Alert archive / Texas / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2002

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 39, NWS Houston/Galveston, TX

May 30, 2002Brazoria County, Texas

NWS Houston/Galveston, TX issued this severe thunderstorm warning at May 30, 2002, 7:55 PM CDT for Brazoria County, Texas. It was in force for 35 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 30, 2002, 7:55 PM CDT (00:55 UTC)
Expired
May 30, 2002, 8:30 PM CDT
In force
35 min
Issued by
NWS Houston/Galveston, TX
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

County Brazoria County, TX

The radar

The Houston radar (KHGX), 59 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 00:57 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.

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 nearest sounding before it

Lake Charles Mun, LA (KLCH), launched 00:00Z, 0.9 hours before the alert went out and 241 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, Lake Charles Mun, LA at 00:00Z on 2002-05-31Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 749 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, Lake Charles Mun, LA at 00:00Z on 2002-05-31The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 0 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
749 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-9 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
691 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
0 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
0 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
0 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.

508 
WUUS54 KHGX 310055
SVRHOU
TXC039-310130-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HOUSTON/GALVESTON TX
754 PM CDT THU MAY 30 2002

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  BRAZORIA COUNTY IN SOUTHEAST TEXAS

* UNTIL 830 PM CDT

* AT 752 PM CDT...DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM 2
  MILES NORTHWEST OF SURFSIDE BEACH...MOVING SOUTH AT 20 MPH.

* LOCATIONS IN THE PATH OF THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM INCLUDE...
  OYSTER CREEK...FREEPORT...CLUTE...RICHWOOD
  QUINTANA...SURFSIDE BEACH

HAIL IS THE PRIMARY THREAT WITH THESE STORMS.

A SECOND STORM WAS INTENSIFYING NEAR BAILEYS PRAIRIE WILL LIKELY MOVE 
OVER LAKE JACKSON.

MOVE TO AN INTERIOR ROOM ON THE LOWEST FLOOR OF YOUR HOME OR
BUSINESS. STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS

PLEASE REPORT SEVERE WEATHER TO THE COUNTY SHERIFF...LOCAL POLICE...
OR DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY. THEY WILL RELAY YOUR REPORT TO THE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE.

LAT...LON 2910 9524 2922 9554 2881 9548 2868 9508

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 Houston/Galveston, TX wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at May 30, 6:20 PM CDT, 1 hour 35 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, May 30, 6:20 PM CDT, 1 hour 35 minutes before
SOUTHEAST TEXAS FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HOUSTON/GALVESTON TX
620 PM CDT THU MAY 30 2002

QUICK UPDATE TO UP POPS FOR CENTRAL/COASTAL ZONES FOR THIS EVENING.
UPPER LOW WILL DRIFT SOUTHWEST ACROSS CWA NEXT FEW HOURS WITH
COMPLEX OF TSRA CONTINUING AS WEAK DISTURBANCES ROTATE AROUND LOW.
SEVERE THREAT WILL REMAIN ISOLATED AND SHOULD WANE NEXT COUPLE OF
HOURS AS STRONGEST INSTABILITY PUSHES OFFSHORE. TWEAKED WINDS AND
TEMPS A BIT AS WELL.

35/36/43/45/39

.HGX...NONE.

CLL BB 063/090 066/090 068 332
IAH BB 066/088 068/088 069 742
GLS BB 072/081 073/082 075 742

PREVIOUS DISCUSSION...
MID AND UPPER LOW OVER LA THIS AFTERNOON.  MODELS STILL FAIRLY
CONSISTENT IN DRIFTING THE LOW SOUTHWARD INTO THE GULF BY FRIDAY
NIGHT.  MOST IMPORTANT ITEMS CONSIDERED INCLUDE POPS AND STORM
STRENGTH FOR THE FIRST PERIOD...THEN TEMPERATURES AND POPS FROM THE
SECOND PERIOD ON.

THE BULK OF THE ACTIVITY SO FAR TODAY HAS BEEN OVER LA.  HOWEVER...
WATER VAPOR SHOWS A DECENT VORTICITY AREA APPROACHING FROM THE NORTH.
WITH TEMPERATURES REACHING INTO THE UPPER 80S AND THE CURRENT MAPS/
ACARS SOUNDINGS INDICATING THE CAP HAS BEEN ERODED...FEEL STORMS ARE
LIKELY.  THESE SHOULD TAPER OFF TOWARD EVENING...SO WILL KEEP THE
CURRENT POPS IN PLACE FOR TONIGHT.  SEVERE ITEMS TO CONSIDER LOOK TO
BE HAIL AND WIND INLAND GIVEN THE CURRENT CAPE VALUES AT IAH...ABOUT
2000.  ALONG THE COAST THERE MAY BE ENOUGH OF A FAVORABLE WIND
PROFILE FOR ISOLATED TORNADOES TO BE CONSIDERED...THOUGH AS LCH
MENTIONED FUNNEL CLOUDS MAY BE MORE LIKELY.

STARTING SUNDAY THE MODELS MOVE A RIDGE OVERHEAD FROM THE NORTH AS
THE LOW PUSHES INTO THE GULF.  DEPENDING HOW CLOSE THE LOW IS WILL
DETERMINE THE POPS.  FOR NOW THINK THAT ISOLATED IS BEST FOR MAINLY
DAYTIME SEABREEZE ACTIVITY.  BETTER CHANCES LOOK TO OCCUR BY
WEDNESDAY AS THE RIDGE MOVES EAST AND A TROUGH APPROACHES FROM THE
WEST.

PL-40
43

The office that day

Everything else NWS Houston/Galveston, TX issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 30, 8:00 PM CDTSpecial Marine WarningHGX2 hr
May 30, 10:19 PM CDTSpecial Marine WarningHGX86 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; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.