Alert archive / Texas / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2003

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 25, NWS Brownsville, TX

April 29, 2003Zapata County, Texas

NWS Brownsville, TX issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Apr 29, 2003, 10:34 PM CDT for Zapata County, Texas. It was in force for 26 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
Apr 29, 2003, 10:34 PM CDT (03:34 UTC)
Expired
Apr 29, 2003, 11:00 PM CDT
In force
26 min
Issued by
NWS Brownsville, TX
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

County Zapata County, TX

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

Corpus Christi, TX (KCRP), launched 00:00Z, 3.6 hours before the alert went out and 203 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-pSkew-T log-p diagram, Corpus Christi, TX at 00:00Z on 2003-04-30Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 2110 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°0°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Corpus Christi, TX at 00:00Z on 2003-04-30The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity -33 square meters per square second.19395878Sfc1 km3 km6 km9 kmRMLM
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
2110 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-59 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
728 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
26 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
-33 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
13 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.1
Supercell composite
0.4

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

122 
WUUS54 KBRO 300334
SVRBRO
TXC505-300400-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BROWNSVILLE TX
1033 PM CDT TUE APR 29 2003

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN BROWNSVILLE HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  ZAPATA COUNTY IN DEEP SOUTH TEXAS

* UNTIL 1100 PM CDT

* AT 1030 PM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED  
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS LOCATED ALONG A LINE FROM 10 MILES NORTHWEST  
  OF ESCOBA TO 8 MILES NORTHEAST OF ZAPATA TO 6 MILES SOUTH OF SAN   
  YGNACIO...AND MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 30 MPH.

* THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE NEAR...
   ZAPATA BY 1040 PM CDT.
   ESCOBA BY 1045 PM CDT.

IN ADDITION TO LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS...CONTINUOUS CLOUD TO
GROUND LIGHTNING IS OCCURRING WITH THIS STORM. MOVE INDOORS
IMMEDIATELY LIGHTNING IS ONE OF NATURES NUMBER ONE KILLERS.
REMEMBER...IF YOU CAN HEAR THUNDER...YOU ARE CLOSE ENOUGH TO BE
STRUCK BY LIGHTNING.

LAT...LON 2729 9946 2702 9954 2656 9919 2668 9901
          2684 9895 2729 9897

$$

SPEECE

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 Brownsville, TX wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at Apr 29, 8:50 PM CDT, 1 hour 44 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Apr 29, 8:50 PM CDT, 1 hour 44 minutes before
DEEP SOUTH TEXAS FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BROWNSVILLE TX
850 PM CDT TUE APR 29 2003

SHORT TERM...HAVE TWO MAIN AREAS OF CONCERN FOR CONV NEAR THE BRO
CWA.  TWO AREAS OF CONV HAVE FIRED UP OVER THE HIGHER TERRAIN OF
MEXICO FROM THE UVV INDUCED BY THE AFTERNOON HEATING.  THE FIRST IS
LOCATED ABOUT 30 NM SOUTH OF RIO GRANDE CITY MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 25
T0 30 MPH.  THIS ISOLATED INTENSE CELL IS FIRING IN HIGHER CAPE
VALUES OF 4000 TO 4800 J/KG MAINLY CONCENTRATED OVER NE MEX.  LAPS
CAPE VALUES SHOW THAT THIS CELL WILL MOVE INTO MORE STABLE AIR AS IT
GETS CLOSER TO THE S TX/N MEX COASTLINE WHERE CAPES OF 2000 TO 3400
PREVAIL.  WITH THIS CURRENT SPEED AND MOVEMENT...THIS CELL WILL
LIKELY REMAIN SOUTH OF BORDER BEFORE FINALLY DISSIPATING WITH THE
LOSS OF THE DIURNAL HEATING.

THE 2ND AREA LOCATED ALONG THE U.S./MEXICO BORDER OVER WEBB AND
DIMMITT COUNTIES MAY HAVE MORE OF AN IMPACT ON THE BRO CWA.  HERE IS
THE LATEST MESOSCALE DISC FROM SPC CONCERNING THIS AREA.

MEXICAN MCS CONTINUES TO HEAD SEWD TOWARDS AREAS IN SOUTH TEXAS. A
WW MAY BE REQUIRED OVER THE NEXT HOUR OR SO.

