Alert archive / Alabama / Tornado Warnings in 2002

Tornado Warning 15, NWS Birmingham, AL

April 28, 2002DeKalb County, Jackson County, Alabama

NWS Birmingham, AL issued this tornado warning at Apr 28, 2002, 8:39 PM CDT for DeKalb County, Jackson County, Alabama. It was in force for 66 min. 4 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: Apr 28, 2002, 8:39 PM CDT (01:39 UTC)
Expired: Apr 28, 2002, 9:45 PM CDT
In force: 66 min
Issued by: NWS Birmingham, AL
Area: Whole counties

Counties DeKalb County, AL, Jackson County, AL

What was reported inside it

Time	Report	Where	Remark
Apr 28, 8:40 PM CDT	Hail 2.75	Scottsboro, AL	Quarter to baseball size hail was reported in and around the city of Scottsboro. A few large trees were also uprooted.
Apr 28, 8:45 PM CDT	Hail 0.75	Sylvania, AL
Apr 28, 9:10 PM CDT	Hail 1	Mentone, AL	Quarter size hail was observed in Mentone.
Apr 28, 9:21 PM CDT	Hail 0.75	Ft Payne, AL	Penny size hail was reported in Fort Payne.

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 28, 4:00 PM CDT	Tornado Watch	SPC	5 hr
Apr 28, 8:00 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Watch	SPC	4 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Birmingham, AL (KBMX), launched 00:00Z, 1.7 hours before the alert went out and 179 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: 1670 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -6 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 1254 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 46 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 143 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 218 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 1.2
Supercell composite: 6.6

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

210 
WFUS54 KBMX 290139
TORBHM
ALC049-071-290245-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
838 PM CDT SUN APR 28 2002

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN BIRMINGHAM HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  DEKALB COUNTY IN NORTHEAST ALABAMA
  JACKSON COUNTY IN NORTHEAST ALABAMA

* UNTIL 945 PM CDT

* AT 838 PM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  TORNADO OVER DUTTON...MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 40 MPH.

* LOCATIONS NEAR THE PATH OF THIS TORNADO 
INCLUDE...BRIDGEPORT...DUTTON...FORT PAYNE...HAMMONDVILLE... 
HOLLYWOOD...LANGSTON...PINE RIDGE...PISGAH...POWELL... 
RAINSVILLE...SECTION...SKYLINE...STEVENSON...SYLVANIA...AND VALLEY 
HEAD.

THIS IS A DANGEROUS STORM. IF YOU ARE IN ITS PATH...SEEK SHELTER NOW.
STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS.

CALL 1-800-856-0758 TO REPORT SEVERE WEATHER.

The office that day

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

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Apr 28, 7:08 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BMX	Madison	52 min
Apr 28, 7:25 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BMX	Limestone	35 min
Apr 28, 7:36 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BMX	Jackson	39 min
Apr 28, 7:59 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BMX	Limestone	46 min
Apr 28, 8:14 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BMX	Jackson	46 min
Apr 28, 8:15 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BMX	Madison	30 min
Apr 28, 8:18 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	BMX	Limestone	27 min
Apr 28, 8:55 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BMX	Madison	50 min
Apr 28, 8:57 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BMX	Limestone	48 min
Apr 28, 9:13 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BMX	Cherokee	47 min
Apr 28, 9:27 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BMX	Calhoun, Etowah	33 min
Apr 28, 9:34 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BMX	Marshall	26 min
Apr 28, 9:57 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BMX	Cleburne	33 min
Apr 28, 11:05 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BMX	St. Clair	25 min
Apr 28, 11:19 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BMX	Calhoun, Talladega	26 min
Apr 29, 12:05 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BMX	Talladega	25 min
Apr 29, 12:55 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BMX	Randolph	35 min
Apr 29, 12:58 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BMX	Tallapoosa	47 min
Apr 29, 1:24 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BMX	Jefferson	36 min
Apr 29, 4:06 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BMX	Marengo	39 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Alabama, 2002 Every tornado warning in 2002 Tornadoes 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.