Alert archive / Texas / Tornado Warnings in 2002

Tornado Warning 22, NWS Amarillo, TX

August 30, 2002Deaf Smith County, Texas

NWS Amarillo, TX issued this tornado warning at Aug 30, 2002, 6:59 PM CDT for Deaf Smith County, Texas. It was in force for 31 min. 1 report came from inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The outline as issued, with what was reported inside it.

The facts

Issued
Aug 30, 2002, 6:59 PM CDT (23:59 UTC)
Expired
Aug 30, 2002, 7:30 PM CDT
In force
31 min
Issued by
NWS Amarillo, TX
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

County Deaf Smith County, TX

The radar

The Amarillo radar (KAMA), 81 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 00:01 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
Aug 30, 7:07 PM CDTTornado F0Hereford, TXThe tornado remained over open country and caused no damage. The path length and width were estimated.

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

Amarillo Airport, TX (KAMA), launched 12:00Z, 12.0 hours before the alert went out and 82 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, Amarillo Airport, TX at 12:00Z on 2002-08-30Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 519 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Amarillo Airport, TX at 12:00Z on 2002-08-30The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 147 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
519 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-136 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
911 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
21 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
147 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
280 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
2.5

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

640 
WFUS54 KAMA 302359
TORAMA
TXC117-310030-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AMARILLO TX
658 PM CDT FRI AUG 30 2002

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN AMARILLO HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  CENTRAL DEAF SMITH COUNTY IN THE TEXAS PANHANDLE

* UNTIL 730 PM CDT

* AT 658 PM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A TORNADO. THE MOST DANGEROUS
  PORTION OF THE STORM WAS LOCATED 4 MILES NORTHEAST OF SIMMS...
  MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 10 MPH.

* SOME LOCATIONS AFFECTED BY THE STORM INCLUDE...
  SIMMS

THIS IS AN EXTREMELY DANGEROUS AND LIFE THREATENING SITUATION. IF YOU
ARE NEAR THE PATH OF THIS LARGE AND DESTRUCTIVE TORNADO...TAKE COVER
NOW

LAT...LON 3517 10255 3510 10275 3484 10262 3494 10237

SLATTERY

The office that day

Everything else NWS Amarillo, TX issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Aug 30, 5:44 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningAMAHutchinson46 min
Aug 30, 6:16 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningAMAOldham44 min
Aug 30, 6:33 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningAMADeaf Smith, Oldham27 min
Aug 30, 6:37 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningAMAMoore, Potter38 min
Aug 30, 6:59 PM CDTTornado WarningAMADeaf Smith31 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Texas, 2002Every tornado warning in 2002Tornadoes in 2002

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.