Alert archive / Maryland / Tornado Warnings in 2002

Tornado Warning 9, NWS Baltimore/Washington

May 13, 2002Howard County, Maryland

NWS Baltimore/Washington issued this tornado warning at May 13, 2002, 3:14 PM EDT for Howard County, Maryland. It was in force for 31 min. 2 reports came from inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The counties it named, with what was reported inside it.

The facts

Issued: May 13, 2002, 3:14 PM EDT (19:14 UTC)
Expired: May 13, 2002, 3:45 PM EDT
In force: 31 min
Issued by: NWS Baltimore/Washington
Area: Whole counties

County Howard County, MD

The radar

The Sterling radar (KLWX), 57 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 19:15 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 13, 3:25 PM EDT	Thunderstorm Wind 65 E	Ellicott City, MD	A downburst of winds estimated as high as 75 MPH downed numerous trees in the vicinity of Route 29 and Frederick Road.
May 13, 3:25 PM EDT	Thunderstorm Wind	Ellicott City, MD	Trees were downed onto Frederick Road.

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.

The watch it was issued in

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

Issued	Product	Office	Lasted
May 13, 1:30 PM EDT	Tornado Watch	SPC	6 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Washington/Dulle, VA (KIAD), launched 12:00Z, 7.2 hours before the alert went out and 53 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: 313 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -110 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 1186 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 50 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 117 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 127 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.1
Supercell composite: 1.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WFUS51 KLWX 131914
TORLWX
MDC027-131945-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BALTIMORE/WASHINGTON
314 PM EDT MON MAY 13 2002

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN STERLING VIRGINIA HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  HOWARD COUNTY IN CENTRAL MARYLAND

* UNTIL 345 PM EDT

* AT 309 PM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  TORNADO 9 MILES WEST OF COLUMBIA...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 40 MPH.

* THE TORNADO IS EXPECTED TO BE...
  3 MILES NORTHWEST OF COLUMBIA AT 322 PM
  OVER ELLICOTT CITY AT 326 PM
  6 MILES NORTHWEST OF ELKRIDGE AT 330 PM

A WEATHER SPOTTER SIGHTED THIS TORNADO AS IT MOVED NEAR ROCKVILLE.

IF YOU ARE CAUGHT OUTSIDE...SEEK SHELTER IN A NEARBY REINFORCED
BUILDING. AS A LAST RESORT...SEEK SHELTER IN A CULVERT...DITCH OR LOW
SPOT AND COVER YOUR HEAD WITH YOUR HANDS.

THE SAFEST PLACE TO BE DURING A TORNADO IS IN A BASEMENT. GET UNDER A
WORKBENCH OR OTHER PIECE OF STURDY FURNITURE. IF NO BASEMENT IS
AVAILABLE...SEEK SHELTER ON THE LOWEST FLOOR OF THE BUILDING IN AN
INTERIOR HALLWAY OR ROOM SUCH AS A CLOSET. USE BLANKETS OR PILLOWS TO
COVER YOUR BODY AND ALWAYS STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS.

IF IN MOBILE HOMES OR VEHICLES...EVACUATE THEM AND GET INSIDE A
SUBSTANTIAL SHELTER. IF NO SHELTER IS AVAILABLE...LIE FLAT IN THE
NEAREST DITCH OR OTHER LOW SPOT AND COVER YOUR HEAD WITH YOUR HANDS.

WALSTON

The office that day

Everything else NWS Baltimore/Washington issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
May 12, 8:58 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	LWX	Montgomery, Prince George's	47 min
May 13, 3:11 PM EDT	Tornado Warning	LWX	Montgomery	34 min
May 13, 3:21 PM EDT	Tornado Warning	LWX	Baltimore, City of Baltimore	24 min
May 13, 3:46 PM EDT	Tornado Warning	LWX	Baltimore, Harford, City of Baltimore	29 min
May 13, 4:36 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	LWX	Harford	24 min
May 13, 7:02 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	LWX	Washington	43 min
May 13, 7:20 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	LWX	Frederick	40 min
May 13, 7:57 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	LWX	Saint Mary's	33 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Maryland, 2002 Every tornado warning in 2002 Tornadoes 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.