Alert archive / Mississippi / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2003

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 108, NWS Jackson, MS

March 18, 2003Yazoo County, Mississippi

NWS Jackson, MS issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Mar 18, 2003, 8:36 PM CST for Yazoo County, Mississippi. It was in force for 59 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: Mar 18, 2003, 8:36 PM CST (02:36 UTC)
Expired: Mar 18, 2003, 9:35 PM CST
In force: 59 min
Issued by: NWS Jackson, MS
Area: Counties, with a storm outline in the text

County Yazoo County, MS

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 watch it was issued in

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

Issued	Product	Office	Lasted
Mar 18, 5:05 PM CST	Tornado Watch	SPC	6 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Jackson, MS (KJAN), launched 00:00Z, 2.6 hours before the alert went out and 64 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: 209 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -77 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 936 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 55 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 121 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 166 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.0
Supercell composite: 0.7

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

947 
WUUS54 KJAN 190236
SVRJAN
MSC163-190335-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JACKSON MS
835 PM CST TUE MAR 18 2003

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN JACKSON HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  YAZOO COUNTY IN CENTRAL MISSISSIPPI

* UNTIL 935 PM CST

* AT 835 PM CST...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A 
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM 8 MILES SOUTHWEST OF SATARTIA...MOVING NORTHEAST 
AT 35 MPH.

* THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WILL...
  BE NEAR SATARTIA AT 845 PM CST
  BE NEAR YAZOO CITY AT 900 PM CST

A TORNADO WATCH IS ALSO IN EFFECT. TORNADOES CAN DEVELOP SUDDENLY
FROM SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS.

DAMAGING WINDS...HEAVY RAIN AND HAIL ARE LIKELY. SEEK SHELTER IN A
STURDY BUILDING AND STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS.

LAT...LON 3287 9065 3261 9067 3259 9051 3274 9014
          3290 9051

$$

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 Jackson, MS wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at Mar 18, 3:00 PM CST, 5 hours 36 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Mar 18, 3:00 PM CST, 5 hours 36 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JACKSON MS
300 PM CST TUE MAR 18 2003

THE INGREDIANTS ARE COMING TOGETHER FOR AN ACTIVE EVENING OF SEVERE
WEATHER ACROSS OUR CWA...ESPECIALLY ACROSS OUR COUNTIES WEST OF
INTERSTATE 55. LATEST SATELLITE IMAGERY SHOWS SEVERAL BREAKS IN THE
CLOUD COVER OVER MISSISSIPPI AND TEMPERATURES ARE RISING INTO THE
70S WITH DEW PTS IN THE 60S. LATEST SFC ANALYSIS HAS A FAIRLY DEEP
CENTER OF LOW PRESSURE OVER THE TEXAS PANHANDLE WITH A SECOND CENTER
OF LOW PRESSURE ALONG THE TEXAS COAST. THIS SECOND LOW IS EXPECTED
TO LIFT TO THE NORTH TONIGHT ACROSS LOUISIANA AND ARKANSAS WHILE A
120KT JET MAX MOVES OVER THE AREA. THIS WILL ENHANCE THE DEVELOPMENT
OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS AND TORNADOES ACROSS OUR AREA. AREA RADARS
HAVE A LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS MOVING EAST THROUGH CENTRAL LOUISIANA
THIS AFTERNOON.

MODELS ARE FAIRLY SIMILIAR IN RAPIDLY MOVING THE SYSTEM NORTH OF OUR
AREA BY MORNING. MUCH DRIER AIR WILL FILTER INTO THE AREA AND END
THE RAIN. CLOUD FCST IS A LITTLE TRICKY AS THE SFC LOW OVER THE
TEXAS PANHANDLE AND THE UPPER LOW WILL REMAIN IN THE SAME VCTY UNTIL
THURSDAY AFTERNOON WHEN BOTH FINALLY WEAKEN AND KICK OUT TO THE
NORTHEAST. THE SFC LOW WILL DRAG A WEAK COLD FRONT ACROSS THE AREA
THURSDAY NIGHT. ETA BRINGS RAIN BACK INTO THE FCST THEN BUT WL OPT
FOR THE DRIER GFS SOLUTION AND LEAVE POPS OUT FOR NOW.

IN THE EXTENDED...A LITTLE COOLER AND DRIER WEATHER IS INDICATED FOR
FRIDAY AND SATURDAY AS THE SRN BRANCH OF THE JET WILL SLIDE SOUTH OF
THE AREA ACROSS THE NRN GULF. A SHORT WAVE TROUGH WILL MOVE OVER THE
REGION SATURDAY. GFS HINTS AT A SFC LOW DEVELOPING IN THE GULF WELL
SOUTH OF OUR AREA. STILL...WL KEEP SLGT CHC POPS IN FOR SUNDAY. HIGH
PRESSURE WILL BUILD BACK OVER THE REGION MONDAY AND TUESDAY
PROVIDING NEAR NORMAL TEMPS.

PRELIM NUMBERS...
JAN 056/079/053/77/51 7000-
MEI 057/077/053/76/50 600--

.JAN...
AR...NONE.
LA...NONE.
MS...NONE.

22

Hazardous weather outlook, Mar 18, 1:38 PM CST, 6 hours 58 minutes before

ARZ074-075-LAZ007>009-015-016-023>026-MSZ018-019-025>066-072>074-
191200-

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JACKSON MS
138 PM CST TUE MAR 18 2003

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR CENTRAL MISSISSIPPI...
NORTHEAST LOUISIANA...AND EXTREME SOUTHEAST ARKANSAS

.DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT...

...THUNDERSTORMS...
A VERY LARGE AND COMPLEX SPRING LIKE STORM SYSTEM IS APPROACHING
THE  REGION. VERY STRONG MID LEVEL WINDS WILL OVERSPREAD THE
REGION LATER THIS AFTERNOON AND INTERACT WITH INCREASING MOISTURE
AND INSTABILITY TO RAPIDLY DEVELOP SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS. VERY
STRONG WIND SHEAR IS PRESENT OVER THE AREA AND WILL ALLOW THE
ATMOSPHERE TO SUPPORT ROTATING SUPERCELL THUNDERSTORMS. THESE
SUPERCELL STORMS WILL HAVE THE POTENTIAL TO PRODUCE LARGE
DAMAGING TORNADOES...VERY LARGE DAMAGING HAIL AND WIND GUSTS TO
80 MPH.

THUNDERSTORMS WILL FIRST DEVELOP WEST OF THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER
AND MOVE NORTH NORTH EAST. AS THE STRONG MID LEVEL WINDS SPREAD
EASTWARD...ADDITIONAL THUNDERSTORMS WILL DEVELOP DURING THE LATE
AFTERNOON HOURS AND CONTINUE INTO THE EVENING. AREAS NORTH OF A
LINE FROM MONTICELLO TO MERIDIAN MISSISSIPPI WILL HAVE A HIGH
PROBABILITY OF SEEING THESE SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS...WITH THE
HIGHEST PROBABILITY OF SEVERE WEATHER IN AREAS NORTH OF A LINE
FROM NATCHEZ TO VICKSBURG TO PICKENS TO GORE SPRINGS. ALL
THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY APPEARS TO EXIT OUT OF THE AREA AROUND
MIDNIGHT.

ATMOSPHERIC CONDITIONS ARE RAPIDLY CHANGING AND WILL QUICKLY BE
CONDUCIVE FOR A SIGNIFICANT SEVERE WEATHER OUTBREAK CONTAINING
TORNADOES...LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS. REVIEW SAFETY PLANS
AND BE PREPARED TO ACT WHEN WATCHES AND WARNINGS ARE ISSUED.

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

NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME.

.SPOTTER CALL TO ACTION STATEMENT...
THE ACTIVATION OF STORM SPOTTERS...HAM RADIO OPERATORS...AND
EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT PERSONNEL IN SUPPORT OF SEVERE WEATHER
OPERATIONS...WILL LIKELY BE NEEDED THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING.

FOR MORE INFORMATION PLEASE VISIT OUR WEBSITE AT
WWW.SRH.NOAA.GOV/JAN. THIS INCLUDES THE GRAPHICAL HAZARDOUS
WEATHER OUTLOOK.

In the hours before

Local storm report, Mar 18, 7:27 PM CST, 1 hour 9 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JACKSON MS
727 PM CST TUE MAR 18 2003

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

0700 PM    ST JOSEPH                 LA   1.00 INCH HAIL
03/18/03   TENSAS                         QUARTER HAIL REPORTED BY
                                          TENSAS EMA.

Local storm report, Mar 18, 7:36 PM CST, 1 hour before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JACKSON MS
736 PM CST TUE MAR 18 2003

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

0649 PM    WATERPROOF                LA   1.00 INCH HAIL
03/18/03   TENSAS                         QUARTER SIZE HAIL
                                          REPORTED BY PUBLIC AND
                                          RELAYED FROM NWS
                                          SHREVEPORT.

