and 12 more | 7 hr |
Nearby
Tornado Watches in Alabama, 1998Tornado Watches in Florida, 1998Tornado Watches in Georgia, 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.