Alert archive / Texas / Tornado Warnings in 2003

Tornado Warning 1, NWS Brownsville, TX

April 8, 2003Hidalgo County, Texas

NWS Brownsville, TX issued this tornado warning at Apr 8, 2003, 8:31 AM CDT for Hidalgo County, Texas. It was in force for 29 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 8, 2003, 8:31 AM CDT (13:31 UTC)
Expired
Apr 8, 2003, 9:00 AM CDT
In force
29 min
Issued by
NWS Brownsville, TX
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

County Hidalgo County, TX

The radar

The Brownsville radar (KBRO), 72 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 13:33 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.

The nearest sounding before it

Brownsville Intl, TX (KBRO), launched 12:00Z, 1.5 hours before the alert went out and 75 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, Brownsville Intl, TX at 12:00Z on 2003-04-08Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1499 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Brownsville Intl, TX at 12:00Z on 2003-04-08The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity -3 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
1499 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-124 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
583 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
43 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
-3 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
212 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.4

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WFUS54 KBRO 081331
TORBRO
TXC215-081400-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BROWNSVILLE TX
830 AM CDT TUE APR 8 2003

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN BROWNSVILLE HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  SOUTHEASTERN HIDALGO COUNTY IN DEEP SOUTH TEXAS

* UNTIL 900 AM CDT

* AT 828 AM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A TORNADO NEAR HIDALGO...
  MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 45 MPH.

* THE TORNADO IS EXPECTED TO BE NEAR...
   DONNA BY 835 AM CDT.
   WESLACO BY 840 AM CDT.
   PROGRESO...MERCEDES BY 845 AM CDT.

WHEN A TORNADO WARNING IS ISSUED BASED ON DOPPLER RADAR...IT MEANS
THAT STRONG ROTATION HAS BEEN DETECTED IN THE STORM. A TORNADO MAY
ALREADY BE ON THE GROUND...OR IS EXPECTED TO DEVELOP SHORTLY. IF YOU
ARE IN THE PATH OF THIS DANGEROUS STORM...MOVE INDOORS AND TO THE
LOWEST LEVEL OF THE BUILDING. STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS. IF DRIVING...DO
NOT SEEK SHELTER UNDER A HIGHWAY OVERPASS.

THIS TORNADO WARNING REPLACES THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING THAT
WAS IN EFFECT FOR THE SAME AREA. GO TO A BASEMENT OR SMALL INTERIOR
ROOM ON THE LOWEST FLOOR

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.

LAT...LON 2622 9823 2602 9831 2594 9787 2622 9788

$$

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Apr 8, 7:36 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBROHidalgo, Starr39 min
Apr 8, 8:15 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBROHidalgo60 min
Apr 8, 8:55 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBROCameron, Hidalgo35 min
Apr 8, 9:26 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBROCameron34 min
Apr 8, 9:40 AM CDTTornado WarningBROCameron20 min
Apr 8, 9:43 AM CDTSpecial Marine WarningBRO2 hr
Apr 8, 9:43 AM CDTSpecial Marine WarningBRO2 hr
Apr 8, 9:59 AM CDTTornado WarningBROCameron31 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Texas, 2003Every tornado warning in 2003Tornadoes 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; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.