Alert archive / Texas / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2002

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 148, NWS Austin/San Antonio, TX

December 30, 2002Travis County, Texas

NWS Austin/San Antonio, TX issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Dec 30, 2002, 3:29 PM CST for Travis County, Texas. It was in force for 61 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
Dec 30, 2002, 3:29 PM CST (21:29 UTC)
Expired
Dec 30, 2002, 4:30 PM CST
In force
61 min
Issued by
NWS Austin/San Antonio, TX
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

County Travis County, TX

Did it verify

Not verified. The Iowa Environmental Mesonet's Cow found no qualifying storm report inside this severe thunderstorm warning while it was in force. That is not proof nothing happened: reports are thin where few people live.

Cow counts a report within 15 km of the polygon while the warning was in force: a tornado for a tornado warning; hail of 1 inch or more, a gust of 58 mph or more or wind damage for a severe thunderstorm warning; a flash flood report for a flash flood warning.

The watch it was issued in

The SPC watch in force over the same counties when this warning went out.

IssuedProductOfficeLasted
Dec 30, 12:00 PM CSTTornado WatchSPC6 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Fort Worth, TX (KFWD), launched 12:00Z, 9.5 hours before the alert went out and 281 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, Fort Worth, TX at 12:00Z on 2002-12-30Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 966 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, Fort Worth, TX at 12:00Z on 2002-12-30The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 201 square meters per square second.1939587897117136Sfc1 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
966 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-128 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
575 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
59 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
201 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
162 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.5
Supercell composite
1.5

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

176 
WUUS54 KEWX 302129
SVRSAT
TXC453-302230-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AUSTIN/SAN ANTONIO TX
329 PM CST MON DEC 30 2002

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN AUSTIN SAN ANTONIO HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES IN TEXAS...
  TRAVIS

* UNTIL 430 PM CST

* AT 329 PM...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM OVER LOST CREEK...OR ABOUT 4 MILES NORTH OF    
  LOST CREEK...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 40 MPH. 

* THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WILL BE...
  OVER WELLS BRANCH AT 340 PM
  OVER WINDEMERE AT 345 PM

ANOTHER SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WILL MOVE FROM HAYS COUNTY INTO SOUTH 
AUSTIN BY 345 PM. 

LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS ARE POSSIBLE WITH THESE SEVERE 
THUNDERSTORMS. IF YOU ARE IN THE PATH OF THE STORM...PUT YOUR CAR IN 
A GARAGE AND MOVE TO A SUBSTANTIAL SHELTER. 

A TORNADO WATCH IS IN EFFECT. SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS CAN AND DO PRODUCE
TORNADOES WITH LITTLE OR NO ADVANCE WARNING. PREPARE TO MOVE TO A
PLACE OF SAFETY IN A STURDY STRUCTURE SUCH AS A BASEMENT OR SMALL
INTERIOR ROOM IF A TORNADO IS SPOTTED.


LAT...LON 3030 9808 3004 9772 3027 9748 3041 9741
          3047 9763 3041 9776 3052 9793

$$

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 Austin/San Antonio, TX wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at Dec 30, 3:25 PM CST, 4 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Dec 30, 3:25 PM CST, 4 minutes before
SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AUSTIN/SAN ANTONIO TX
325 PM CST MON DEC 30 2002

NO CHANGES FROM EARLIER THINKING BEYOND FIRST 12 HOURS.  PREFRONTAL
TROF WORKING ACROSS CWA AT THIS TIME.  TRUE COLD FRONT SHOULD ARRIVE
HILL COUNTRY ZONES AFTER 02Z...CENTRAL ZONES AROUND MIDNIGHT.  WITH
LOW STILL DIGGING SOUTHWARD AM HESITANT TO REMOVE POPS CENTRAL ZONES
BEFORE MORNING.
10/18/VL/KW

PRELIMS...
AUS 042 062/032 068 5000
DRT 039 069/039 070 0000
SAT 045 065/034 070 4000

.EWX...TORNADO WATCH UNTIL 6 PM.
Hazardous weather outlook, Dec 30, 5:50 AM CST, 9 hours 39 minutes before
TXZ171>173-183>194-202>209-217>225-228-311200-

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AUSTIN/SAN ANTONIO TX
550 AM CST MON DEC 30 2002

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS.

.DAY ONE...
A POTENT UPPER LEVEL LOW AND ASSOCIATED COLD FRONT NEAR EL PASO WILL
PROGRESS SOUTHEAST TODAY AND INTERACT WITH MOISTURE FROM THE GULF OF
MEXICO TO PRODUCE NUMEROUS THUNDERSTORMS OVER SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS.
CHANCES FOR THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE GREATEST ALONG AND EAST OF
INTERSTATE 35 BETWEEN SAN ANTONIO AND AUSTIN. THESE STORMS WILL
LIKELY BECOME SEVERE...PRODUCING LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS.
ISOLATED TORNADOES WILL BE POSSIBLE AS WELL. THE GREATEST THREAT FOR
SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE ALONG THE COLD FRONT THIS AFTERNOON.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...
NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...
SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL LIKELY BE NEEDED ACROSS THE EASTERN HALF OF
SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS TODAY.

In the hours before

Local storm report, Dec 30, 3:19 PM CST, 10 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AUSTIN/SAN ANTONIO, TX
319 PM CST MON DEC 30 2002

TIME(CST)  .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

0225 PM    HELOTES                   TX   TORNADO
12/30/02   BEXAR                          UNCONFIRMED TORNADO
                                          REPORTED BY BEXAR COUNTY
                                          FIRE ALARM BETWEEN HELOTES
                                          AND LEON SPRINGS.

KW

The office that day

Everything else NWS Austin/San Antonio, TX issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Dec 30, 1:26 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningEWXKerr, Real64 min
Dec 30, 1:48 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningEWXBurnet, Williamson42 min
Dec 30, 1:53 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningEWXMedina37 min
Dec 30, 1:57 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningEWXBexar63 min
Dec 30, 2:05 PM CSTTornado WarningEWXBexar55 min
Dec 30, 2:26 PM CSTTornado WarningEWXComal64 min
Dec 30, 3:05 PM CSTTornado WarningEWXHays55 min
Dec 30, 3:18 PM CSTTornado WarningEWXCaldwell57 min
Dec 30, 3:28 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningEWXBexar62 min
Dec 30, 3:50 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningEWXGuadalupe55 min
Dec 30, 3:53 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningEWXComal52 min
Dec 30, 3:58 PM CSTTornado WarningEWXBastrop62 min
Dec 30, 3:59 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningEWXWilliamson61 min
Dec 30, 4:22 PM CSTTornado WarningEWXWilliamson53 min
Dec 30, 5:00 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningEWXGonzales60 min
Dec 30, 5:11 PM CSTTornado WarningEWXBastrop, Fayette, Lee64 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Texas, 2002Every severe thunderstorm warning 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.