Alert archive / Texas / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2003

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 96, NWS Lubbock, TX

May 31, 2003Cochran County, Texas

NWS Lubbock, TX issued this severe thunderstorm warning at May 31, 2003, 5:27 PM CDT for Cochran County, Texas. It was in force for 63 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 31, 2003, 5:27 PM CDT (22:27 UTC)
Expired
May 31, 2003, 6:30 PM CDT
In force
63 min
Issued by
NWS Lubbock, TX
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

County Cochran County, TX

The radar

The Lubbock radar (KLBB), 101 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 22:30 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

Midland Regional, TX (KMAF), launched 12:00Z, 10.5 hours before the alert went out and 191 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, Midland Regional, TX at 12:00Z on 2003-05-31Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 764 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, Midland Regional, TX at 12:00Z on 2003-05-31The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 19 square meters per square second.1939Sfc1 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
764 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-276 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
2484 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
12 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
19 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
26 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

092 
WUUS54 KLUB 312227
SVRLBB
TXC079-312330-

BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LUBBOCK TX
526 PM CDT SAT MAY 31 2003

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN LUBBOCK HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  COCHRAN COUNTY IN NORTHWEST TEXAS

* UNTIL 630 PM CDT

* AT 525 PM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING WIND GUSTS IN EXCESS OF 60
  MPH 15 MILES SOUTHWEST OF LEHMAN...OR ABOUT 21 MILES SOUTHWEST OF
  MORTON...MOVING EAST AT 10 MPH. THIS STORM IS ALSO CAPABLE OF PENNY
  SIZE HAIL.

* SOME LOCATIONS IN OR NEAR THE PATH OF THE STORM INCLUDE...
  LEHMAN AND MORTON...

IF SEVERE WEATHER APPROACHES YOUR AREA...GO INSIDE A STURDY SHELTER.

TO REPORT SEVERE WEATHER...PLEASE CALL THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE
AT 8 0 6 7 4 5 1 2 9 0.

LAT...LON 3363 10302 3339 10302 3343 10275 3374 10271

$$

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 Lubbock, TX wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at May 31, 2:38 PM CDT, 2 hours 49 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, May 31, 2:38 PM CDT, 2 hours 49 minutes before
SOUTH PLAINS AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LUBBOCK TX
237 PM CDT SAT 31 MAY 2003

DAY ONE...
WEAK WEST TO NORTHWEST FLOW ALOFT EXPECTED ACROSS THE FORECAST
AREA TONIGHT AND SUNDAY AS NUMEROUS SHORTWAVES MOVING ACROSS THE
NORTHERN ROCKIES CONTINUE TO FLATTEN THE UPPER RIDGE OVER THE
SOUTHWEST CONUS. COLD FRONT THAT PUSHED THROUGH THE FORECAST AREA
THIS MORNING WAS LOCATED FROM SOUTH OF KABI TO NEAR KMAF AND INTO
SOUTHEAST NEW MEXICO AT 18Z. COLD FRONT EXPECTED TO REMAIN
QUASI-STATIONARY ACROSS THE NORTHERN PERMIAN BASIN AND ALONG THE
MOUNTAINS OF NEW MEXICO TONIGHT BEFORE MOVING NORTHEAST INTO THE
NORTHERN LOW ROLLING PLAINS AND EASTERN PANHANDLES LATE SUNDAY
AFTERNOON. FRONT EXPECTED TO AID IN POSSIBLE THUNDERSTORM
DEVELOPMENT THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING. UPSLOPE FLOW NORTH OF THE
FRONT IS ALREADY HELPING TO INITIATE THUNDERSTORMS OVER THE
MOUNTAINS OF EASTERN NEW MEXICO WITH CU FIELD ALSO BEGINNING TO
DEVELOP OVER THE SOUTHEASTERN PLAINS OF NEW MEXICO. SOME OF THESE
STORMS MAY MOVE SOUTHEAST INTO FORECAST AREA DURING THE TONIGHT.
WILL THUS CONTINUE CHANCE TO SLIGHT CHANCE OF POPS. WITH FRONT
DRAPED ACROSS THE AREA WILL ALSO CONTINUE SLIGHT CHANCE POPS FOR
SUNDAY. ALSO WITH FRONT EXPECTED TO MOVE NORTHEAST WILL TREND TOWARD
THE HIGHER NUMBERS FOR MAXIMUM TEMPERATURES...HOWEVER NOT AS HIGH AS
ETA GUIDANCE.
08

DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...
SFC BOUNDARY TO WAFFLE NORTH-SOUTH ACROSS THE FA DURING MOST OF THE
PERIOD OCCASIONALLY BEING ENHANCED BY MCS ACTIVITY ACRS WRN HIGH
PLAINS. MEANWHILE NORTHWEST FLOW TO INCREASE WITH TIME. ALSO EXPECT
TO SEE FAVORABLE MID LEVEL TEMPS/LAPSE RATES. COMBINATION SHOULD
ENHANCE RAIN CHCS THE NEXT SEVERAL DAYS. PARTICULARS DIFFICULT TO
FCST ATTM AS FORCING WILL BE ON THE MESOSCALE. WILL GENERALLY RUN
WITH CHC POPS DURING NIGHTTIME HOURS MONDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY WITH
SLIGHT CHC OR NO MENTION DURING THE DAY. POPS THURSDAY QUESTIONABLE
WITH SLIGHT SUBTLE TRANSITION TO THE PATTERN. FRIDAY LOOKING MORE
LIKE WEAK FLOW ALOFT WITH SMALL CHC OF AFTN N MEXICO CONVECTION
MAKING IT INTO WRN ZONES.

SHORTER TERM...MODELS CUTTING BACK MODESTLY ON RAIN POTENTIAL FOR
SUNDAY NIGHT. STILL APPEARS CONVECTION MAY FIRE OVER NERN N
MEXICO/TEXAS PANHANDLE THEN SLIDE ESEWD. EVEN THIS CLOSE TO THE EVENT
SCENARIO PRETTY UNCERTAIN...ALTHOUGH IT DOES STILL LOOK LIKE NERN
ZONES HAVE BEST SHOT. WILL TRIM POPS SLIGHTLY AS A RESULT.

NOT TOO MANY OTHER CHANGES TO EXTENDED GRIDS. TEMPS LOOK TO BE
SEASONAL WITH MODERATE HEIGHTS/THICKNESSES AND VARIABLE CLOUD COVER
DUE TO CONVECTIVE DEBRIS AND POSSIBLE LATE NIGHT STRATUS.

FCSTID = 07

FRIONA      59 88 60 85 / 20 20 20 10
TULIA       60 88 61 85 / 20 20 40 10
LUBBOCK     62 90 62 87 / 30 20 20 10
BROWNFIELD  63 91 63 87 / 20 20 20 10
CHILDRESS   63 85 64 86 / 20 20 40 10
ASPERMONT   67 91 64 88 / 30 20 20 10

.LBB...NONE.
Hazardous weather outlook, May 31, 11:38 AM CDT, 5 hours 49 minutes before
TXZ021>044-010000-

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LUBBOCK TX
1138 AM CDT SAT MAY 31 2003

THIS IS A HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK FOR THE EXTREME SOUTHERN
PANHANDLE...SOUTH PLAINS AND ROLLING PLAINS.

.DAY ONE...

CONVECTIVE

THUNDERSTORMS THAT DEVELOP ALONG A COLD FRONT LOCATED ACROSS THE
PERMIAN BASIN INTO THE MOUNTAINS MAY MOVE NORTHWARD INTO THE
SOUTHERN SOUTH PLAINS AND LOW ROLLING PLAINS EARLY THIS EVENING. IF
THE THUNDERSTORMS CAN PERSIST THEY MAY APPROACH SEVERE LEVELS WITH
WIND GUSTS UP TO 55 MPH AND DIME SIZE HAIL.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...

SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS MAY OCCUR OVER THE SOUTHEASTERN PANHANDLE AND
ROLLING PLAINS SUNDAY NIGHT. THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED TO DEVELOP
ACROSS SOUTHEASTERN COLORADO AND NORTHEASTERN NEW MEXICO LATE
SUNDAY. THIS ACTIVITY SHOULD BECOME MORE WIDESPREAD OVERNIGHT AS IT
DRIFTS SOUTHEAST INTO THE TEXAS PANHANDLE. THE STRONGER STORMS WILL
BE CAPABLE OF PRODUCING LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WIND.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT ANTICIPATED.

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Texas, 2003Every 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.