Alert archive / Virginia / Tornado Warnings in 2000

Tornado Warning 7, NWS Baltimore/Washington

June 15, 2000Clarke County, Fauquier County, Loudoun County, Virginia

NWS Baltimore/Washington issued this tornado warning at Jun 15, 2000, 6:42 PM EDT for Clarke County, Fauquier County, Loudoun County, Virginia. It was in force for 33 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
Jun 15, 2000, 6:42 PM EDT (22:42 UTC)
Expired
Jun 15, 2000, 7:15 PM EDT
In force
33 min
Issued by
NWS Baltimore/Washington
Area
Whole counties; the outline is the Mesonet’s reconstruction

Counties Clarke County, VA, Fauquier County, VA, Loudoun County, VA

The radar

The Sterling radar (KLWX), 36 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 22:45 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.

What was reported inside it

TimeReportWhereRemark
Jun 15, 7:10 PM EDTThunderstorm WindAldie, VATrees were downed along Route 50 and across the community of Middleburg.

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
Jun 15, 2:15 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPC6 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Washington/Dulle, VA (KIAD), launched 12:00Z, 10.7 hours before the alert went out and 43 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 2000-06-15Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 59 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 2000-06-15The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 91 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
59 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-184 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
598 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
18 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
91 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
103 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.

805 
WFUS51 KLWX 152243
TORWBC
VAC043-061-107-152315-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BALTIMORE-WASHINGTON
642 PM EDT THU JUN 15 2000

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN STERLING VIRGINIA HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  FAUQUIER COUNTY IN NORTHERN VIRGINIA
  LOUDOUN COUNTY IN NORTHERN VIRGINIA
  CLARKE COUNTY IN NORTHWEST VIRGINIA

* UNTIL 715 PM EDT

* AT 638 PM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  TORNADO 6 MILES NORTHWEST OF DELAPLANE...MOVING EAST AT 30 MPH.

* THE TORNADO IS EXPECTED TO BE...
  5 MILES NORTH OF DELAPLANE AND OVER PARIS AT 644 PM
  6 MILES SOUTH OF BLUEMONT AT 702 PM
  5 MILES NORTH OF MIDDLEBURG AT 706 PM
  6 MILES SOUTH OF ROUND HILL AT 710 PM
  5 MILES SOUTH OF PURCELLVILLE AT 716 PM

IF YOU ARE CAUGHT OUTSIDE...SEEK SHELTER IN A NEARBY REINFORCED
BUILDING. AS A LAST RESORT...SEEK SHELTER IN A CULVERT...DITCH OR LOW
SPOT AND COVER YOUR HEAD WITH YOUR HANDS.

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.

IF IN MOBILE HOMES OR VEHICLES...EVACUATE THEM AND GET INSIDE A
SUBSTANTIAL SHELTER. IF NO SHELTER IS AVAILABLE...LIE FLAT IN THE
NEAREST DITCH OR OTHER LOW SPOT AND COVER YOUR HEAD WITH YOUR HANDS.

LAT...LON 3903 7813 3887 7805 3899 7753 3920 7763

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jun 15, 2:16 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXFrederick44 min
Jun 15, 4:44 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXClarke, Loudoun46 min
Jun 15, 5:12 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXLoudoun48 min
Jun 15, 5:31 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXFrederick, City of Winchester44 min
Jun 15, 5:31 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXShenandoah44 min
Jun 15, 6:19 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXClarke, Fauquier, Loudoun41 min
Jun 15, 6:19 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXFrederick, City of Winchester41 min
Jun 15, 6:19 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXWarren41 min
Jun 15, 7:10 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXFairfax, Loudoun, City of Fairfax, City of Falls Church50 min
Jun 15, 7:22 PM EDTTornado WarningLWXLoudoun23 min
Jun 15, 7:22 PM EDTTornado WarningLWXFairfax, City of Falls Church23 min
Jun 15, 7:22 PM EDTTornado WarningLWXCity of Fairfax23 min
Jun 15, 7:34 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXArlington41 min
Jun 15, 7:34 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXCity of Alexandria41 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Virginia, 2000Every tornado warning in 2000Tornadoes 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.