Alert archive / Louisiana / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2000

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 98, NWS Lake Charles, LA

April 12, 2000Calcasieu Parish, Louisiana

NWS Lake Charles, LA issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Apr 12, 2000, 9:23 AM CDT for Calcasieu Parish, Louisiana. It was in force for 67 min. 1 report 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
Apr 12, 2000, 9:23 AM CDT (14:23 UTC)
Expired
Apr 12, 2000, 10:30 AM CDT
In force
67 min
Issued by
NWS Lake Charles, LA
Area
Whole counties

County Calcasieu Parish, LA

The radar

The Lake Charles radar (KLCH), 18 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 14:26 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
Apr 12, 10:00 AM CDTHail 0.75Vinton, LA

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 nearest sounding before it

Lake Charles Mun, LA (KLCH), launched 12:00Z, 2.4 hours before the alert went out and 19 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, Lake Charles Mun, LA at 12:00Z on 2000-04-12Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1108 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, Lake Charles Mun, LA at 12:00Z on 2000-04-12The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 57 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
1108 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-4 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
502 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
28 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
57 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
126 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.2
Supercell composite
1.2

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

939 
WUUS54 KLCH 121424
SVRLCH
LAC019-121530-

BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA
923 AM CDT WED APR 12 2000

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN LAKE CHARLES HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  CALCASIEU PARISH IN SOUTHWEST LOUISIANA

* UNTIL 1030 AM CDT

* AT 921 AM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM 6 MILES SOUTH OF VINTON...MOVING NORTHEAST AT
  15 MPH.

* THIS STORM WILL BE NEAR...
  VINTON BY 930 AM CDT
  CARLYSS BY 1000 AM CDT
  SULPHUR BY 1005 AM CDT
  GILLIS...MOSS BLUFF...WESTLAKE BY 1025 AM CDT

SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS PRODUCE WINDS IN EXCESS OF 60 MPH...DESTRUCTIVE
HAIL...DEADLY LIGHTNING AND TORRENTIAL RAIN.

CALL 337-477-5285 TO REPORT SEVERE WEATHER TO THE WEATHER SERVICE.

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before this severe thunderstorm warning went out, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Lake Charles, LA wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at Apr 12, 9:05 AM CDT, 18 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Apr 12, 9:05 AM CDT, 18 minutes before
SOUTHEAST TEXAS AND SOUTHWEST LOUISIANA FORECAST DISCUSSION...UPDATED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA
905 AM CDT WED APR 12 2000

WITH DECENT POSITIVE VORTICITY ADVECTION MOVING THROUGH THE AREA AND
SUCH CLOSE PROXIMITY TO THE SURFACE LOW...CHANCES FOR PRECIPITATION
WILL BE INCREASED FOR THE ENTIRE COUNTY WARNING AREA.  WILL REMOVE
MORNING FOG WORDING WHEN CONDITIONS WARRANT IT. HEAVY RAINS LIKELY
AS FRONTAL BOUNDARY SERVES AS FOCUSING MECHANISM TODAY.

.LCH...
LA...NONE
TX...NONE

UPDATED PRELIMINARY NUMBERS
LCH 75/57/74/58 7520
LFT 75/59/75/58 7530
AEX 68/56/73/55 9520
BPT 75/59/75/61 7520

22/11

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Apr 12, 5:10 AM CDT, 4 hours 13 minutes before
LAZ027>033-041>045-051>055-TXZ180>182-201-215-216-122000-

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA
510 AM CDT WED APR 12 2000

...SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS POSSIBLE ACROSS SOUTHEAST TEXAS...CENTRAL AND
SOUTHERN LOUISIANA TODAY AND TONIGHT...

A COLD FRONT EXTENDING OVER CENTRAL LOUISIANA WILL SLOWLY MOVE SOUTH
THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT. A SURFACE LOW WILL DEVELOP AND MOVE ALONG
THE FRONT DURING THIS TIME ALSO. AS A RESULT...SOUTHERLY FLOW WILL
CONTINUE TO PUMP LOW LEVEL MOISTURE INTO THE AREA. THIS WILL COMBINE
WITH DAYTIME HEATING AND UPPER LEVEL SUPPORT TO SET THE STAGE FOR
THUNDERSTORMS...WITH A FEW STORMS BECOMING SEVERE THIS AFTERNOON.

THE MAIN THREAT FROM THESE THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE IN THE FORM OF LARGE
HAIL AND DAMAGING DOWNBURST WINDS. A FEW SMALL TORNADOES MAY
OCCUR...AS THEY ARE ALWAYS POSSIBLE WITH ANY SEVERE WEATHER EVENT.
LOCALIZED RAINFALL AMOUNTS OF ONE TO TWO INCHES WILL BE POSSIBLE AS
WELL. HOWEVER WIDESPREAD FLOODING IS NOT EXPECTED WITH THIS SYSTEM.

ALL INTERESTS IN SOUTHEAST TEXAS...CENTRAL...AND SOUTHERN LOUISIANA
SHOULD MONITOR NOAA WEATHER RADIO AND LOCAL MEDIA FOR UPDATES ON THIS
WEATHER SITUATION.

ACTIVATION OF SKY WARN SPOTTERS MAY BE POSSIBLE THIS AFTERNOON AND
EVENING AS WELL.

MORE INFORMATION CAN BE FOUND ON THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE
CHARLES WEB-SITE AT WWW.SRH.NOAA.GOV/LCH.

8

The office that day

Everything else NWS Lake Charles, LA issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Apr 12, 10:32 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLCHBeauregard, Calcasieu58 min
Apr 12, 11:08 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLCHCameron67 min
Apr 12, 11:24 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLCHCalcasieu36 min
Apr 12, 11:36 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLCHJefferson Davis54 min
Apr 12, 11:45 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLCHAllen60 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Louisiana, 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.