Alert archive / Texas / Tornado Watches in 2002
Tornado Watch 90
The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at Apr 13, 2002, 5:00 AM CDT for 19 counties in Texas. It was in force for 5 hr.
The area
The outline as issued.
The facts
- Issued
- Apr 13, 2002, 5:00 AM CDT (10:00 UTC)
- Expired
- Apr 13, 2002, 10:00 AM CDT
- In force
- 5 hr
- Issued by
- the Storm Prediction Center
Counties Armstrong County, TX, Briscoe County, TX, Carson County, TX, Castro County, TX, Childress County, TX, Collingsworth County, TX, Cottle County, TX, Deaf Smith County, TX, Donley County, TX, Gray County, TX, Hall County, TX, Hartley County, TX, Motley County, TX, Oldham County, TX, Parmer County, TX, Potter County, TX, Randall County, TX, Swisher County, TX, Wheeler County, TX
The radar
The Amarillo radar (KAMA), 12 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 10:02 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.
Warnings issued inside it
2 tornado, severe thunderstorm and flash flood warnings for its counties while it was in force.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 13, 5:06 AM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | AMA | Deaf Smith | 44 min |
| Apr 13, 6:54 AM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | LUB | Swisher | 51 min |
The nearest sounding before it
Amarillo Airport, TX (KAMA), launched 00:00Z, 10.0 hours before the alert went out and 13 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
- 880 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -12 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 1630 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 69 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 14 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- -51 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 0.0
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000 WWUS20 KWNS 130943 SEL0 SPC WW 130939 TXZ000-131500- URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 90 STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK 439 AM CDT SAT APR 13 2002 THE STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A TORNADO WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF THE TEXAS PANHANDLE EFFECTIVE THIS SATURDAY MORNING FROM 500 AM UNTIL 1000 AM CDT. TORNADOES...HAIL TO 3 INCHES IN DIAMETER...THUNDERSTORM WIND GUSTS TO 70 MPH...AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE IN THESE AREAS. THE TORNADO WATCH AREA IS ALONG AND 55 STATUTE MILES NORTH AND SOUTH OF A LINE FROM 75 MILES WEST OF AMARILLO TEXAS TO 25 MILES NORTHEAST OF CHILDRESS TEXAS. REMEMBER...A TORNADO WATCH MEANS CONDITIONS ARE FAVORABLE FOR TORNADOES AND 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. OTHER WATCH INFORMATION...THIS TORNADO WATCH REPLACES TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 88. WATCH NUMBER 88 WILL NOT BE IN EFFECT AFTER 500 AM CDT. CONTINUE...WW 89... DISCUSSION...SEVERAL INTENSE/SUPERCELL THUNDERSTORMS OVER THE TX PANHANDLE ARE EXPECTED TO CONTINUE TO TRACK EAST-SOUTHEASTWARD THROUGH THE MID MORNING HOURS. LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS WILL REMAIN THE MAIN THREAT. HOWEVER...STRONG VERTICAL SHEAR PROFILES AND SUFFICIENT SURFACE-BASED INSTABILITY ALSO INDICATE THE POTENTIAL FOR ISOLATED TORNADOES IN STRONGER CELLS. AVIATION...TORNADOES AND A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH HAIL SURFACE AND ALOFT TO 3 INCHES. EXTREME TURBULENCE AND SURFACE WIND GUSTS TO 60 KNOTS. A FEW CUMULONIMBI WITH MAXIMUM TOPS TO 500. MEAN STORM MOTION VECTOR 28030. ...HART 360,1030 352,0995 335,0995 342,1030 WWUS20 KWNS 130943 SEL0 SPC WW 130939 TXZ000-131500- URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 90 STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK 439 AM CDT SAT APR 13 2002 THE STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A TORNADO WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF THE TEXAS PANHANDLE EFFECTIVE THIS SATURDAY MORNING FROM 500 AM UNTIL 1000 AM CDT. TORNADOES...HAIL TO 3 INCHES IN DIAMETER...THUNDERSTORM WIND GUSTS TO 70 MPH...AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE IN THESE AREAS. THE TORNADO WATCH AREA IS ALONG AND 55 STATUTE MILES NORTH AND SOUTH OF A LINE FROM 75 MILES WEST OF AMARILLO TEXAS TO 25 MILES NORTHEAST OF CHILDRESS TEXAS. REMEMBER...A TORNADO WATCH MEANS CONDITIONS ARE FAVORABLE FOR TORNADOES AND 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. OTHER WATCH INFORMATION...THIS TORNADO WATCH REPLACES TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 88. WATCH NUMBER 88 WILL NOT BE IN EFFECT AFTER 500 AM CDT. CONTINUE...WW 89... DISCUSSION...SEVERAL INTENSE/SUPERCELL THUNDERSTORMS OVER THE TX PANHANDLE ARE EXPECTED TO CONTINUE TO TRACK EAST-SOUTHEASTWARD THROUGH THE MID MORNING HOURS. LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS WILL REMAIN THE MAIN THREAT. HOWEVER...STRONG VERTICAL SHEAR PROFILES AND SUFFICIENT SURFACE-BASED INSTABILITY ALSO INDICATE THE POTENTIAL FOR ISOLATED TORNADOES IN STRONGER CELLS. AVIATION...TORNADOES AND A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH HAIL SURFACE AND ALOFT TO 3 INCHES. EXTREME TURBULENCE AND SURFACE WIND GUSTS TO 60 KNOTS. A FEW CUMULONIMBI WITH MAXIMUM TOPS TO 500. MEAN STORM MOTION VECTOR 28030. ...HART 360,1030 352,0995 335,0995 342,1030
SPC that day
Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 12, 7:45 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Watch | SPC | Armstrong, Carson, Collingsworth, Dallam, Deaf Smith, Donley and 14 more | 6 hr |
| Apr 12, 11:30 PM CDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | Armstrong, Briscoe, Carson, Childress, Collingsworth, Donley and 17 more | 6 hr |
| Apr 13, 4:45 AM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Watch | SPC | Archer, Baylor, Foard, Hardeman, Knox, Wichita and 1 more | 5 hr |
| Apr 13, 10:45 AM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Watch | SPC | Collin, Cooke, Dallas, Delta, Denton, Fannin and 11 more | 5 hr |
| Apr 13, 3:45 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Watch | SPC | Bailey, Briscoe, Childress, Cochran, Cottle, Crosby and 16 more | 5 hr |
Nearby
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; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.