Alert archive / Texas / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2003

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 13, NWS Houston/Galveston, TX

February 21, 2003Liberty County, Texas

NWS Houston/Galveston, TX issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Feb 21, 2003, 4:16 PM CST for Liberty County, Texas. It was in force for 44 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: Feb 21, 2003, 4:16 PM CST (22:16 UTC)
Expired: Feb 21, 2003, 5:00 PM CST
In force: 44 min
Issued by: NWS Houston/Galveston, TX
Area: Counties, with a storm outline in the text

County Liberty County, TX

The radar

The Houston radar (KHGX), 69 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 22:18 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.

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

Lake Charles Mun, LA (KLCH), launched 12:00Z, 10.3 hours before the alert went out and 158 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: 543 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -114 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 433 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 45 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 253 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 274 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.0
Supercell composite: 6.2

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WUUS54 KHGX 212216
SVRHOU
TXC291-212300-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HOUSTON/GALVESTON TX
416 PM CST FRI FEB 21 2003

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN LEAGUE CITY HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  LIBERTY COUNTY IN SOUTHEAST TEXAS

* UNTIL 500 PM CST

* AT 408 PM CST...DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM 4
  MILES SOUTH OF DAYTON...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 40 MPH.

* LOCATIONS IN THE PATH OF THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM INCLUDE...
  LIBERTY...KENEFICK...DAYTON
  AMES...DAYTON LAKES
  HARDIN
  DAISETTA...MOSS HILL

MOVE TO AN INTERIOR ROOM ON THE LOWEST FLOOR OF YOUR HOME OR
BUSINESS. STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS

PLEASE REPORT SEVERE WEATHER TO THE COUNTY SHERIFF...LOCAL POLICE...
OR DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY. THEY WILL RELAY YOUR REPORT TO THE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE.

LAT...LON 3026 9475 3009 9457 2990 9482 2990 9499
          2996 9497 3000 9502

$$

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 Houston/Galveston, TX wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at Feb 21, 2:25 PM CST, 1 hour 51 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Feb 21, 2:25 PM CST, 1 hour 51 minutes before

SOUTHEAST TEXAS FORECAST DISCUSSION...CORRECTED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HOUSTON/GALVESTON TX
225 PM CST FRI FEB 21 2003

STRONG CONVECTION INCREASING IN AREAL COVERAGE OVER REGION. WARM
FRONT MOVING FARTHER NORTH ACROSS CENTRAL ZONES AS LOW PRESSURE
DEVELOPS AND MOVES ACROSS CWFA. TORNADO WATCH CONTINUES TIL 4 PM FOR
ALL OF CWFA. GOES 18Z SOUNDING FOR LCH REGION SHOWS LIS AT MINUS 5
W/CAPE NEAR 2700 J/KG. SURFACE LOW EXPECTED TO MOVE TO NEAR LFK BY
00Z W/FOCUS OF CONVECTION MOVING EAST OF CWFA BY THEN. WE CAN STILL
EXPECT A CHANCE OF SHRA/TSRA EARLY EVENING HOURS ESPECIALLY EASTERN
ZONES TONIGHT WITH UPPER LOW MOVING OVER AREA. UPPER LOW PROGGED TO
BE NEAR LFK/SHV REGION BY MIDNIGHT. WRAP-AROUND MOISTURE GRADUALLY
MOVING EAST OF CWFA EARLY SATURDAY. WEAK SHORT WAVE ENERGY MOVING
ACROSS NORTHERN TIER OF LONE STAR STATE TOWARDS END OF WEEKEND.
ASSOCIATED DEVELOPING SURFACE LOW WILL MOVE ACROSS OKLAHOMA AND
ARKANSAS. COLD FRONT SHOWN BY GFS TO MAKE ITS WAY TO THE COAST EARLY
MONDAY MORNING. MOISTURE APPEARS TO BE LACKING WITH THIS FRONT.
CENTER OF HIGH PRESSURE WILL REMAIN NORTH OF REGION DUE TO UPPER
LEVEL FLOW BEING WESTERLY. STRONGER UPPER LEVEL ENERGY MOVING ACROSS
REGION BY MID WEEK SHOULD BRING US A HIGHER CHANCE OF CONVECTION.

SURFACE WATER TEMPERATURES RUNNING IN THE UPPER 50S ACROSS GLS BAY
AND NEAR SHORE WATERS. THIS HAS BEEN CAUSING PATCHY DENSE FOG ESPECIALLY
ALONG THE HOUSTON SHIP CHANNEL. WE SHALL CONTINUE W/EXERCISE CAUTION
FOR BAYS AND COASTAL WATERS FOR TONIGHT.

37/41/47

.HGX...TORNADO WATCH FOR ALL OF SE TX TIL 4 PM.
       SCEC ALL MARINE AREAS.

CLL BB 045/068 045/071 041 400
IAH BB 050/068 047/071 048 400
GLS BB 054/065 055/068 054 500

Hazardous weather outlook, Feb 21, 3:51 PM CST, 25 minutes before

TXZ163-164-176>179-195>200-210>214-226-227-235>238-220400-

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HOUSTON/GALVESTON TX
351 PM CST FRI FEB 21 2003

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR SOUTHEAST TEXAS.

.DAY ONE...TONIGHT.
A STRONG UPPER LEVEL DISTURBANCE WILL MOVE ACROSS THE REGION THIS
EVENING. THE ASSOCIATED SURFACE LOW WILL BE EAST OF THE SABINE RIVER
LATE THIS EVENING. STRONG THUNDERSTORMS OVER THE EASTERN PART OF
SOUTHEAST TEXAS WILL MOVE TO LOUISIANA AS THE EVENING PROGRESSES.
GALVESTON...CHAMBERS AND LIBERTY COUNTIES WILL STILL BE UNDER
THE THREAT OF SEVERE STORMS THIS EVENING.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SATURDAY THROUGH THURSDAY.

SATURDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY...NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS
TIME.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE NEEDED THIS EVENING.

In the hours before

Local storm report, Feb 21, 4:16 PM CST, 0 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HOUSTON/GALVESTON TX
416 PM CST FRI FEB 21 2003

TIME(CST)  .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE  ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

0525 AM    LOLITA                    TX   .75 INCH HAIL
02/21/03   JACKSON

0655 AM    LIVINGSTON                TX   .75 INCH HAIL
02/21/03   POLK

0140 PM    KATY                      TX   .75 INCH HAIL
02/21/03   FORT BEND

0145 PM    FULSHEAR                  TX   .75 INCH HAIL
02/21/03   FORT BEND                      REPORTED BY LAW
                                          ENFORCEMENT OFFICIAL.

0147 PM    KATY                      TX   .75 INCH HAIL
02/21/03   HARRIS                         REPORTED BY LAW
                                          ENFORCEMENT OFFICIAL.

0214 PM    HOUSTON                   TX   .75 INCH HAIL
02/21/03   HARRIS                         REPORTED BY PUBLIC.

0220 PM    SPRING                    TX   .75 INCH HAIL
02/21/03   HARRIS                         EVENT DURATION 20
                                          MINUTES. REPORTED BY
                                          HAM RADIO OPERATOR.

0243 PM    NEW CANEY                 TX   1.75 INCH HAIL
02/21/03   MONTGOMERY                     REPORTED BY MEDIA.

0253 PM    LIVINGSTON                TX   .75 INCH HAIL
02/21/03   POLK                           REPORTED BY LAW
                                          ENFORCEMENT OFFICIAL.

0300 PM    5 S CLEVELAND             TX   .75 INCH HAIL
02/21/03   LIBERTY                        REPORTED BY LAW
                                          ENFORCEMENT OFFICIAL.

0313 PM    CLEVELAND                 TX   .75 INCH HAIL
02/21/03   LIBERTY                        REPORTED BY LAW
                                          ENFORCEMENT OFFICIAL.

0315 PM    2 E CLEVELAND             TX   1.25 INCH HAIL
02/21/03   LIBERTY                        REPORTED BY EMERGENCY
                                          MANAGEMENT.

0320 PM    MOSCOW                    TX   .75 INCH HAIL
02/21/03   POLK                           REPORTED BY LAW
                                          ENFORCEMENT OFFICIAL.

The office that day

Everything else NWS Houston/Galveston, TX issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Feb 20, 6:10 PM CST	Flash Flood Warning	HGX	Brazos, Burleson, Grimes, Houston, Madison, Walker	4 hr
Feb 20, 8:21 PM CST	Flash Flood Warning	HGX	Washington	114 min
Feb 21, 4:53 AM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	HGX	Jackson	22 min
Feb 21, 5:15 AM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	HGX	Jackson, Wharton	45 min
Feb 21, 6:51 AM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	HGX	Polk, San Jacinto	39 min
Feb 21, 12:20 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	HGX	Brazoria, Galveston	40 min
Feb 21, 12:46 PM CST	Special Marine Warning	HGX		59 min
Feb 21, 1:32 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	HGX	Fort Bend	43 min
Feb 21, 1:45 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	HGX	Harris	60 min
Feb 21, 2:20 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	HGX	Montgomery	55 min
Feb 21, 2:54 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	HGX	Liberty	66 min
Feb 21, 3:15 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	HGX	Polk	45 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Texas, 2003 Every 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; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.