Alert archive / Louisiana / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2002
Severe Thunderstorm Warning 24, NWS Lake Charles, LA
NWS Lake Charles, LA issued this severe thunderstorm warning at May 17, 2002, 11:26 AM CDT for Vermilion Parish, Louisiana. It was in force for 64 min. 1 report came from inside the area while it was in force.
The area
The outline as issued, with what was reported inside it.
The facts
- Issued
- May 17, 2002, 11:26 AM CDT (16:26 UTC)
- Expired
- May 17, 2002, 12:30 PM CDT
- In force
- 64 min
- Issued by
- NWS Lake Charles, LA
- Area
- Counties, with a storm outline in the text
County Vermilion Parish, LA
The radar
The Lake Charles radar (KLCH), 92 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 16:25 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
| Time | Report | Where | Remark |
|---|---|---|---|
| May 17, 11:30 AM CDT | Thunderstorm Wind 50 E | Pecan Is, LA |
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.
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 12:00Z, 4.4 hours before the alert went out and 90 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.
- Mixed-layer CAPE
- 1518 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -50 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 802 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 13 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 45 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 127 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 0.0
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000 WUUS54 KLCH 171626 SVRLCH LAC113-171730- BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA 1125 AM CDT FRI MAY 17 2002 THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN LAKE CHARLES HAS ISSUED A * SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR... VERMILION PARISH IN SOUTHWEST LOUISIANA * UNTIL 1230 PM CDT * AT 1120 AM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM 7 MILES SOUTHWEST OF PECAN ISLAND...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 40 MPH. * THIS STORM WILL BE NEAR... WHITE LAKE BY 1130 AM CDT PECAN ISLAND BY 1135 AM CDT FORKED ISLAND BY 1215 PM CDT INTRACOASTAL CITY BY 1225 PM CDT HENRY BY 1230 PM CDT SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS PRODUCE WINDS IN EXCESS OF 60 MPH...DESTRUCTIVE HAIL...DEADLY LIGHTNING AND TORRENTIAL RAIN. CALL 337-477-5285 TO REPORT SEVERE WEATHER TO THE WEATHER SERVICE. LAT...LON 2958 9263 2945 9248 2985 9199 3012 9220
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 Lake Charles, LA wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at May 17, 9:25 AM CDT, 2 hours 1 minute earlier.
Area forecast discussion, May 17, 9:25 AM CDT, 2 hours 1 minute before
SOUTHWEST LOUISIANA AND SOUTHEAST TEXAS FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA 925 AM CDT FRI MAY 17 2002 LINE OF TSTMS MOVG THRU SE TX AND EXTENDS OFFSHORE. MRNG SOUNDING INDCG HIGH CAPES ALTHOUGH AT THIS TIME HELICITY REMAINS LOW. PRECIP IS NOW 1.83 INCHES. THIS SYSTEM WILL MOVE THRU SW LA OVR THE NEXT SEVERAL HOURS MOVG TO THE EAST AROUND 25 MPH. IN ADDITION A FRONTAL SYS IS MOVG RAPIDLY TO THE SOUTHEAST AND WILL MOVE INTO SRN LA BY THIS AFTN. WILL UPDATE ZONES TO REFLECT THESE CHANGES. .LCH...NONE. .PRELIMINARY NUMBERS... AEX 83/60/76/52/76/49 960000 BPT 82/69/79/58/77/55 962000 LCH 83/68/78/57/77/55 962000 LFT 84/69/78/58/77/55 962000 K. KUYPER
In the hours before
Local storm report, May 17, 9:38 AM CDT, 1 hour 48 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES,LA
938 AM CDT FRI MAY 17 2002
TIME(CDT) .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE ...EVENT/REMARKS...
....COUNTY LOCATION....
0933 AM SEA RIM STATE PARK TX WIND DAMAGE
05/17/02 JEFFERSON POWERLINES DOWN AT SEA RIM
STATE PARK. BUILDINGS
RATTLED ACCORDING TO
PERSONNEL. NO ELECTRICITY.
FNLocal storm report, May 17, 9:47 AM CDT, 1 hour 39 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES,LA
947 AM CDT FRI MAY 17 2002
TIME(CDT) .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE ...EVENT/REMARKS...
....COUNTY LOCATION....
0917 AM LA BELLE TX WIND DAMAGE
05/17/02 JEFFERSON TREES DOWN WITH A TRAILER
KNOCKED OVER. NO INJURIES.
PERSONNEL. NO ELECTRICITY.
FNLocal storm report, May 17, 10:04 AM CDT, 1 hour 22 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES,LA
1004 AM CDT FRI MAY 17 2002
TIME(CDT) .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE ...EVENT/REMARKS...
....COUNTY LOCATION....
0955 AM JOHNSON BAYOU LA WIND DAMAGE
05/17/02 CAMERON PERSONNEL REPORTED
NUMEROUS OUTSIDE ITEMS
THROWN AROUND. NO INJURIES.
FNLocal storm report, May 17, 10:11 AM CDT, 1 hour 15 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES,LA
1011 AM CDT FRI MAY 17 2002
TIME(CDT) .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE ...EVENT/REMARKS...
....COUNTY LOCATION....
1008 AM NEDERLAND TX WIND DAMAGE
05/17/02 JEFFERSON BARN BLOWN DOWN
FNLocal storm report, May 17, 10:11 AM CDT, 1 hour 15 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES,LA
1011 AM CDT FRI MAY 17 2002
TIME(CDT) .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE ...EVENT/REMARKS...
....COUNTY LOCATION....
0918 AM NEDERLAND TX WIND DAMAGE
05/17/02 JEFFERSON BARN BLOWN DOWN
FNLocal storm report, May 17, 10:30 AM CDT, 56 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES, LA
1030 AM CDT FRI MAY 17 2002
TIME(CDT) .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE ...EVENT/REMARKS...
....COUNTY LOCATION....
0910 AM SEA RIM STATE PARK TX 45 MPH TSTM WIND GUST
05/17/02 JEFFERSON REPORTED BY C-MAN STATION
SRST2
FNThe office that day
Everything else NWS Lake Charles, LA issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 17, 8:10 AM CDT | Special Marine Warning | LCH | 65 min | |
| May 17, 9:12 AM CDT | Special Marine Warning | LCH | 63 min | |
| May 17, 9:39 AM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | LCH | Cameron | 66 min |
| May 17, 10:15 AM CDT | Special Marine Warning | LCH | 60 min | |
| May 17, 10:15 AM CDT | Special Marine Warning | LCH | 60 min | |
| May 17, 10:23 AM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | LCH | Calcasieu | 52 min |
| May 17, 11:15 AM CDT | Special Marine Warning | LCH | 60 min | |
| May 17, 11:51 AM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | LCH | Iberia | 59 min |
| May 17, 12:38 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | LCH | St. Mary | 67 min |
| May 17, 3:42 PM CDT | Special Marine Warning | LCH | 63 min | |
| May 17, 3:42 PM CDT | Special Marine Warning | LCH | 63 min | |
| May 17, 4:50 PM CDT | Special Marine Warning | LCH | 55 min | |
| May 17, 4:50 PM CDT | Special Marine Warning | LCH | 55 min |
Nearby
Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Louisiana, 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; verification from NCEI's Storm Data; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.