Local storm report, Mar 18, 7:48 PM CST, 48 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JACKSON MS
748 PM CST TUE MAR 18 2003

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

0714 PM    5 SE NEWELLTON            LA   TORNADO
03/18/03   TENSAS                         POSSIBLE TORNADO REPORTED
                                          BY TENSAS PARISH EMA NEAR
                                          MISSISSIPPI RIVER.

0720 PM    2 SW GRAND GULF           MS   TORNADO
03/18/03   CLAIBORNE                      POSSIBLE TORNADO SITED
                                          CROSSING MISSISSIPPI
                                          RIVER FROM TENSAS PARISH
                                          INTO CLAIBORNE COUNTY
                                          HEADING TOWARD GRAND
                                          GULF...REPORTED BY TENSAS
                                          PARISH EMA.

Local storm report, Mar 18, 7:52 PM CST, 44 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JACKSON MS
752 PM CST TUE MAR 18 2003

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

0719 PM    GRAND GULF                MS   0.75 INCH HAIL
03/18/03   CLAIBORNE                      REPORTED BY GRAND GULF
                                          STATE PARK EMPLOYEE.

Local storm report, Mar 18, 8:01 PM CST, 35 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JACKSON MS
801 PM CST TUE MAR 18 2003

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

0719 PM    NATCHEZ                   MS   WIND DAMAGE
03/18/03   ADAMS                          A FEW TREES DOWN...
                                          REPORTED BY ADAMS COUNTY
                                          SHERIFFS OFFICE.

0754 PM    6 S VICKSBURG             MS   WIND DAMAGE
03/18/03   WARREN                         POWER FLASHES SEEN SOUTH
                                          OF VICKSBURG...POSSIBLE
                                          TORNADO.  REPORTED BY MS
                                          STATE STORM CHASE TEAM.

Local storm report, Mar 18, 8:30 PM CST, 6 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JACKSON MS
830 PM CST TUE MAR 18 2003

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

0805 PM    2 S VICKSBURG             MS   FUNNEL CLOUD
03/18/03   WARREN                         PUBLIC REPORT RELAYED BY
                                          WARREN COUNTY SHERIFFS
                                          OFFICE.

0810 PM    2 SW MINTER CITY          MS   0.50 INCH HAIL
03/18/03   LEFLORE                        BUTTER BEAN SIZE HAIL
                                          REPORTED BY LEFLORE
                                          COUNTY EMA.

0820 PM    2 NW MINTER CITY          MS   0.75 INCH HAIL
03/18/03   LEFLORE                        PENNY SIZE HAIL REPORTED
                                          BY LEFLORE COUNTY EMA.

The office that day

Everything else NWS Jackson, MS issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Mar 18, 6:12 PM CST	Tornado Warning	JAN	Adams, Jefferson	58 min
Mar 18, 6:52 PM CST	Tornado Warning	JAN	Claiborne	58 min
Mar 18, 7:07 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	JAN	Adams	48 min
Mar 18, 7:09 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	JAN	Jefferson	61 min
Mar 18, 7:22 PM CST	Tornado Warning	JAN	Warren	58 min
Mar 18, 7:49 PM CST	Tornado Warning	JAN	Claiborne	61 min
Mar 18, 7:55 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	JAN	Issaquena	45 min
Mar 18, 8:09 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	JAN	Franklin	61 min
Mar 18, 8:10 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	JAN	Hinds	60 min
Mar 18, 8:14 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	JAN	Leflore	31 min
Mar 18, 8:16 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	JAN	Copiah, Jefferson	59 min
Mar 18, 8:18 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	JAN	Hinds	52 min
Mar 18, 8:22 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	JAN	Warren	38 min
Mar 18, 8:50 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	JAN	Lincoln	60 min
Mar 18, 9:01 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	JAN	Madison	59 min
Mar 18, 9:11 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	JAN	Hinds, Rankin	59 min
Mar 18, 9:14 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	JAN	Copiah	61 min
Mar 18, 9:35 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	JAN	Holmes, Yazoo	45 min
Mar 18, 10:32 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	JAN	Rankin	58 min
Mar 18, 11:05 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	JAN	Noxubee	30 min
Mar 18, 11:22 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	JAN	Leake	43 min
Mar 18, 11:26 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	JAN	Lowndes	44 min
Mar 18, 11:30 PM CST	Tornado Warning	JAN	Smith	30 min
Mar 18, 11:35 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	JAN	Covington	40 min
Mar 18, 11:43 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	JAN	Attala	42 min
Mar 18, 11:45 PM CST	Tornado Warning	JAN	Newton, Scott	45 min
Mar 19, 1:34 AM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	JAN	Lauderdale	21 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Mississippi, 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.