Alert archive / Texas / Tornado Watches in 2003
Tornado Watch 155
The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at Apr 24, 2003, 7:30 AM CDT for 23 counties in Texas. It was in force for 6 hr.
The area
The outline as issued.
The facts
- Issued
- Apr 24, 2003, 7:30 AM CDT (12:30 UTC)
- Expired
- Apr 24, 2003, 1:00 PM CDT
- In force
- 6 hr
- Issued by
- the Storm Prediction Center
All 23 counties
Angelina County, TX, Austin County, TX, Brazoria County, TX, Brazos County, TX, Burleson County, TX, Chambers County, TX, Colorado County, TX, Fort Bend County, TX, Grimes County, TX, Harris County, TX, Houston County, TX, Jackson County, TX, Liberty County, TX, Madison County, TX, Montgomery County, TX, Nacogdoches County, TX, Polk County, TX, San Jacinto County, TX, Trinity County, TX, Walker County, TX, Waller County, TX, Washington County, TX, Wharton County, TX
The radar
The Houston radar (KHGX), 119 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 12:31 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.
Warnings issued inside it
6 tornado, severe thunderstorm and flash flood warnings for its counties while it was in force.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 24, 8:04 AM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | HGX | Austin, Colorado | 56 min |
| Apr 24, 8:53 AM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | HGX | Austin, Waller, Washington | 52 min |
| Apr 24, 9:26 AM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | HGX | Harris | 49 min |
| Apr 24, 9:45 AM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | HGX | Harris | 45 min |
| Apr 24, 9:46 AM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | HGX | Austin, Fort Bend, Waller | 44 min |
| Apr 24, 10:26 AM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | HGX | Harris | 49 min |
Discussions around it
SPC mesoscale discussions over the same counties from four hours before the watch to its end.
The nearest sounding before it
Lake Charles Mun, LA (KLCH), launched 12:00Z, 0.5 hours before the alert went out and 261 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.
- Mixed-layer CAPE
- 653 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -125 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 998 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 40 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 249 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 298 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.3
- Supercell composite
- 9.9
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000
WWUS20 KWNS 241227
SEL5
SPC WW 241230
TXZ000-241800-
URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 155
NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
730 AM CDT THU APR 24 2003
THE NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF
SOUTHEAST TEXAS
EFFECTIVE THIS THURSDAY MORNING AND AFTERNOON FROM 730 AM UNTIL
100 PM CDT.
TORNADOES...HAIL TO 2 INCHES IN DIAMETER...THUNDERSTORM WIND GUSTS
TO 70 MPH...AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE IN THESE AREAS.
THE TORNADO WATCH AREA IS ALONG AND 80 STATUTE MILES NORTH AND
SOUTH OF A LINE FROM 40 MILES SOUTH SOUTHEAST OF LUFKIN TEXAS TO
75 MILES SOUTH SOUTHWEST OF COLLEGE STATION TEXAS.
REMEMBER...A TORNADO WATCH MEANS CONDITIONS ARE FAVORABLE FOR
TORNADOES AND SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS IN AND CLOSE TO THE WATCH AREA.
PERSONS IN THESE AREAS SHOULD BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR THREATENING
WEATHER CONDITIONS AND LISTEN FOR LATER STATEMENTS AND POSSIBLE
WARNINGS.
OTHER WATCH INFORMATION...CONTINUE...WW 154...
DISCUSSION...SUPERCELLS WILL LIKELY CONTINUE DEVELOPING ACROSS SERN
TX THROUGH THE MORNING...WHERE STRONG INSTABILITY AND 70+F SURFACE
DEW POINTS ARE IN PLACE. LOW LEVEL SHEAR APPEARS SUPPORTIVE OF A
FEW TORNADOES...ALONG WITH DAMAGING WINDS AND HAIL...AS ACTIVITY
DEVELOPS ESE TOWARDS THE COAST INTO THE EARLY AFTERNOON.
AVIATION...TORDADOES AND A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH HAIL
SURFACE AND ALOFT TO 2 INCHES. EXTREME TURBULENCE AND SURFACE WIND
GUSTS TO 60 KNOTS. A FEW CUMULONIMBI WITH MAXIMUM TOPS TO 500.
MEAN STORM MOTION VECTOR 27035.
...EVANS
293,0942 282,0965 304,0965 315,0942SPC that day
Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 23, 7:00 PM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Crockett, Edwards, Kimble, Kinney, Mason, Menard and 5 more | 90 min |
| Apr 23, 7:03 PM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Bosque, Collin, Comanche, Cooke, Coryell, Dallas and 25 more | 117 min |
| Apr 23, 7:45 PM CDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | Bandera, Bexar, Blanco, Burnet, Caldwell, Comal and 11 more | 4 hr |
| Apr 23, 8:43 PM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Archer, Baylor, Brown, Callahan, Clay, Coleman and 15 more | 77 min |
| Apr 23, 9:35 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Watch | SPC | Collin, Cooke, Dallas, Delta, Denton, Ellis and 20 more | 5 hr |
| Apr 23, 11:43 PM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Anderson, Bowie, Camp, Cass, Cherokee, Delta and 23 more | 2 hr |
| Apr 24, 2:41 AM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Anderson, Bell, Cass, Cherokee, Falls, Freestone and 12 more | 2 hr |
| Apr 24, 6:30 AM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Watch | SPC | Angelina, Hardin, Jasper, Newton, Sabine, San Augustine and 2 more | 5 hr |
| Apr 24, 6:40 AM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Watch | SPC | Angelina, Hardin, Jasper, Newton, Sabine, San Augustine and 2 more | 4 hr |
| Apr 24, 7:14 AM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Austin, Bastrop, Brazoria, Brazos, Burleson, Caldwell and 22 more | 2 hr |
| Apr 24, 9:11 AM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Fort Bend, Harris, Liberty, Montgomery, Polk, San Jacinto | 2 hr |
| Apr 24, 11:40 AM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Sabine, San Augustine, Shelby | 65 min |
Nearby
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.