RECENT COMPOSITE IR/RADAR IMAGERY INDICATES MCS TYPE STRUCTURE
HEADING SEWD ACROSS THE NRN PARTS OF THE NUEVO LEON PROVINCE IN NRN
MEXICO. AN INSPECTION OF MODEL WIND FIELDS INDICATES 70-80 KTS OF
UPPER LVL FLOW OVER THE REGION WITH 5-10 KTS OF ESELY LOW-LVL FLOW.
TRACKING FEATURE OF THE NRN MEXICAN FEATURE INDICATES MOVEMENT AT
AROUND 27 KTS FROM 295 DEGREES WHICH SHOULD MOVE INTO SWRN WEBB
COUNTY BETWEEN 30/02-02330Z. ALTHOUGH DOWNSTREAM 30/00Z RAOBS AT
BOTH CRP AND BRO INDICATE DISTINCT CAPPING...50MB MLCAPE VALUES OF
3000-4000 J/KG...STEEP MID-LVL LAPSE RATES...AND 15-20 KTS OF SR
INFLOW WILL LIKELY LEAD TO INCREASING BOW ECHO DEVELOPMENT OVER THE
NEXT HOUR OR SO. MAIN THREAT WILL BE STRONG DAMAGING WINDS.

IF THIS MCS CONTINUES ITS CURRENT SPEED AND MOVEMENT...THE NORTHERN
TIER OF COUNTIES OF ZAPATA...JIM HOGG...BROOKS AND KENEDY MAY NEED
TO BE UPDATED FOR INCREASE OVERNIGHT POPS AND POSSIBLE WW.

MARINE...THE ONSHORE FLOW WILL CONTINUE ALONG THE LOWER TX COASTLINE
THROUGH THE NIGHT.  BUOY020 REPORTS A SE FLOW FROM 10 TO 15 KTS WITH
SWELLS NEAR 4 FT.  WILL UPDATE THE CWF TO INCREASE SWELLS OFFSHORE A
BIT.  OTHERWISE...THE REST OF THE CURRENT CWF LOOKS OK.

AVIATION...THE LOW LEVEL E-SE FLOW COMING IN OFF OF THE GULF OF MEX
WILL KEEP CIGS AT OR BELOW 1 KFT AT THE BRO AND HRL AIRPORTS.
DEBRIS CLD COVER FROM THE WESTERN CONV WILL KEEP A LITTLE BETTER
CIGS IN PLACE AT MFE...BUT BELIEVE THAT CIGS AT THE MFE AIRPORT WILL
EVENTUALLY DEGRADE AS THE OVERNIGHT CAPPING BECOMES ESTABLISHED OVER
THE REGION.

.BRO...NONE.

SYNOPTIC-AVIATION-MARINE...60/MESO...CAMPBELL

THIS PRODUCT IS ALSO AVAILABLE ON OUR INTERNET WEB PAGE AT:
HTTP://WWW.SRH.NOAA.GOV/BRO
Hazardous weather outlook, Apr 29, 9:20 PM CDT, 1 hour 14 minutes before
TXZ248>257-300900-

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...UPDATED FOR DAY ONE WORDING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BROWNSVILLE TX
920 PM CDT TUE APR 29 2003

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR DEEP SOUTH TEXAS.

.DAY ONE...TONIGHT.

A CLUSTER OF STRONG THUNDERSTORMS WHICH FORMED OVER NORTHEAST MEXICO
EARLIER THIS EVENING IS MOVING TOWARDS LAREDO IN WEBB COUNTY. THIS
CLUSTER OF THUNDERSTORMS MAY MOVE OVER THE NORTHERN PORTIONS OF
ZAPATA...JIM HOGG...BROOKS AND KENEDY COUNTIES THROUGH 2 AM WEDNESDAY
MORNING.  AN ISOLATED SEVERE THUNDERSTORM IS POSSIBLE OVER THESE
COUNTIES THROUGH 2 AM WEDNESDAY MORNING.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY.

NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT.

SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE REQUIRED ACROSS ZAPATA...JIM HOGG...BROOKS
AND KENEDY COUNTIES THROUGH 2 AM WEDNESDAY MORNING.

SPEECE

The office that day

Everything else NWS Brownsville, TX issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Apr 29, 9:31 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBROZapata59 min
Apr 29, 11:02 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBROJim Hogg, Starr, Zapata58 min
Apr 29, 11:10 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningBROZapata3 hr
Apr 30, 12:01 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBROHidalgo, Starr59 min
Apr 30, 1:01 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBROHidalgo44 min
Apr 30, 2:17 AM CDTSpecial Marine WarningBRO28 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Texas, 2003Every severe thunderstorm warning in 2003

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.