Alert archive / Texas / Tornado Warnings in 1999
Tornado Warning 17, NWS Midland/Odessa, TX
NWS Midland/Odessa, TX issued this tornado warning at Apr 30, 1999, 2:29 PM MDT for Lea County, New Mexico; Andrews County, Gaines County, Texas. It was in force for 31 min. 1 report came from inside the area while it was in force.
The area
The outline the Iowa Environmental Mesonet reconstructed for it; the warning itself named whole counties, with what was reported inside it.
The facts
- Issued
- Apr 30, 1999, 2:29 PM MDT (20:29 UTC)
- Expired
- Apr 30, 1999, 3:00 PM MDT
- In force
- 31 min
- Issued by
- NWS Midland/Odessa, TX
- Area
- Whole counties; the outline is the Mesonet’s reconstruction
Counties Lea County, NM, Andrews County, TX, Gaines County, TX
The radar
The Midland/Odessa radar (KMAF), 104 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 20:33 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 30, 2:33 PM MDT | Thunderstorm Wind 59 | Andrews, TX | Wind speed measured at a radioactive waste site. This storm produced a tornado just east of Eunice, NM., moved NNE across the northwest corner of Andrews County, then into Gaines County. |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 30, 11:15 AM MDT | Severe Thunderstorm Watch | SPC | 6 hr |
The nearest sounding before it
Midland Regional, TX (KMAF), launched 12:00Z, 8.5 hours before the alert went out and 102 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
- 21 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -289 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 1062 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 41 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 216 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 296 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 1.8
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
999 WFUS1 KMAF 302033 RRA TORMAF NMC025-TXC003-165-302100- BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED TORNADO WARNING NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MIDLAND-ODESSA TX 329 PM CDT FRI APR 30 1999 THE MIDLAND-ODESSA NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OFFICE HAS ISSUED A * TORNADO WARNING FOR... SOUTHERN LEA COUNTY IN NEW MEXICO NORTHWESTERN ANDREWS COUNTY IN TEXAS SOUTHWESTERN GAINES COUNTY IN TEXAS * UNTIL 400 PM CDT(300 PM MDT) * AT 327 PM CDT (227 PM MDT)...A WEATHER SPOTTER REPORTED A SMALL TORNADO JUST EAST OF EUNICE...OR ABOUT 21 MILES SOUTH OF HOBBS...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 25 MPH. THE SAFEST PLACE TO BE DURING A TORNADO IS IN A BASEMENT. GET UNDER A WORKBENCH OR OTHER PIECE OF STURDY FURNITURE. IF NO BASEMENT IS AVAILABLE...SEEK SHELTER ON THE LOWEST FLOOR OF THE BUILDING IN AN INTERIOR HALLWAY OR ROOM SUCH AS A CLOSET. USE BLANKETS OR PILLOWS TO COVER YOUR BODY AND ALWAYS STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS. LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING THUNDERSTORM WINDS ARE ALSO LIKELY WITH THIS STORM. STAY TUNED TO LOCAL MEDIA OUTLETS FOR THE LATEST SEVERE WEATHER INFORMATION. A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 600 PM CDT FRIDAY EVENING(500 PM MDT) FOR NEW MEXICO. AND TEXAS. LAT...LON 3241 10321 3233 10302 3269 10279 3278 10303
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.
