Alert archive / Pennsylvania / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2000

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 55, NWS Pittsburgh, PA

May 23, 2000Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania

NWS Pittsburgh, PA issued this severe thunderstorm warning at May 23, 2000, 8:00 PM EDT for Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania. It was in force for 60 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 23, 2000, 8:00 PM EDT (00:00 UTC)
Expired: May 23, 2000, 9:00 PM EDT
In force: 60 min
Issued by: NWS Pittsburgh, PA
Area: Whole counties

County Westmoreland County, PA

The radar

The Pittsburgh radar (KPBZ), 68 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 00:17 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
May 23, 8:43 PM EDT	Thunderstorm Wind	Rillton, PA	Thunderstorm winds downed a few trees.
May 23, 9:05 PM EDT	Thunderstorm Wind	Monessen, PA	Thunderstorm winds downed several trees and power lines.

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

Pittsburgh, PA (KPIT), launched 00:00Z, 0.0 hours before the alert went out and 55 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-p

Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.

Hodograph

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: 515 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -5 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 656 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 26 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 82 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 121 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.0
Supercell composite: 1.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

887 
WUUS51 KPBZ 240001
SVRPIT
PAC129-240100-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PITTSBURGH PA
800 PM EDT TUE MAY 23 2000

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN PITTSBURGH HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  WESTMORELAND COUNTY IN PENNSYLVANIA

* UNTIL 900 PM EDT

* AT 800 PM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM 3 MILES SOUTHWEST OF JEANNETTE...STATIONARY.

* THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WILL BE NEAR...
  DELMONT AT 900 PM EDT.

<<CALL TO ACTION>>SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS PRODUCE WINDS IN EXCESS OF 58
MILES AN HOUR AND LARGE HAIL GREATER THAN THREE QUARTERS OF AN INCH.

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 Pittsburgh, PA wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at May 23, 6:48 PM EDT, 1 hour 12 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, May 23, 6:48 PM EDT, 1 hour 12 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PITTSBURGH PA
648 PM EDT TUE MAY 23 2000

UPDATED ZNS FOR SVR TSTM WATCH.

FCSTID = 14
PIT   57  80  56  74 /  60  60  40  10
MGW   57  80  56  74 /  60  60  40  10

.PBZ...
MD...NONE.
OH...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING UNTIL 712 PM EDT TUESDAY FOR ZONES
OHZ040...OHZ068...OHZ041...OHZ057...OHZ050.

SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING UNTIL 707 PM EDT TUESDAY FOR ZONE OHZ068.

SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING UNTIL 729 PM EDT TUESDAY FOR ZONE OHZ041.

SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING UNTIL 733 PM EDT TUESDAY FOR ZONE OHZ057.

SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING UNTIL 724 PM EDT TUESDAY FOR ZONE OHZ050.

SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH UNTIL MIDNIGHT EDT WEDNESDAY FOR ZONES
OHZ039>041...OHZ048>050...OHZ057>059...OHZ068>069.

SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH UNTIL MIDNIGHT EDT WEDNESDAY FOR ZONES
PAZ007>008...PAZ013>015...PAZ020>022...PAZ029>032.

WV...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING UNTIL 712 PM EDT TUESDAY FOR ZONE
WVZ001.

SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING UNTIL 724 PM EDT TUESDAY FOR ZONE WVZ001.

SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH UNTIL MIDNIGHT EDT WEDNESDAY FOR ZONES
WVZ001>004...WVZ012...WVZ021>023.

In the hours before

Special weather statement, May 23, 6:26 PM EDT, 1 hour 34 minutes before

WEST VIRGINIA AREAL OUTLINE FOR SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH NUMBER 115
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PITTSBURGH PA...CORRECTION REMOVING TUCKER

626 PM EDT TUE MAY 23 2000

OHC013-019-029-031-059-067-081-111-119-121-157-240400-
IN OHIO 11 COUNTIES

CARROLL           COLUMBIANA       COSHOCTON        GUERNSEY
HARRISON          BELMONT          JEFFERSON        MONROE
MUSKINGUM         NOBLE            TUSCARAWAS

...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH UNTIL MIDNIGHT...

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH
UNTIL MIDNIGHT TONIGHT.

THUNDERSTORMS CONTAINING HAIL TO 2 INCHES IN DIAMETER...WIND GUSTS
TO 70 MPH...AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE IN THE WATCH AREAS.

REMEMBER...A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH MEANS CONDITIONS ARE
FAVORABLE FOR SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS IN AND CLOSE TO THE WATCH AREA.
PERSONS IN THESE AREAS SHOULD BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR THREATENING
WEATHER CONDITIONS AND LISTEN FOR LATER STATEMENTS AND POSSIBLE
WARNINGS.

PAC003-005-007-019-031-051-059-073-085-121-125-129-240400-
IN PENNSYLVANIA 12 COUNTIES

ALLEGHENY         ARMSTRONG        BEAVER           BUTLER
CLARION           FAYETTE          GREENE           LAWRENCE
MERCER            VENANGO          WASHINGTON       WESTMORELAND

...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH UNTIL MIDNIGHT...

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH
UNTIL MIDNIGHT TONIGHT.

THUNDERSTORMS CONTAINING HAIL TO 2 INCHES IN DIAMETER...WIND GUSTS
TO 70 MPH...AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE IN THE WATCH AREAS.

REMEMBER...A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH MEANS CONDITIONS ARE
FAVORABLE FOR SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS IN AND CLOSE TO THE WATCH AREA.
PERSONS IN THESE AREAS SHOULD BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR THREATENING
WEATHER CONDITIONS AND LISTEN FOR LATER STATEMENTS AND POSSIBLE
WARNINGS.

WVC009-029-049-051-061-069-077-103-240400-
IN WEST VIRGINIA 9 COUNTIES

HANCOCK           MARION           MARSHALL         MONONGALIA
BROOKE            OHIO             PRESTON          WETZEL

...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH UNTIL MIDNIGHT...

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH
UNTIL MIDNIGHT TONIGHT.

THUNDERSTORMS CONTAINING HAIL TO 2 INCHES IN DIAMETER...WIND GUSTS
TO 70 MPH...AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE IN THE WATCH AREAS.

REMEMBER...A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH MEANS CONDITIONS ARE
FAVORABLE FOR SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS IN AND CLOSE TO THE WATCH AREA.
PERSONS IN THESE AREAS SHOULD BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR THREATENING
WEATHER CONDITIONS AND LISTEN FOR LATER STATEMENTS AND POSSIBLE
WARNINGS.

The office that day

Everything else NWS Pittsburgh, PA issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
May 23, 8:57 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	PBZ	Fayette, Westmoreland	43 min
May 24, 6:45 AM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	PBZ	Greene	65 min
May 24, 3:53 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	PBZ	Jefferson	57 min
May 24, 4:05 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	PBZ	Armstrong, Clarion	65 min
May 24, 4:13 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	PBZ	Westmoreland	47 min
May 24, 4:22 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	PBZ	Indiana	48 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Pennsylvania, 2000 Every 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.