Alert archive / Pennsylvania / Tornado Warnings in 2002

Tornado Warning 12, NWS Cleveland, OH

April 28, 2002Erie County, Pennsylvania

NWS Cleveland, OH issued this tornado warning at Apr 28, 2002, 1:58 PM EDT for Erie County, Pennsylvania. It was in force for 32 min. 2 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, 1:58 PM EDT (17:58 UTC)
Expired
Apr 28, 2002, 2:30 PM EDT
In force
32 min
Issued by
NWS Cleveland, OH
Area
Whole counties

County Erie County, PA

The radar

The Buffalo radar (KBUF), 145 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 17:59 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
Apr 28, 1:58 PM EDTHail 1Waterford, PAQuarter size hail was reported northwest of Waterford.
Apr 28, 2:00 PM EDTHail 1Harborcreek, PAQuarter size hail was reported.

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

Buffalo Intl Airport, NY (KBUF), launched 12:00Z, 6.0 hours before the alert went out and 146 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, Buffalo Intl Airport, NY at 12:00Z on 2002-04-28Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1 joules per kilogram.LCLEL10008507005003002001001 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, Buffalo Intl Airport, NY at 12:00Z on 2002-04-28The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 686 square meters per square second.1939587897117Sfc1 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
1 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL
419 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
66 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
686 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
744 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 
WFUS51 KCLE 281758
TORCLE
PAC049-281830-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CLEVELAND OH
158 PM EDT SUN APR 28 2002

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  ERIE COUNTY IN PENNSYLVANIA...

* UNTIL 230 PM EDT

* AT 158 PM EDT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  TORNADO 12 MILES SOUTHWEST OF NORTH EAST...OR ABOUT 8 MILES
  SOUTHEAST OF ERIE. THIS DANGEROUS STORM IS MOVING NORTHEAST AT 45
  MPH.

* SOME LOCATIONS NEAR THE PATH OF THIS STORM INCLUDE...
  NORTH EAST

THE SAFEST PLACE TO BE DURING A TORNADO IS IN A BASEMENT. GET UNDER A
WORKBENCH OR OTHER PIECE OF STURDY FURNITURE. IF NO BASEMENT IS
AVAILABLE...SEEK SHELTER ON THE LOWEST FLOOR OF THE BUILDING IN AN
INTERIOR HALLWAY OR ROOM SUCH AS A CLOSET. USE BLANKETS OR PILLOWS TO
COVER YOUR BODY AND ALWAYS STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS.

IF IN MOBILE HOMES OR VEHICLES...EVACUATE THEM AND GET INSIDE A
SUBSTANTIAL SHELTER. IF NO SHELTER IS AVAILABLE...LIE FLAT IN THE
NEAREST DITCH OR OTHER LOW SPOT AND COVER YOUR HEAD WITH YOUR HANDS.

$$

The office that day

Everything else NWS Cleveland, OH issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Apr 28, 1:02 PM EDTTornado WarningCLEErie43 min
Apr 28, 1:41 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCLEErie64 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Pennsylvania, 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.