Alert archive / Alabama / Tornado Warnings in 2003

Tornado Warning 21, NWS Huntsville, AL

May 6, 2003Colbert County, Lauderdale County, Alabama

NWS Huntsville, AL issued this tornado warning at May 6, 2003, 6:17 AM CDT for Colbert County, Lauderdale County, Alabama. It was in force for 43 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
May 6, 2003, 6:17 AM CDT (11:17 UTC)
Expired
May 6, 2003, 7:00 AM CDT
In force
43 min
Issued by
NWS Huntsville, AL
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

Counties Colbert County, AL, Lauderdale County, AL

The watch it was issued in

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

IssuedProductOfficeLasted
May 6, 1:50 AM CDTTornado WatchSPC6 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Nashville Metro, TN (KBNA), launched 00:00Z, 11.3 hours before the alert went out and 177 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, Nashville Metro, TN at 00:00Z on 2003-05-06Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 968 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, Nashville Metro, TN at 00:00Z on 2003-05-06The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 289 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
968 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-55 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
645 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
80 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
289 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
301 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
1.8
Supercell composite
7.5

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

646 
WFUS54 KHUN 061117
TORHUN
ALC033-077-061200-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HUNTSVILLE AL
617 AM CDT TUE MAY 6 2003

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN HUNTSVILLE HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  COLBERT COUNTY IN NORTHWEST ALABAMA
  LAUDERDALE COUNTY IN NORTHWEST ALABAMA

* UNTIL 700 AM CDT

* AT 615 AM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  TORNADO OVER CHEROKEE...MOVING EAST AT 55 MPH.

* LOCATIONS NEAR THE PATH OF THIS TORNADO INCLUDE...ANDERSON...
CHEROKEE...FLORENCE...KILLEN...LEXINGTON...ROGERSVILLE...SHEFFIELD...
ST. FLORIAN AND UNDERWOOD-PETERSVILLE.

THIS STORM SHOWS STRONG ROTATION...AND MAY PRODUCE A TORNADO AT ANY
TIME. DO NOT WAIT...GO TO A SAFE PLACE NOW PUT AS MANY WALLS BETWEEN
YOU AND THE OUTSIDE.

LAT...LON 3484 8809 3466 8804 3484 8722 3500 8723

$$ 

SCHAUB

The office that day

Everything else NWS Huntsville, AL issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 6, 3:30 AM CDTFlash Flood WarningHUNJackson2 hr
May 6, 4:16 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningHUNDeKalb29 min
May 6, 4:39 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningHUNLauderdale36 min
May 6, 5:45 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningHUNColbert, Lauderdale45 min
May 6, 6:59 AM CDTTornado WarningHUNColbert, Lauderdale, Lawrence, Limestone31 min
May 6, 7:28 AM CDTFlash Flood WarningHUNLauderdale92 min
May 6, 7:30 AM CDTTornado WarningHUNLimestone, Madison30 min
May 6, 7:43 AM CDTFlash Flood WarningHUNLimestone, Madison107 min
May 6, 7:56 AM CDTTornado Warning EmergencyHUNLimestone, Madison34 min
May 6, 8:17 AM CDTFlash Flood Warning EmergencyHUNJackson4 hr
May 6, 8:24 AM CDTTornado Warning EmergencyHUNJackson, Madison36 min
May 6, 8:51 AM CDTFlash Flood Warning EmergencyHUNLauderdale, Limestone, Madison3 hr
May 6, 8:52 AM CDTTornado WarningHUNFranklin, Lawrence23 min
May 6, 8:54 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningHUNMarshall36 min
May 6, 8:58 AM CDTTornado Warning EmergencyHUNJackson47 min
May 6, 9:29 AM CDTTornado WarningHUNDeKalb31 min
May 6, 9:38 AM CDTFlash Flood WarningHUNDeKalb2 hr
May 6, 9:54 AM CDTTornado WarningHUNDeKalb36 min
May 6, 10:02 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningHUNMarshall18 min
May 6, 10:15 AM CDTFlash Flood WarningHUNMarshall3 hr
May 6, 11:01 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningHUNCullman, Marshall29 min
May 6, 11:16 AM CDTTornado WarningHUNCullman, Marshall29 min
May 6, 11:47 AM CDTTornado WarningHUNDeKalb28 min
May 6, 11:49 AM CDTFlash Flood WarningHUNColbert, DeKalb, Jackson, Lauderdale, Limestone, Madison6 hr
May 6, 1:08 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningHUNMarshall5 hr

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Alabama, 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.