Alert archive / Massachusetts / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2000

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 8, NWS Boston/Norton, MA

May 18, 2000Hampden County, Hampshire County, Massachusetts

NWS Boston/Norton, MA issued this severe thunderstorm warning at May 18, 2000, 5:49 PM EDT for Hampden County, Hampshire County, Massachusetts. It was in force for 56 min. 2 reports came from inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The counties it named, with what was reported inside it.

The facts

Issued
May 18, 2000, 5:49 PM EDT (21:49 UTC)
Expired
May 18, 2000, 6:45 PM EDT
In force
56 min
Issued by
NWS Boston/Norton, MA
Area
Whole counties

Counties Hampden County, MA, Hampshire County, MA

The radar

The Albany radar (KENX), 123 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 21:53 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

TimeReportWhereRemark
May 18, 6:15 PM EDTThunderstorm Wind 50 ESpringfield, MA
May 18, 6:20 PM EDTThunderstorm Wind 50 ENorthampton, MA

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.

IssuedProductOfficeLasted
May 18, 5:00 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPC5 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Brookhaven, NY (KOKX), launched 12:00Z, 9.8 hours before the alert went out and 154 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, Brookhaven, NY at 12:00Z on 2000-05-18Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 0 joules per kilogram.LCL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Brookhaven, NY at 12:00Z on 2000-05-18The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 131 square meters per square second.193958Sfc1 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
0 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL
977 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
25 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
131 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
245 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

937 
WUUS51 KBOX 182149
SVRBOS
MAC013-015-182245-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TAUNTON MA
549 PM EDT THU MAY 18 2000

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN TAUNTON HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  HAMPDEN COUNTY IN WESTERN MASSACHUSETTS
    INCLUDING CHICOPEE...SPRINGFIELD
  HAMPSHIRE COUNTY IN WESTERN MASSACHUSETTS
    INCLUDING NORTHAMPTON

* UNTIL 645 PM EDT.

* AT 543 PM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  LINE OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS EXTENDING FROM PITTSFIELD TO GREAT
  BARRINGTON...MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 45 MPH.  THESE STORMS HAVE A HISTORY
  OF PRODUCING SIGNIFICANT WIND DAMAGE IN NEW YORK STATE.  A WIND GUST
  TO 56 MPH WAS RECENTLY REPORTED IN PITTSFIELD BY EMERGENCY
  MANAGEMENT.

* OTHER LOCATIONS IN THE WARNING AREA INCLUDE WORTHINGTON...
  HUNTINGTON...NORTHAMPTON...WESTFIELD...AMHERST...AND SPRINGFIELD.

THIS THUNDERSTORM IS CAPABLE OF PRODUCING BOTH DAMAGING WIND AND HAIL
LARGE ENOUGH TO CAUSE SERIOUS INJURY AND SMASHED WINDOWS.
$$

JWD/DRV

The office that day

Everything else NWS Boston/Norton, MA issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 18, 5:20 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBOXFranklin55 min
May 18, 6:14 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBOXFranklin, Worcester46 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Massachusetts, 2000Every severe thunderstorm warning in 2000

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.