Alert archive / Mississippi / Severe Thunderstorm Watches in 2002

Severe Thunderstorm Watch 64

March 31, 20024 states

The Storm Prediction Center issued this severe thunderstorm watch at Mar 31, 2002, 8:00 AM CST for 4 states. It was in force for 5 hr.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued: Mar 31, 2002, 8:00 AM CST (14:00 UTC)
Expired: Mar 31, 2002, 1:00 PM CST
In force: 5 hr
Issued by: the Storm Prediction Center

All 22 counties

Baldwin County, AL, Clarke County, AL, Conecuh County, AL, Escambia County, AL, Mobile County, AL, Monroe County, AL, Washington County, AL, Escambia County, FL, Santa Rosa County, FL, Saint Bernard Parish, LA, Forrest County, MS, George County, MS, Greene County, MS, Hancock County, MS, Harrison County, MS, Jackson County, MS, Jones County, MS, Lamar County, MS, Pearl River County, MS, Perry County, MS, Stone County, MS, Wayne County, MS

Warnings issued inside it

6 tornado, severe thunderstorm and flash flood warnings for its counties while it was in force.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Mar 31, 8:42 AM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	LIX	Hancock, Harrison, Pearl River	48 min
Mar 31, 8:55 AM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MOB	Stone	50 min
Mar 31, 10:15 AM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MOB	George	45 min
Mar 31, 10:25 AM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	LIX	Hancock, Harrison	35 min
Mar 31, 10:29 AM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	LIX	Jackson	61 min
Mar 31, 11:13 AM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MOB	Mobile	32 min

The nearest sounding before it

Slidell Radar S, LA (KSIL), launched 12:00Z, 2.0 hours before the alert went out and 136 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: 663 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -60 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 784 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 63 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 188 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 217 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.8
Supercell composite: 6.9

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000
WWUS20 KWNS 311333
SEL4  
SPC WW 311327
ALZ000-FLZ000-MSZ000-CWZ000-311900-

URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH NUMBER 64
STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
727 AM CST SUN MAR 31 2002

THE STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF

   SOUTHWEST ALABAMA                            
   WESTERN FLORIDA PANHANDLE                            
   SOUTHEAST MISSISSIPPI                        
   COASTAL WATERS                     

EFFECTIVE THIS SUNDAY MORNING AND AFTERNOON FROM 800 AM UNTIL 100
PM CST.

HAIL TO 2 INCHES IN DIAMETER...THUNDERSTORM WIND GUSTS TO 80
MPH...AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE IN THESE AREAS.

THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH AREA IS ALONG AND 60 STATUTE MILES
NORTH AND SOUTH OF A LINE FROM 45 MILES WEST NORTHWEST OF GULFPORT
MISSISSIPPI TO 50 MILES NORTH NORTHEAST OF PENSACOLA FLORIDA.

REMEMBER...A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH MEANS CONDITIONS ARE
FAVORABLE FOR SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS IN AND CLOSE TO THE WATCH AREA. 
PERSONS IN THESE AREAS SHOULD BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR THREATENING
WEATHER CONDITIONS AND LISTEN FOR LATER STATEMENTS AND POSSIBLE
WARNINGS.  SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS CAN AND OCCASIONALLY DO PRODUCE
TORNADOES.


DISCUSSION...COMPLEX OF STRONG/SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS MOVING EWD
ACROSS SERN LA N OF LAKE PONTCHARTRAIN WILL CONTINUE AND EXPECTED
TO INTENSIFY DURING MORNING WITH HEATING AND APPROACH OF UPPER
LEVEL TROUGH/LOW NOW INTO NWRN LA.  AIR MASS ON MORNING SOUNDINGS
MODERATELY UNSTABLE EWD ALONG GULF COAST WITH CAP ERODING RAPIDLY
DURING MORNING.  DEEP LAYER SHEAR SUFFICIENT TO SUPPORT SUPERCELLS
AND ISOLATED TORNADOES...HOWEVER PRIMARY THREAT WILL BE DAMAGING
WINDS WITH BOWING SEGMENTS.


AVIATION...A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH HAIL SURFACE AND ALOFT
TO 2 INCHES.  EXTREME TURBULENCE AND SURFACE WIND GUSTS TO 70
KNOTS.  A FEW CUMULONIMBI WITH MAXIMUM TOPS TO 500.  MEAN STORM
MOTION VECTOR 24035.


...HALES

313,0894 320,0865 301,0865 294,0894

SPC that day

Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Mar 31, 12:45 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Watch	SPC	Barbour, Bullock, Butler, Coffee, Covington, Crenshaw and 7 more	5 hr
Mar 30, 6:30 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Watch	SPC	Catahoula, Concordia, East Carroll, Franklin, Madison, Morehouse and 3 more	6 hr
Mar 30, 9:00 PM CST	Tornado Watch	SPC	Acadia, Allen, Beauregard, Bienville, Bossier, Caddo and 21 more	5 hr
Mar 31, 12:00 AM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Watch	SPC	Acadia, Avoyelles, Cameron, Catahoula, Concordia, East Baton Rouge and 18 more	5 hr

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Watches in Mississippi, 2002 Severe Thunderstorm Watches in Alabama, 2002 Severe Thunderstorm Watches in Florida, 2002 Every severe thunderstorm watch 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.