Alert archive / Louisiana / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2001

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 40, NWS Lake Charles, LA

May 12, 2001Acadia Parish, Louisiana

NWS Lake Charles, LA issued this severe thunderstorm warning at May 12, 2001, 5:43 PM CDT for Acadia Parish, Louisiana. It was in force for 62 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 12, 2001, 5:43 PM CDT (22:43 UTC)
Expired
May 12, 2001, 6:45 PM CDT
In force
62 min
Issued by
NWS Lake Charles, LA
Area
Whole counties; the outline is the Mesonet’s reconstruction

County Acadia Parish, LA

The nearest sounding before it

Lake Charles Mun, LA (KLCH), launched 12:00Z, 10.7 hours before the alert went out and 72 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 2001-05-12Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1266 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 2001-05-12The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity -24 square meters per square second.1939Sfc1 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
1266 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-3 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
619 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
8 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
-24 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
-2 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.

000 
WUUS54 KLCH 122243
SVRLCH
LAC001-122345-

BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA
543 PM CDT SAT MAY 12 2001

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED A

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

* UNTIL 645 PM CDT

* AT 538 PM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM 4 MILES NORTHWEST OF IOTA...MOVING SOUTHEAST AT
  10 MPH.

* THIS STORM WILL BE NEAR...
  IOTA BY 555 PM CDT
  EGAN BY 615 PM CDT
  ESTHERWOOD...MIDLAND...CROWLEY BY 635 PM CDT

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

THIS THUNDERSTORM IS CAPABLE OF PRODUCING VERY LARGE HAIL WHICH COULD
CAUSE SIGNIFICANT DAMAGE TO PROPERTY.

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

LAT...LON 3014 9258 3018 9228 3048 9236 3047 9258

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 May 12, 2:10 PM CDT, 3 hours 33 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, May 12, 2:10 PM CDT, 3 hours 33 minutes before
SOUTHEAST TEXAS AND SOUTHWEST LOUISIANA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA
210 PM CDT SAT MAY 12 2001

WITH DAYTIME HEATING SHOWER AND THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT THIS
AFTERNOON HAS BEEN FOCUSED MAINLY IN THREE AREAS OVER THE REGION.
FIRST IS WITH THE FRONTAL BOUNDARY IN NORTHEAST TEXAS AND NORTHERN
LOUISIANA. SECOND IS ACROSS THE NORTHERN SECTIONS OF THE FORECAST
AREA FROM THE LAKES AREA OF TEXAS INTO CENTRAL LOUISIANA. FINALLY...
THE THIRD AREA IS RIGHT ALONG THE COAST IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE
SEA BREEZE CONVERGENCE BOUNDARY. MEANWHILE...WATER VAPOR IMAGERY
SHOWS UPPER LEVEL TROF MOVING SOUTHEAST INTO THE LOWER MISSISSIPPI
VALLEY.

REMAINDER OF THIS AFTERNOON...SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL CONTINUE
TO DEVELOP DURING THE AFTERNOON HOURS. WITH COOLING TEMPS AND DRIER
AIR IN THE MID LEVELS MOVING IN...STORMS WILL HAVE TO BE WATCHED
CLOSELY FOR THE POSSIBILITY OF HAIL. OTHERWISE...WEAK VERTICAL WIND
PROFILE MEANS SLOW MOVING STORMS BRINGING THE POSSIBILITY OF LOCALLY
HEAVY RAINFALL.

FORECAST PERIOD...SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL GRADUALLY DIMINISH
THIS EVENING WITH THE LOSS OF DAYTIME HEATING AND UPPER TROF PULLS
OFF TO THE EAST. SURFACE BOUNDARY WILL PUSH TOWARD THE COAST AND
BECOME DIFFUSE BY SUNDAY MORNING. THIS WILL BRING NORTHERLY SURFACE
WINDS WITH SLIGHTLY LOWER DEWPOINTS FOR SUNDAY INTO MONDAY. MID AND
UPPER LEVEL RIDGING TO BUILD IN FROM THE WEST. THIS WILL BRING MUCH
DRIER AIR IN THE MID LEVELS AND CAP THE ATMOSPHERE. ONLY POPS ON
SUNDAY WILL BE ISOLATED RIGHT ALONG THE COAST OR JUST OFFSHORE WHERE
LOW LEVEL CONVERGENCE BOUNDARY SETS UP.

EXTENDED...MID AND UPPER LEVEL RIDGING LOOK TO HOLD THROUGH -THE
WEEK. THEREFORE...WILL KEEP RAIN CHANCES OUT OF THE FORECAST.

.LCH...NONE.

.PRELIM NUMBERS...
BPT 65/84/63/86/66 2-000
LCH 63/84/61/86/65 2-000
LFT 63/84/61/87/65 2-000
AEX 61/85/58/87/62 20000

7-RUA

In the hours before

Special weather statement, May 12, 5:15 PM CDT, 28 minutes before
LAZ027>033-041>045-051>055-TXZ180>182-201-215-216-032300-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA
515 PM CDT SAT MAY 12 2001

...AN AREA OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS OVER SOUTHWEST LOUISIANA AND
SOUTHEAST TEXAS...

LAKE CHARLES DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS FROM
TYLER COUNTY OVER SOUTHEAST TEXAS EAST TO NEAR LAFAYETTE PARISH IN
SOUTHWEST LOUISIANA.  GUSTY WINDS...LOCALLY HEAVY
RAINFALL...FREQUENT LIGHTNING AND SMALL HAIL COULD BE ASSOCIATED
WITH THESE THUNDERSTORM.  THIS AREA OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS IS
MOVING SOUTH AT NEAR 10 MPH.

PERSONS TO THE SOUTH OF THESE STORMS...ESPECIALLY IN LAKE CHARLES
AREA FOR CONTRABAND DAYS SHOULD SEEK COVER.  SOME LOCAL FLOODING AND
PEA SIZE HAIL HAVE ALREADY BEEN REPORTED OVER THE AREA.  RAINFALL
AMOUNTS OF 1 TO 2 INCHES PER HOUR COULD BE ASSOCIATED WITH THESE
THUNDERSTORMS.

PERSONS IN SOUTHWEST LOUISIANA SHOULD CONSIDER DELAYING TRAVELING TO
THEIR DESTINATIONS FOP THE NEXT 1 TO 2 HOURS.  THE THUNDERSTORMS
WILL BEGIN DISSIPATING VERY RAPIDLY WITHIN THE NEXT 2 HOURS.

FLATT

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Louisiana, 2001Every 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; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive.