Alert archive / Texas / Tornado Warnings in 2003

Tornado Warning 49, NWS Houston/Galveston, TX

November 17, 2003Harris County, Texas

NWS Houston/Galveston, TX issued this tornado warning at Nov 17, 2003, 11:11 AM CST for Harris County, Texas. It was in force for 34 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
Nov 17, 2003, 11:11 AM CST (17:11 UTC)
Expired
Nov 17, 2003, 11:45 AM CST
In force
34 min
Issued by
NWS Houston/Galveston, TX
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

County Harris County, TX

The radar

The Houston radar (KHGX), 82 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 17:15 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 watch it was issued in

The SPC watch in force over the same counties when this warning went out.

IssuedProductOfficeLasted
Nov 17, 8:20 AM CSTTornado WatchSPC5 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Lake Charles Mun, LA (KLCH), launched 12:00Z, 5.2 hours before the alert went out and 241 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, Lake Charles Mun, LA at 12:00Z on 2003-11-17Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 413 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, Lake Charles Mun, LA at 12:00Z on 2003-11-17The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 101 square meters per square second.1939587897Sfc1 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
413 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-43 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
895 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
34 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
101 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
95 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.1
Supercell composite
2.1

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WFUS54 KHGX 171711
TORHOU
TXC201-171745-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HOUSTON/GALVESTON TX
1110 AM CST MON NOV 17 2003

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN LEAGUE CITY HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  HARRIS COUNTY IN SOUTHEAST TEXAS

* UNTIL 1145 AM CST

* AT 1105 AM CST...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A TORNADO OVER HARRIS
  COUNTY...OR ABOUT 10 MILES WEST OF JERSEY VILLAGE...MOVING
  NORTHEAST AT 15 MPH.

* LOCATIONS IN THE PATH OF THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM INCLUDE... 
TOMBALL

THE SAFEST PLACE TO BE DURING A TORNADO IS IN THE INTERIOR HALLWAY OR
A ROOM SUCH AS A CLOSET ON THE LOWEST LEVEL OF A STURDY BUILDING. 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.

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.

A TORNADO WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 100 PM CST MONDAY AFTERNOON
FOR SOUTHEAST TEXAS.

LAT...LON 2994 9578 2991 9570 3003 9555 3006 9569

$$

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Nov 16, 7:21 PM CSTFlash Flood WarningHGXHarris114 min
Nov 17, 8:23 AM CSTTornado WarningHGXWharton52 min
Nov 17, 9:06 AM CSTTornado WarningHGXMatagorda, Wharton39 min
Nov 17, 9:16 AM CSTTornado WarningHGXWharton29 min
Nov 17, 9:50 AM CSTTornado WarningHGXWharton25 min
Nov 17, 10:09 AM CSTTornado WarningHGXFort Bend51 min
Nov 17, 10:17 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningHGXWharton28 min
Nov 17, 10:59 AM CSTTornado WarningHGXFort Bend46 min
Nov 17, 11:08 AM CSTFlash Flood WarningHGXFort Bend3 hr
Nov 17, 11:54 AM CSTTornado WarningHGXFort Bend, Harris51 min
Nov 17, 12:02 PM CSTFlash Flood WarningHGXWharton3 hr
Nov 17, 12:42 PM CSTTornado WarningHGXHarris48 min
Nov 17, 12:55 PM CSTTornado WarningHGXMatagorda, Wharton50 min
Nov 17, 1:02 PM CSTFlash Flood WarningHGXHarris3 hr
Nov 17, 1:20 PM CSTTornado WarningHGXFort Bend40 min
Nov 17, 1:31 PM CSTTornado WarningHGXMatagorda44 min
Nov 17, 1:45 PM CSTFlash Flood WarningHGXMontgomery, San Jacinto3 hr
Nov 17, 1:54 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningHGXHarris36 min
Nov 17, 2:01 PM CSTTornado WarningHGXFort Bend29 min
Nov 17, 2:03 PM CSTFlash Flood WarningHGXFort Bend117 min
Nov 17, 2:03 PM CSTTornado WarningHGXHarris, Montgomery42 min
Nov 17, 2:12 PM CSTTornado WarningHGXBrazoria, Matagorda48 min
Nov 17, 2:35 PM CSTSpecial Marine WarningHGX55 min
Nov 17, 2:43 PM CSTTornado WarningHGXHarris47 min
Nov 17, 2:47 PM CSTTornado WarningHGXLiberty, Montgomery43 min
Nov 17, 2:58 PM CSTTornado WarningHGXBrazoria47 min
Nov 17, 3:30 PM CSTTornado WarningHGXHarris45 min
Nov 17, 3:44 PM CSTFlash Flood WarningHGXHarris3 hr
Nov 17, 4:05 PM CSTSpecial Marine WarningHGX115 min
Nov 17, 4:29 PM CSTTornado WarningHGXGalveston31 min
Nov 17, 4:46 PM CSTTornado WarningHGXChambers29 min
Nov 17, 5:09 PM CSTTornado WarningHGXLiberty36 min
Nov 17, 5:16 PM CSTTornado WarningHGXChambers29 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.