Alert archive / Virginia / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2001

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 2, NWS Baltimore/Washington

March 13, 2001Frederick County, Maryland; Fauquier County, Loudoun County, Virginia

NWS Baltimore/Washington issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Mar 13, 2001, 9:04 PM EST for Frederick County, Maryland; Fauquier County, Loudoun County, Virginia. It was in force for 26 min. 8 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: Mar 13, 2001, 9:04 PM EST (02:04 UTC)
Expired: Mar 13, 2001, 9:30 PM EST
In force: 26 min
Issued by: NWS Baltimore/Washington
Area: Whole counties

Counties Frederick County, MD, Fauquier County, VA, Loudoun County, VA

The radar

The Sterling radar (KLWX), 18 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 02:04 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
Mar 13, 9:20 PM EST	Thunderstorm Wind	Countywide, VA	Trees were downed.
Mar 13, 9:20 PM EST	Thunderstorm Wind	Countywide, VA	Trees were downed.
Mar 13, 9:20 PM EST	Thunderstorm Wind 52 M	Delaplane, VA	A wind gust of 60 MPH was recorded.
Mar 13, 9:20 PM EST	Thunderstorm Wind 52 E	Frederick, MD	Several trees and power lines were downed by winds estimated at 60 MPH.
Mar 13, 9:20 PM EST	Thunderstorm Wind	Countywide, MD	Trees and wires were downed.
Mar 13, 9:27 PM EST	Thunderstorm Wind	Ashburn, VA	Eight townhouse units under construction were blown over.
Mar 13, 9:30 PM EST	Thunderstorm Wind 53 M	Ashburn, VA	Winds gusted to 61 MPH.
Mar 13, 9:30 PM EST	Thunderstorm Wind 50 M	Dulles Intl Arpt, VA	A wind gust of 58 MPH was recorded at the National Weather Service Forecast office near Dulles Airport.

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

Washington/Dulle, VA (KIAD), launched 00:00Z, 2.1 hours before the alert went out and 25 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: 0 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL: 2640 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 86 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: -14 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 79 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 
WUUS51 KLWX 140205
SVRWBC

MDC021-VAC043-061-107-WVC003-037-140230-

BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BALTIMORE-WASHINGTON
904 PM EST TUE MAR 13 2001

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN STERLING VIRGINIA HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  FREDERICK COUNTY IN NORTH CENTRAL MARYLAND
  FAUQUIER COUNTY IN NORTHERN VIRGINIA
  LOUDOUN COUNTY IN NORTHERN VIRGINIA
  CLARKE COUNTY IN NORTHWEST VIRGINIA
  BERKELEY COUNTY IN THE PANHANDLE OF WEST VIRGINIA
  JEFFERSON COUNTY IN THE PANHANDLE OF WEST VIRGINIA

* UNTIL 930 PM EST

* AT 853 PM EST...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A 
    LINE OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORM 8 MILES NORTHWEST OF         
    BERRYVILLE...MOVING EAST   AT 55 MPH.

* THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WILL BE...
  8 MILES NORTH OF BLUEMONT AT 906 PM
  6 MILES NORTH OF ROUND HILL AT 910 PM
  5 MILES NORTH OF PURCELLVILLE AT 914 PM
  8 MILES SOUTH OF BRUNSWICK AT 916 PM
  6 MILES NORTH OF LEESBURG...6 MILES SOUTH OF POINT OF ROCKS AT 922
     PM

WIND GUSTS IN EXCESS OF 65 MPH HAVE BEEN REPORTED IN MARTINSBURG 
WITH THESE STORMS.

REMEMBER...A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAN PRODUCE LARGE DAMAGING HAIL...
DAMAGING WINDS IN EXCESS OF 55 MPH...DEADLY LIGHTNING...AND VERY
HEAVY RAIN. IF SEVERE WEATHER APPROACHES...GO INSIDE A STURDY SHELTER
AND STAY AWAY FROM DOORS AND WINDOWS.

TUNE INTO NOAA WEATHER RADIO OR YOUR LOCAL #RADIO OR TV STATION FOR
THE LATEST WEATHER INFORMATION.

HTS

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 Mar 13, 8:19 PM EST, 45 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Mar 13, 8:19 PM EST, 45 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION...UPDATED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BALTIMORE/WASHINGTON
819 PM EST TUE MAR 13 2001

SHRA/TSTM ENTERING CWFA ATTM. WL RAISE POPS ENTIRE AREA. EMPH ON
BRIEF HVY RA...BUT ELVTD RUMBLE OF THUNDER PSBL...ESP W. ZFP/RDF TO
FLLW.

.LWX...SMALL CRAFT ADVSRY UPR CHES BAY AND PTMC.

HTS

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Mar 13, 8:05 PM EST, 59 minutes before

DCZ001-MDZ002>007-009>011-013-014-016>018-VAZ021-025>031-036>042-
050>057-WVZ048>055-140400-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BALTIMORE-WASHINGTON
805 PM EST TUE MAR 13 2001

...WIND GUSTS TO 50 MILES PER HOUR LIKELY TONIGHT...

A FINAL LINE OF SHOWERS WILL MOVE EAST ACROSS THE REGION BETWEEN 8 PM
AND 1030 PM TONIGHT. THIS LINE WILL BRING A STRONG GUST OF WIND WITH
BRIEF HEAVY RAIN AND SMALL HAIL.  WEST AND NORTHWEST WINDS WILL GUST AS
HIGH AS 50 MILES PER HOUR WITH THE SHOWERS.

THIS BAND OF GUSTY SHOWERS WILL ENTER THE EASTERN WEST VIRGINIA
PANHANDLE AND WESTERN MARYLAND AROUND 8 PM...THEN PROGRESS EAST ACROSS
THE REGION. IT SHOULD REACH THE DC AND BALTIMORE METRO AREAS CLOSE TO
9 PM...AND THE BAY AROUND 10 PM. ALL OF THESE TIMES ARE APPROXIMATE.

IF YOU HAVE LOOSE OUTDOOR OBJECTS IN YOUR YARD...YOU WILL WANT TO
SECURE THEM OR BRING THEM INDOORS. OTHERWISE...THEY MAY BLOW AWAY OR
BECCOME DANGEROUS AIRBORNE PROJECTILES.

STRONG/HTS

The office that day

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

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Mar 13, 9:35 PM EST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	LWX	Anne Arundel, Baltimore, Carroll, Howard, City of Baltimore	40 min
Mar 13, 9:35 PM EST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	LWX	Montgomery, Prince George's	40 min
Mar 13, 10:15 PM EST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	LWX	Anne Arundel, Calvert, Charles, Prince George's	30 min
Mar 13, 9:04 PM EST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	LWX	Clarke	26 min
Mar 13, 9:35 PM EST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	LWX	City of Falls Church	40 min
Mar 13, 9:35 PM EST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	LWX	City of Fairfax	40 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Virginia, 2001 Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Maryland, 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; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.