NWS Midland/Odessa, TX wrote its last area forecast discussion before this tornado warning went out at Apr 30, 1:00 PM MDT, 1 hour 29 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Apr 30, 1:00 PM MDT, 1 hour 29 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MIDLAND TX 200 PM CDT FRI APR 30 1999 SIGNIFICANT CONVECTION CONTINUING THIS AFTERNOON. AIRMASS ACROSS THE AREA REMAINS MOIST AND UNSTABLE...AND A SERIES OF SHORTWAVES ROTATING AROUND THE UPPER LOW OVER AZ WILL LIKELY KEEP CONVECTION ACTIVE ACROSS THE AREA THROUGH THIS EVENING. AXIS OF THE THETA- E RIDGE ACROSS THE AREA REMAINS ROUGHLY ACROSS THE MIDDLE SECTION OF THE CWA...AND PROGS GRADUALLY SHIFT THIS INTO THE EASTERN CWA BY TOMORROW AFTERNOON. UPPER LEVEL DIFLUENCE ACROSS THE CWA WAS QUITE IMPRESSIVE THIS MORNING. AREA OF BEST DIFLUENCE WILL PROPOGATE INTO NORTHERN TX AND SOUTHERN OK LATE TONIGHT. DRYLINE TO THE WEST HAS BEEN ADVANCING VERY SLOWLY THROUGHOUT THE DAY...WITH STORMS FIRING UP ALONG ITS BOUNDARY CONTINUOUSLY AND TRAINING NWD AND NEWD. LOOKS AS IF A NARROW DRY SLOT OVR FAR WEST TX WILL BEGIN ROTATING INTO THE AREA LATER TONIGHT...AFFECTING PORTIONS OF THE CWA UNTIL EARLY MORNING. WILL STILL KEEP SCT POPS IN AREA OVERNIGHT WITH THE MOIST AIRMASS AND PVA ALOFT...BUT WILL NEED TO KEEP THIS IN MIND. MODELS SLOWLY ADVANCE THE LOW AND BEGIN LIFTING IT OUT LATE TOMORROW. MODELS ALWAYS TRY TO LIFT THESE UPPER LOWS OUT TOO QUICKLY...SO I WILL TAKE THIS INTO ACCOUNT WITH THE FORECAST. BY MIDDAY TOMORROW...IT LOOKS AS IF THE UPPER LEVEL FLOW WILL BECOME MORE SWLY WITH THE APPROACH OF THE LOW...AND THIS SHOULD HELP THE DRYLINE PUSH FURTHER EWD. WITH THE MOIST AIRMASS AND UPPER LEVEL DISTURBANCES PROPOGATING AROUND THE LOW...WILL NEED TO KEEP POPS UP FOR TOMORROW. TOMORROW NIGHT THE LOW WILL STILL BE IN THE VICINITY... AND WILL KEEP POPS IN AS WELL. THE MAIN CHALLENGE WILL BE WHAT TO DO WITH SUNDAY. MODELS LIFT LOW AND ASSOCIATED VORT ENERGY NWD AWAY FROM THE AREA...AND DRIER SFC AIR IS PROGGED TO OVERRUN THE AREA. HOWEVER...CONSIDERING THE FACT THAT THE LOW WILL PROBABLY MOVE OUT MORE SLOWLY...WILL HAVE TO KEEP SOME CLOUDS AROUND DURING THE DAY...AND POSSIBLY EVEN SOME LINGERING MORNING POPS. LBB...WORKZONES FORTHCOMING...WILL BE A FEW MINUTES LATE. PRELIM TEMPS/POPS MAF 57/75/54/79 6542 CNM 51/75/47/80 543- MRF 45/74/41/78 222- P07 60/78/59/79 3431 DJK
In the hours before
Special weather statement, Apr 30, 9:59 AM MDT, 4 hours 30 minutes before
NMZ027>029-TXZ045>048-050>052-057>063-067>070-074-075-079>082-010000- THUNDERSTORM OUTLOOK...UPDATED NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MIDLAND TX 1058 AM CDT (958 AM MDT) FRI APR 30 1999 THIS OUTLOOK PERTAINS TO THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES IN WEST TEXAS: ANDREWS CULBERSON GLASSCOCK MARTIN REAGAN UPTON BORDEN DAWSON HOWARD MIDLAND REEVES WARD BREWSTER ECTOR JEFF DAVIS PECOS SCURRY WINKLER CRANE GAINES LOVING PRESIDIO TERRELL AND IN SOUTHEAST NEW MEXICO: EDDY LEA ...THERE IS A MODERATE RISK OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS THE AREA TODAY AND TONIGHT... SYNOPSIS: AN UPPER LEVEL STORM SYSTEM SPINNING OVER THE SOUTHWESTERN U.S. WILL EJECT ANOTHER PIECE OF ENERGY ACROSS THE OUTLOOK AREA TODAY. MEANWHILE...A STATIONARY FRONT WAS LOCATED NEAR A ROSWELL... MIDLAND...TO WACO LINE THIS MORNING AND IS EXPECTED TO MOVE LITTLE THROUGHOUT THE DAY. IN ADDITION...A DRYLINE EXTENDED SOUTHWARD FROM THE FRONT ALONG THE MOUNTAINS OF WEST TEXAS AND SOUTHEAST NEW MEXICO. THESE FEATURES WILL BECOME THE FOCUS FOR SEVERE WEATHER TODAY. BREAKS IN THE CLOUDS WILL LET SUNSHINE TO WARM THE SURFACE OF THE EARTH AND FURTHER DESTABILIZE THE ATMOSPHERE. A JET STREAK PUNCHING NORTHEASTWARD THROUGH NEW MEXICO...ALONG WITH THE APPROACHING UPPER LEVEL ENERGY...WILL AID LIFT IN THE VICINITY OF THE DRYLINE. THE MOST SUSCEPTIBLE AREA FOR SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS THIS AFTERNOON WILL BE OVER SOUTHEAST NEW MEXICO AND THE TRANS PECOS WHERE THE DRYLINE AND STATIONARY FRONT ARE IN CLOSE PROXIMITY. STORMS WILL MOVE TO THE NORTH-NORTHEAST INTO PERMIAN BASIN LATER TODAY. AS WINDS IN THE MID LEVELS OF THE ATMOSPHERE WILL REMAIN WEAK... LARGE HAIL...STRONG WINDS...AND FLASH FLOODING WILL CONTINUE TO BE THE MAIN SEVERE WEATHER THREATS. HOWEVER...WITH SOME TURNING OF THE WINDS...SUPERCELL DEVELOPMENT CAPABLE OF PRODUCING WEAK TORNADOES WILL BE POSSIBLE...ESPECIALLY DURING AND AFTER MAXIMUM DAYTIME HEATING. SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL LIKELY BE REQUIRED. FOR THE WEST CENTRAL TEXAS OUTLOOK SEE PRODUCT LBBSPSSJT.
