Alert archive / Louisiana / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2002

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 26, NWS Lake Charles, LA

May 17, 2002St. Mary Parish, Louisiana

NWS Lake Charles, LA issued this severe thunderstorm warning at May 17, 2002, 12:38 PM CDT for St. Mary Parish, Louisiana. It was in force for 67 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, 12:38 PM CDT (17:38 UTC)
Expired: May 17, 2002, 1:45 PM CDT
In force: 67 min
Issued by: NWS Lake Charles, LA
Area: Counties, with a storm outline in the text

County St. Mary Parish, LA

What was reported inside it

Time	Report	Where	Remark
May 17, 1:15 PM CDT	Thunderstorm Wind	Morgan City, 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

Slidell Radar S, LA (KSIL), launched 12:00Z, 5.6 hours before the alert went out and 174 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-p

Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.

Hodograph

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: 1762 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -4 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 620 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 25 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 65 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 102 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.4
Supercell composite: 3.2

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WUUS54 KLCH 171738
SVRLCH
LAC101-171845-

BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA
1238 PM CDT FRI MAY 17 2002

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN LAKE CHARLES HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  ST. MARY PARISH IN SOUTH CENTRAL LOUISIANA

* UNTIL 145 PM CDT

* AT 1230 PM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM 17 MILES SOUTHWEST OF FRANKLIN...MOVING EAST AT
  35 MPH.

* THIS STORM WILL BE NEAR...
  FRANKLIN...BALDWIN...CHARENTON BY 1245 PM CDT
  PATTERSON BY 105 PM CDT
  BAYOU VISTA...BERWICK BY 110 PM CDT
  MORGAN CITY BY 115 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 2989 9163 2959 9153 2951 9132 2965 9115
          2973 9119 2974 9138 2992 9147

$$

K. KUYPER

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, 3 hours 13 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, May 17, 9:25 AM CDT, 3 hours 13 minutes 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, 9:47 AM CDT, 2 hours 51 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.

FN

Local storm report, May 17, 10:04 AM CDT, 2 hours 34 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.

FN

Local storm report, May 17, 10:11 AM CDT, 2 hours 27 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

FN

Local storm report, May 17, 10:11 AM CDT, 2 hours 27 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

FN

Local storm report, May 17, 10:30 AM CDT, 2 hours 8 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

FN

Local storm report, May 17, 12:25 PM CDT, 13 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES, LA
1225 PM CDT FRI MAY 17 2002

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

1130 AM    PECAN ISLAND              LA   WIND DAMAGE
05/17/02   VERMILION                      PECAN ISLAND SCHOOL
                                          REPORTED TREES DOWN AND
                                          POWER OUT. TREE DOWN ON
                                          POWERLINE ON HWY 82.
                                          ESTIMATE WINDS 50 TO 60
                                          MPH.

FN

The 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, 11:26 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	LCH	Vermilion	64 min
May 17, 11:51 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	LCH	Iberia	59 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, 2002 Every 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.