Alert archive / Louisiana / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2002

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 74, NWS Lake Charles, LA

August 12, 2002Calcasieu Parish, Cameron Parish, Louisiana

NWS Lake Charles, LA issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Aug 12, 2002, 8:44 AM CDT for Calcasieu Parish, Cameron Parish, Louisiana. It was in force for 31 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: Aug 12, 2002, 8:44 AM CDT (13:44 UTC)
Expired: Aug 12, 2002, 9:15 AM CDT
In force: 31 min
Issued by: NWS Lake Charles, LA
Area: Counties, with a storm outline in the text

Counties Calcasieu Parish, LA, Cameron Parish, LA

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, 1.7 hours before the alert went out and 17 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: 2164 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -10 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 715 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 7 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 29 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 81 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.

857 
WUUS54 KLCH 121344
SVRLCH
LAC019-023-121415-

BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA
844 AM CDT MON AUG 12 2002

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN LAKE CHARLES HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  CALCASIEU PARISH IN SOUTHWEST LOUISIANA
  CAMERON PARISH IN SOUTHWEST LOUISIANA

* UNTIL 915 AM CDT

* AT 836 AM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM 5 MILES WEST OF GRAND LAKE...MOVING NORTH AT 25
  MPH.

* THIS STORM WILL BE NEAR...
  CARLYSS BY 855 AM CDT
  SULPHUR...LAKE CHARLES BY 905 AM CDT
  WESTLAKE BY 910 AM CDT

SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS PRODUCE WINDS IN EXCESS OF 60 MPH...DESTRUCTIVE
HAIL...DEADLY LIGHTNING AND TORRENTIAL RAIN.

DESTRUCTIVE WINDS CAN BE EXPECTED - TAKE COVER NOW VEHICLES AND
MOBILE HOMES ARE NOT SAFE.

CALL 337-477-5285 TO REPORT SEVERE WEATHER TO THE WEATHER SERVICE.

LAT...LON 3000 9348 2997 9328 3023 9317 3029 9349

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 Aug 11, 8:30 PM CDT, 12 hours 14 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Aug 11, 8:30 PM CDT, 12 hours 14 minutes before

SOUTHWEST LOUISIANA AND SOUTHEAST TEXAS FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA
830 PM CDT SUN AUG 11 2002

RADAR SHOWS LESS AND LESS ON THE SCOPE AS DAYTIME HEATING HAS CEASED.
EXPECT ONLY ISOLATED ACTIVITY NEAR DEWPOINT BOUNDARY WHICH EXTENDED
IN SOUTHEAST TEXAS FROM SOUR LAKE TO JASPER AND KIRBYVILLE. WILL ALSO
KEEP ISOLATED IN WESTERN LA ACROSS NORTHERN CWA. OTHERWISE REMOVE
POP WORDING ELSEWHERE. OVER COASTAL WATERS...STILL SEE A FEW
ISOLATED SHOWERS WHICH WILL PROBABLY LINGER. TIDES WILL STAY UP AS
WELL AS SMALL CRAFT SHOULD EXERCISE CAUTION.

.LCH...SMALL CRAFT SHOULD EXERCISE CAUTIONN ALL COASTAL AREAS.

.UPDATED NUMBERS...
    MO    TU    WE    M T W
AEX 71/88 72/88 73/88 162525
BPT 74/89 75/89 75/89 062525
LCH 74/88 75/88 75/88 062525
LFT 73/88 74/88 75/88 062525

06

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; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive.