Alert archive / Pennsylvania / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2003

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 167, NWS Pittsburgh, PA

July 18, 2003Beaver County, Pennsylvania; Hancock County, West Virginia

NWS Pittsburgh, PA issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Jul 18, 2003, 1:55 PM EDT for Beaver County, Pennsylvania; Hancock County, West Virginia. It was in force for 65 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: Jul 18, 2003, 1:55 PM EDT (17:55 UTC)
Expired: Jul 18, 2003, 3:00 PM EDT
In force: 65 min
Issued by: NWS Pittsburgh, PA
Area: Counties, with a storm outline in the text

Counties Beaver County, PA, Hancock County, WV

The radar

The Pittsburgh radar (KPBZ), 27 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 17:58 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 watch it was issued in

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

Issued	Product	Office	Lasted
Jul 18, 1:55 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Watch	SPC	6 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Pittsburgh, PA (KPIT), launched 12:00Z, 5.9 hours before the alert went out and 44 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: 270 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -31 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 1045 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 24 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 51 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 86 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.0
Supercell composite: 0.1

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

398 
WUUS51 KPBZ 181755
SVRPBZ
PAC007-WVC029-181900-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PITTSBURGH PA
155 PM EDT FRI JUL 18 2003

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN PITTSBURGH HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  BEAVER COUNTY IN PENNSYLVANIA
  HANCOCK COUNTY IN WEST VIRGINIA

* UNTIL 300 PM EDT

* AT 155 PM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM 3 MILES NORTH OF NEWELL...MOVING SOUTHEAST AT
  25 MPH.

* SOME LOCATIONS AFFECTED BY THIS STORM INCLUDE...
  BEAVER...
  BEAVER FALLS...
  INDUSTRY...
  MIDLAND...
  MONACA...
  NEW BRIGHTON...
  OHIOVILLE...

<<CALL TO ACTION>>SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS PRODUCE WINDS IN EXCESS OF 58
MILES AN HOUR AND LARGE HAIL GREATER THAN THREE QUARTERS OF AN INCH.

PLEASE REPORT HAIL...STRONG WINDS OR WIND DAMAGE TO THE NATIONAL
WEATHER SERVICE BY CALLING TOLL FREE...1-877-633-6772...WHEN YOU CAN
DO SO SAFELY.

LAT...LON 4063 8056 4071 8053 4079 8052 4082 8017
          4048 8040 4060 8069

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 Pittsburgh, PA wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at Jul 18, 10:19 AM EDT, 3 hours 36 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jul 18, 10:19 AM EDT, 3 hours 36 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PITTSBURGH PA
1019 AM EDT FRI JUL 18 2003

FRONTAL BNDRY EXTENDS FROM NRN NEW ENGLAND WSWD THRU XTREME NW PA TO
NRN ILL THIS MRNG. FRONT WILL CONT SLOW SAG SEWD DURG AFTN/EVE AND S
OF CWA OVNGT...AND FOCUS FOR CONTD STORM/PRECIP DVPLMNT FOR REGION, WITH
PLENTY OF MOISTURE/MOD UNDIRECTIONAL FLOW-SHEAR/SOME SUN AND INCREASING
INSTABILITY. WILL MAKE MINOR CHANGES TO WORDING FOR CLOUDS/POPS/TEMPS AND
ADD STRONG GUSTY WINDS. MOST CWA ATTM IN SLGT RISK IN NEW SPC UPDATE.
REST SAME.

.PBZ...
MD...NONE.
OH...NONE.
PA...NONE.
WV...NONE.

Hazardous weather outlook, Jul 18, 11:05 AM EDT, 2 hours 50 minutes before

MDZ001-OHZ039>041-048>050-057>059-068-069-PAZ007>009-013>016-020>023-
029>032-WVZ001>004-012-021>023-041-181700-

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PITTSBURGH PA
1105 AM EDT FRI JUL 18 2003

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA
EAST CENTRAL OHIO...NORTHERN WEST VIRGINIA AND
GARRETT COUNTY MARYLAND.

.DAY ONE...TODAY

THERE IS A SLIGHT RISK FOR SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS THROUGH EARLY
TONIGHT, MAINLY FROM DAMAGING WIND AND HAIL, AND MAINLY FOR AREAS
SOUTH OF INTERSTATE 80. LOCALIZED HEAVY RAIN AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING
WILL ACCOMPANY THESE STORMS ALSO.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...

NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME.

.SPOTTER CALL TO ACTION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE REQUIRED THIS AFTERNOON AND EARLY TONIGHT.

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Jul 18, 11:00 AM EDT, 2 hours 55 minutes before

MDZ001-OHZ039>041-048>050-057>059-068-069-PAZ007>009-013>016-020>023-
029>032-WVZ001>004-012-021>023-041-182100-

SEVERE WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PITTSBURGH PA
1100 AM EDT FRI JUL 18 2003

...SLIGHT RISK FOR SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS THIS AFTERNOON AND EARLY
TONIGHT...

THERE IS A SLIGHT RISK FOR SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS THROUGH EARLY TONIGHT
FOR MOST OF THE REGION...MAINLY SOUTH OF INTERSTATE 80.
THUNDERSTORMS THAT DO DEVELOP ACROSS THE AREA...PRECEDING A COLD
FRONT...HAVE THE POTENTIAL TO REACH SEVERE LEVELS.

THE AREAS TO BE AFFECTED FOR SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE MOST
OF WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA...EAST CENTRAL OHIO...EXTREME NORTHERN WEST
VIRGINIA AND GARRETT COUNTY MARYLAND.

THE GREATEST THREAT FROM THESE STORMS WILL BE STRONG DAMAGING
WINDS...HAIL AND HEAVY RAIN ALONG WITH FREQUENT AND DANGEROUS
LIGHTNING.

SKYWARN SPOTTERS...THE NETWORK MAY BE ACTIVATED DURING THE AFTERNOON.

STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO FOR ADDITIONAL UPDATES ON THIS
DEVELOPING SITUATION.

Special weather statement, Jul 18, 12:40 PM EDT, 1 hour 15 minutes before

OHZ040-041-PAZ020-181815-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PITTSBURGH PA
1240 PM EDT FRI JUL 18 2003

...THUNDERSTORMS MOVING INTO REGION...

SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL MOVE ACROSS THE REGION DURING THE
EARLY AFTERNOON. SOME OF THESE STORMS MAY CONTAIN SMALL HAIL AND
WIND GUSTS TO 35 MPH. ALSO RAIN...UP TO THREE-QUARTERS OF AN INCH
IN LESS THAN AN HOUR IS POSSIBLE...ALONG WITH DANGEROUS LIGHTNING.

Special weather statement, Jul 18, 1:28 PM EDT, 27 minutes before

OHZ041-181830-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PITTSBURGH PA
128 PM EDT FRI JUL 18 2003

...THUNDERSTORM UPDATE...

THUNDERSTORMS WITH HEAVY RAIN...SMALL HAIL AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING
WILL OCCUR ACROSS THE AREA THROUGH MID AFTERNOON.

SOME STORMS MAY DEPOSIT FROM ONE TO ONE AND ONE HALF INCH OF RAIN
IN LESS THAN AN HOUR. BE ALERT FOR PONDING OF WATER IN POOR DRAINAGE
AND LOW LYING AREAS. SMALL HAIL UP TO ONE HALF IN DIAMETER IS
POSSIBLE ALONG WITH FREQUENT AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING.

WINDS MAY GUST AS HIGH AS 35 MPH.

The office that day

Everything else NWS Pittsburgh, PA issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Jul 18, 2:33 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	PBZ	Washington	57 min
Jul 18, 2:47 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	PBZ	Jefferson	58 min
Jul 18, 2:54 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	PBZ	Beaver	66 min
Jul 18, 3:25 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	PBZ	Washington	80 min
Jul 18, 3:55 PM EDT	Flash Flood Warning	PBZ	Jefferson	2 hr
Jul 18, 4:05 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	PBZ	Fayette	70 min
Jul 18, 4:22 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	PBZ	Westmoreland	53 min
Jul 18, 4:30 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	PBZ	Greene	60 min
Jul 18, 5:24 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	PBZ	Fayette, Greene	81 min
Jul 18, 4:09 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	PBZ	Wetzel	81 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Pennsylvania, 2003 Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in West Virginia, 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.