The office that day
Everything else NWS Midland/Odessa, TX issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 29, 6:35 PM MDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MAF | Eddy | 40 min |
| Apr 29, 7:11 PM MDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MAF | Eddy | 49 min |
| Apr 29, 7:57 PM MDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MAF | Eddy | 33 min |
| Apr 29, 10:19 PM MDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MAF | Eddy | 26 min |
| Apr 30, 11:14 AM MDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MAF | Eddy | 46 min |
| Apr 30, 12:45 PM MDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MAF | Lea | 45 min |
| Apr 30, 1:33 PM MDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MAF | Lea | 42 min |
| Apr 30, 2:10 PM MDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MAF | Lea | 40 min |
| Apr 30, 2:53 PM MDT | Tornado Warning | MAF | Lea | 37 min |
| Apr 30, 3:11 PM MDT | Flash Flood Warning | MAF | Lea | 3 hr |
| Apr 30, 3:27 PM MDT | Tornado Warning | MAF | Lea | 48 min |
| Apr 30, 3:55 PM MDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MAF | Eddy | 45 min |
| Apr 30, 4:12 PM MDT | Tornado Warning | MAF | Lea | 33 min |
| Apr 30, 5:52 PM MDT | Flash Flood Warning | MAF | Lea | 4 hr |
| Apr 29, 6:52 PM MDT | Tornado Warning | MAF | Culberson, Reeves | 38 min |
| Apr 29, 7:30 PM MDT | Tornado Warning | MAF | Loving, Reeves | 45 min |
| Apr 29, 7:43 PM MDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MAF | Culberson | 62 min |
| Apr 29, 8:15 PM MDT | Tornado Warning | MAF | Reeves | 45 min |
| Apr 29, 8:42 PM MDT | Tornado Warning | MAF | Culberson | 48 min |
| Apr 29, 8:44 PM MDT | Flash Flood Warning | MAF | Loving, Reeves, Ward | 3 hr |
| Apr 30, 10:35 AM MDT | Tornado Warning | MAF | Loving | 25 min |
| Apr 30, 11:24 AM MDT | Flash Flood Warning | MAF | Reeves | 3 hr |
| Apr 30, 12:02 PM MDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MAF | Loving | 18 min |
| Apr 30, 12:13 PM MDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MAF | Brewster | 62 min |
| Apr 30, 12:18 PM MDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MAF | Pecos | 42 min |
| Apr 30, 1:08 PM MDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MAF | Brewster | 37 min |
| Apr 30, 1:49 PM MDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MAF | Loving | 26 min |
| Apr 30, 1:58 PM MDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MAF | Terrell | 47 min |
| Apr 30, 3:32 PM MDT | Tornado Warning | MAF | Gaines | 43 min |
| Apr 30, 4:47 PM MDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MAF | Gaines | 58 min |
| Apr 30, 5:21 PM MDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MAF | Loving | 44 min |
| Apr 30, 5:40 PM MDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MAF | Gaines | 50 min |
Nearby
Tornado Warnings in Texas, 1999Tornado Warnings in New Mexico, 1999Every tornado warning in 1999Tornadoes in 1999
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.