Alert archive / Virginia / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2000

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 71, NWS Baltimore/Washington

May 13, 2000Rappahannock County, Virginia

NWS Baltimore/Washington issued this severe thunderstorm warning at May 13, 2000, 6:04 PM EDT for Rappahannock County, Virginia. It was in force for 31 min. No storm report in the archive falls 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.

The facts

Issued
May 13, 2000, 6:04 PM EDT (22:04 UTC)
Expired
May 13, 2000, 6:35 PM EDT
In force
31 min
Issued by
NWS Baltimore/Washington
Area
Whole counties; the outline is the Mesonet’s reconstruction

County Rappahannock County, VA

The radar

The Sterling radar (KLWX), 71 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 22:05 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.

The watch it was issued in

The SPC watch in force over the same counties when this warning went out.

IssuedProductOfficeLasted
May 13, 2:45 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPC5 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Washington/Dulle, VA (KIAD), launched 12:00Z, 10.1 hours before the alert went out and 76 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, Washington/Dulle, VA at 12:00Z on 2000-05-13Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 680 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, Washington/Dulle, VA at 12:00Z on 2000-05-13The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 7 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
680 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-169 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1644 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
36 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
7 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
-23 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
-0.7

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

394 
WUUS51 KLWX 132205
SVRWBC
VAC157-132235-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BALTIMORE-WASHINGTON
ISSUED BY NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WAKEFIELD VA
604 PM EDT SAT MAY 13 2000

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN STERLING VIRGINIA HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  RAPPAHANNOCK COUNTY IN NORTHWEST VIRGINIA

* UNTIL 635 PM EDT

* AT 604 PM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM 3 MILES SOUTH OF PANORAMA...OR ABOUT 5 MILES
  SOUTHWEST OF SPERRYVILLE...MOVING EAST AT 30 MPH.

* THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WILL BE NEAR
  REDIVIVA AND SMEDLEY AT 605 PM EDT
  WASHINGTON AND ROUND HILL AT 610 PM EDT
  CASTLETON AND LAUREL MILLS AT 615 PM EDT
  ESTES AND VIEWTOWN AT 620 PM EDT
  HACKLEYS CROSSROAD AT 625 PM EDT

THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM IS CAPABLE OF PRODUCING
  HAIL UP TO THE SIZE OF QUARTERS.
  WINDS UP TO 60 MILES AN HOUR.
  VERY FREQUENT AND DEADLY CLOUD-TO-GROUND LIGHTNING.

THE STORM HAS A HISTORY OF PRODUCING DAMAGING WINDS AND LARGE HAIL.

LAT...LON 3870 7836 3853 7831 3858 7795 3878 7801

$$

HESS

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 Baltimore/Washington wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at May 13, 2:40 PM EDT, 3 hours 24 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, May 13, 2:40 PM EDT, 3 hours 24 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BALTIMORE/WASHINGTON
240 PM EDT SAT MAY 13 2000

...SHORT TERM...

AT 18Z...WK BNDRY DRAPED OVR THE NE ZNS SLOWLY MOVING NEWD IN RESPONSE
TO SW FLO AHEAD OF APPROACHING CDFNT. S OF THE BNDRY...OVER MUCH OF
THE CWA...ATMS IS VERY UNSTABLE WITH LIS AROUND -10...CAPES OF 3500 TO
4500...AND DWPTS IN THE 70S. ATMS ALSO BEGINNING TO DESTABILIZE OVR NE
ZNS AS BNDRY MVS NWD. OLD OUTFLOW BNDRY OVR WRN ZNS NOW ACTING AS A
FOCUS FOR REDVLPMT OF CNVCTN. EXPECT PREFRONTAL CNVCTN TO INTENSIFY AND
MV EWD DURING THE REST OF THE AFTRN. MAIN THREAT WL BE LARGE HAIL AND
SPOTTY DAMAGING WINDS. NOT A LOT OF DIRECTIONAL SHEAR TO SUPPORT
TORNADOES. HWVR...CELLS THAT FORM AT THE INTERSECTION OF THE
APPROACHING BNDRY WITH THE OLD BNDRY DRAPED OVR THE NE ZNS WL HAVE TO
BE WATCHED CLOSELY. WATCHBOX OUT.

