Alert archive / Texas / Tornado Warnings in 2002

Tornado Warning 4, NWS Brownsville, TX

May 17, 20024 counties in Texas

NWS Brownsville, TX issued this tornado warning at May 17, 2002, 9:42 PM CDT for 4 counties in Texas. It was in force for 33 min. No storm report in the archive falls inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
May 17, 2002, 9:42 PM CDT (02:42 UTC)
Expired
May 17, 2002, 10:15 PM CDT
In force
33 min
Issued by
NWS Brownsville, TX
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

Counties Cameron County, TX, Hidalgo County, TX, Kenedy County, TX, Willacy County, TX

The radar

The Brownsville radar (KBRO), 86 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 02:41 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.

The nearest sounding before it

Brownsville Intl, TX (KBRO), launched 00:00Z, 2.7 hours before the alert went out and 88 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, Brownsville Intl, TX at 00:00Z on 2002-05-18Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 3506 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, Brownsville Intl, TX at 00:00Z on 2002-05-18The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 23 square meters per square second.193958Sfc1 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
3506 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-88 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
830 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
32 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
23 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
31 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.3
Supercell composite
2.1

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WFUS54 KBRO 180242
TORBRO
TXC061-215-261-489-180315-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BROWNSVILLE TX
941 PM CDT FRI MAY 17 2002

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  NORTHEASTERN HIDALGO COUNTY IN SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS
  SOUTHWESTERN KENEDY COUNTY IN SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS
  WESTERN WILLACY COUNTY IN SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS
  NORTHWESTERN CAMERON COUNTY IN SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS

* UNTIL 1015 PM CDT

* AT 941 PM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WITH A DEVELOPING TORNADO 11 MILES NORTHEAST OF
  SAN MANUEL...MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 40 MPH.

* THE TORNADO IS EXPECTED BE NEAR...
   RAYMONDVILLE BY 1000 PM CDT.
   LYFORD BY 1005 PM CDT.
   SEBASTIAN...SANTA ROSA BY 1010 PM CDT.
   COMBES BY 1015 PM CDT.

THE SAFEST PLACE TO BE DURING A TORNADO IN IN A BASEMENT. GET UNDER A
WORKBENCH OR OTHER PIECE OF STURDY FURNITURE. IF NO BASEMENT IS
AVAILABLE...SEEK SHELTER ON THE LOWEST FLOOR IN AN INTERIOR HALLWAY
OR CLOSET. USE BLANKETS OR PILLOWS TO COVER YOUR BODY.

LAT...LON 2681 9795 2673 9813 2617 9783 2628 9761

PHILO

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 17, 7:07 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBROStarr53 min
May 17, 7:31 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBROZapata59 min
May 17, 7:35 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBROHidalgo55 min
May 17, 7:47 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBROJim Hogg58 min
May 17, 7:53 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBROHidalgo, Starr52 min
May 17, 8:15 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBROBrooks, Kenedy60 min
May 17, 8:28 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBROCameron, Hidalgo, Willacy77 min
May 17, 8:48 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBROStarr42 min
May 17, 9:02 PM CDTTornado WarningBROBrooks28 min
May 17, 9:06 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBROJim Hogg39 min
May 17, 9:14 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBROKenedy46 min
May 17, 9:33 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBROCameron, Hidalgo, Willacy72 min
May 17, 9:33 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBROBrooks72 min
May 17, 9:36 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBROCameron, Hidalgo, Willacy69 min
May 17, 10:15 PM CDTTornado WarningBROCameron, Hidalgo, Kenedy, Willacy45 min
May 17, 10:21 PM CDTSpecial Marine WarningBRO84 min
May 17, 10:21 PM CDTSpecial Marine WarningBRO84 min
May 17, 10:43 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningBROKenedy3 hr
May 17, 11:05 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBROCameron40 min
May 17, 11:55 PM CDTSpecial Marine WarningBRO13 hr
May 17, 11:55 PM CDTSpecial Marine WarningBRO13 hr

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; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.