Alert archive / Alabama / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2001

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 101, NWS Birmingham, AL

April 4, 2001Pickens County, Alabama

NWS Birmingham, AL issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Apr 4, 2001, 12:11 PM CDT for Pickens County, Alabama. It was in force for 34 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: Apr 4, 2001, 12:11 PM CDT (17:11 UTC)
Expired: Apr 4, 2001, 12:45 PM CDT
In force: 34 min
Issued by: NWS Birmingham, AL
Area: Whole counties; the outline is the Mesonet’s reconstruction

County Pickens County, AL

What was reported inside it

Time	Report	Where	Remark
Apr 4, 12:17 PM CDT	Hail 0.75	Carrollton, AL	Three quarter inch diameter size hail was reported in Carrollton.

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.

Issued	Product	Office	Lasted
Apr 4, 11:00 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Watch	SPC	5 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Birmingham, AL (KBMX), launched 12:00Z, 5.2 hours before the alert went out and 126 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: 1424 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -96 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 545 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 40 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 106 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 114 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.0
Supercell composite: -2.3

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WUUS54 KBMX 041712
SVRBHM
ALC107-041745-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
1211 PM CDT WED APR 4 2001

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  PICKENS COUNTY IN ALABAMA

* UNTIL 1245 PM CDT

* AT 1208 PM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM OVER CARROLLTON...MOVING EAST AT 30 MPH.

HAIL TO THE SIZE OF DIMES HAS BEEN REPORTED WITH THIS STORM. IF YOU 
ARE IN THE PATH OF THE STORM...MOVE TO A STURDY SHELTER.

IF YOU ARE CAUGHT OUTSIDE...SEEK SHELTER IN A STURDY BUILDING. 
DAMAGING WIND...LARGE HAIL AND HEAVY RAIN ARE ALL POSSIBLE. STAY 
INSIDE...AWAY FROM WINDOWS UNTIL THE STORM HAS PASSED.

LAT...LON 3333 8828 3315 8829 3312 8791 3333 8790

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 Birmingham, AL wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at Apr 4, 10:36 AM CDT, 1 hour 35 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Apr 4, 10:36 AM CDT, 1 hour 35 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM, AL
1036 AM CDT WED APR 04 2001

UPDATE IN THE WORKS...TO REFLECT LATEST WATCH ISSUED BY SPC.  ALSO...
WILL BE PARING DOWN FLASH FLOOD WATCH AREA TO COINCIDE MORE
WITH THE WATCH.  UPDATE OUT ASAP.

.BHM...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF WEST CENTRAL AND
       SOUTHWEST ALABAMA.
    ...FLASH FLOOD WATCH FOR PARTS OF WEST CENTRAL ALABAMA.

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Apr 4, 7:25 AM CDT, 4 hours 46 minutes before

ALZ001>038-040>050-051530-

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
725 AM CDT WED APR 04 2001

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK FOR NORTH AND CENTRAL ALABAMA.

SCATTERED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS...WITH A FEW STRONG TO SEVERE
THUNDERSTORMS...ARE EXPECTED TO REDEVELOP ACROSS NORTH AND CENTRAL
ALABAMA THROUGH THIS AFTERNOON.

THE STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS PLACED MUCH OF NORTHWEST...AND
WEST CENTRAL ALABAMA UNDER A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH...UNTIL 11 AM
THIS MORNING. THIS WATCH INCLUDES AREAS WEST OF A ROGERSVILLE...TO
BIRMINGHAM...TO PRATTVILLE LINE. THE MAIN THREAT FROM THE SEVERE
THUNDERSTORMS WILL CONTINUE TO BE LARGE HAIL...AND THE GREATEST
THREAT TIME WILL BE THROUGH EARLY THIS AFTERNOON.

EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT PERSONNEL AND STORM SPOTTER GROUPS SHOULD
MONITOR THE LATEST WEATHER CONDITIONS AND BE READY FOR POSSIBLE
ACTIVATION.

Local storm report, Apr 4, 7:57 AM CDT, 4 hours 14 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
757 AM CDT WED APR 04 2001

TIME(CDT)  .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE  ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

550 AM     1S FAYETTE                AL   0.75 INCH HAIL
04/04/01   FAYETTE                        EMA REPORTED DIME SIZED
                                          HAIL.

730 AM     COTTONDALE                AL   1.00 INCH HAIL
04/04/01   TUSCALOOSA                     EMA REPORTED QUARTER
                                          SIZED HAIL.

The office that day

Everything else NWS Birmingham, AL issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Apr 3, 7:58 PM CDT	Flash Flood Warning	BMX	Chilton, Coosa	3 hr
Apr 3, 8:24 PM CDT	Flash Flood Warning	BMX	Clay, Elmore, Jefferson, Macon, Shelby, Talladega and 2 more	3 hr
Apr 3, 8:30 PM CDT	Flash Flood Warning	BMX	Chambers, Randolph	4 hr
Apr 3, 10:43 PM CDT	Flash Flood Warning	BMX	Autauga, Barbour, Bullock, Dallas, Lowndes, Montgomery and 2 more	3 hr
Apr 4, 12:21 AM CDT	Flash Flood Warning	BMX	Greene, Hale, Sumter	99 min
Apr 4, 1:32 AM CDT	Flash Flood Warning	BMX	Autauga, Barbour, Bullock, Dallas, Greene, Hale and 5 more	6 hr
Apr 4, 5:40 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BMX	Fayette	35 min
Apr 4, 7:26 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BMX	Bibb, Tuscaloosa	34 min
Apr 4, 8:07 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BMX	Hale	23 min
Apr 4, 8:25 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BMX	Coosa	35 min
Apr 4, 8:36 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BMX	Sumter	24 min
Apr 4, 9:00 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BMX	Sumter	30 min
Apr 4, 9:04 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BMX	Perry	26 min
Apr 4, 9:06 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BMX	Bibb	39 min
Apr 4, 9:57 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BMX	Perry	33 min
Apr 4, 10:12 AM CDT	Flash Flood Warning	BMX	Dallas	3 hr
Apr 4, 11:35 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BMX	Pickens	40 min
Apr 4, 1:51 PM CDT	Flash Flood Warning	BMX	Morgan	3 hr
Apr 4, 5:04 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BMX	Pickens	41 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Alabama, 2001 Every severe thunderstorm warning in 2001

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.