CDFNT PUSHES E OF THE CWA BY 03Z. WL KEEP A RMDNR OF AFT PD E OF THE
BLUE RDG AND KEEP TSRA GOING IN OUR SE COUNTIES INTO THE EARLY OVRNGT
PD.

...LONG TERM...

LONGWAVE TROF SETS UP OVR ERN PTN OF THE NATION SUN THRU MON. AT THE
SFC...HI PRES BUILDS OVR THE AREA...BUT SLIPS OFFSHR MON. A VORT MAX
ROTATING AROUND THE UPR LVL TROF WL SEND ANOTHER WK BNDRY THRU THE AREA
LATE MON.

FCST WL BE SUNNY SUN AND CLR SUN NGT. AVN AND ETA HINT AT SOME CLNDS ON
MON AS WE GET RETURN FLOW AROUND THE DEPARTING SFC HI AND THE WEAK
FRONT APPROACHES FROM THE NW. WL GO P/S 4TH PD.

DWPTS FCSTD TO FALL INTO THE LWR 40S SUN THRU MON RESULTING IN LOW
HUMIDITY. FOR TEMPS...AVN AND NGM MOS WITHIN A FEW DEG OF ONE ANOTHER
WITH THE AVN LEANING ON THE COOL SIDE. WENT WITH A BLEND OF THE AVN AND
NGM MOS 2ND & 4TH PDS.  WENT SLIGHTLY BELOW GUIDANCE 3RD PD AS SKC
ALONG WITH LGT WINDS WL RESULT IN GOOD RADIATIONAL COOLING.

BEYOND 4TH PD...HIGH PRES BUILDS INTO THE AREA TUE & WED WITH NEAR
NORMAL TEMPS AND LOW HUMIDITY. COULD SEE SOME CLOUDINESS RETURN THU AS
SFC HI SLIPS OFFSHR AND WMFNT APPROACHES FM THE W.

.LWX...NONE.

The office that day

Everything else NWS Baltimore/Washington issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 13, 12:00 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXHighland35 min
May 13, 1:21 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXRockingham39 min
May 13, 1:51 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXPage, Shenandoah39 min
May 13, 2:21 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXClarke, Loudoun39 min
May 13, 2:26 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXFauquier, Rappahannock, Warren49 min
May 13, 2:36 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXPage39 min
May 13, 4:08 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXRockingham52 min
May 13, 4:34 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXPage, Shenandoah41 min
May 13, 5:01 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXAugusta, Nelson59 min
May 13, 5:15 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXPage, Rappahannock, Warren30 min
May 13, 5:22 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXFrederick, City of Winchester53 min
May 13, 5:31 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXClarke29 min
May 13, 5:34 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXPage31 min
May 13, 5:40 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXCulpeper, Fauquier, Rappahannock30 min
May 13, 5:50 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXAlbemarle, City of Charlottesville40 min
May 13, 6:07 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXPrince William, City of Manassas28 min
May 13, 6:07 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXFauquier28 min
May 13, 6:16 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXLoudoun29 min
May 13, 6:30 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXPrince William, City of Manassas, City of Manassas Park30 min
May 13, 6:30 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXFairfax, City of Fairfax30 min
May 13, 6:34 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXCulpeper, Rappahannock16 min
May 13, 6:53 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXCulpeper32 min
May 13, 6:58 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXFairfax, Prince William32 min
May 13, 6:58 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXCity of Fairfax32 min
May 13, 7:35 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXCulpeper, Fauquier, Stafford40 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Virginia, 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; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.