Alert archive / Kentucky / Tornado Watches in 2003
Tornado Watch 309
The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at May 8, 2003, 5:15 PM CDT for 10 counties in Illinois; 12 counties in Indiana; 47 counties in Kentucky. It was in force for 6 hr.
The area
The outline as issued.
The facts
- Issued
- May 8, 2003, 5:15 PM CDT (22:15 UTC)
- Expired
- May 8, 2003, 11:00 PM CDT
- In force
- 6 hr
- Issued by
- the Storm Prediction Center
All 69 counties
Edwards County, IL, Gallatin County, IL, Hamilton County, IL, Hardin County, IL, Massac County, IL, Pope County, IL, Saline County, IL, Wabash County, IL, Wayne County, IL, White County, IL, Clark County, IN, Crawford County, IN, Dubois County, IN, Floyd County, IN, Gibson County, IN, Harrison County, IN, Perry County, IN, Pike County, IN, Posey County, IN, Spencer County, IN, Vanderburgh County, IN, Warrick County, IN, Adair County, KY, Allen County, KY, Barren County, KY, Breckinridge County, KY, Bullitt County, KY, Butler County, KY, Caldwell County, KY, Christian County, KY, Crittenden County, KY, Cumberland County, KY, Daviess County, KY, Edmonson County, KY, Graves County, KY, Grayson County, KY, Green County, KY, Hancock County, KY, Hardin County, KY, Hart County, KY, Henderson County, KY, Henry County, KY, Hopkins County, KY, Jefferson County, KY, Larue County, KY, Livingston County, KY, Logan County, KY, Lyon County, KY, Marion County, KY, Marshall County, KY, McCracken County, KY, McLean County, KY, Meade County, KY, Metcalfe County, KY, Muhlenberg County, KY, Nelson County, KY, Ohio County, KY, Oldham County, KY, Russell County, KY, Shelby County, KY, Simpson County, KY, Spencer County, KY, Taylor County, KY, Todd County, KY, Trigg County, KY, Union County, KY, Warren County, KY, Washington County, KY, Webster County, KY
Warnings issued inside it
9 tornado, severe thunderstorm and flash flood warnings for its counties while it was in force.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 8, 6:13 PM CDT | Tornado Warning | PAH | Gibson, Vanderburgh | 47 min |
| May 8, 6:23 PM CDT | Tornado Warning | PAH | Warrick | 37 min |
| May 8, 6:49 PM CDT | Tornado Warning | PAH | Spencer | 41 min |
| May 8, 7:02 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | LMK | Perry | 43 min |
| May 8, 7:31 PM CDT | Tornado Warning | LMK | Perry | 29 min |
| May 8, 7:34 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | LMK | Breckinridge, Meade | 56 min |
| May 8, 7:44 PM CDT | Tornado Warning | LMK | Breckinridge | 46 min |
| May 8, 8:28 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | LMK | Hardin, Meade | 47 min |
| May 8, 9:17 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | LMK | Hardin | 28 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
Nashville Metro, TN (KBNA), launched 12:00Z, 10.3 hours before the alert went out and 192 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
- 360 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -84 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 628 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 50 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 107 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 196 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.1
- Supercell composite
- 0.3
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000
WWUS20 KWNS 082208
SEL9
SPC WW 082215
ILZ000-INZ000-KYZ000-090400-
URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 309
NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
615 PM EDT THU MAY 8 2003
THE NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF
SOUTHEAST ILLINOIS
SOUTHWEST INDIANA
WESTERN AND CENTRAL KENTUCKY
EFFECTIVE THIS THURSDAY NIGHT FROM 615 PM UNTIL MIDNIGHT EDT.
TORNADOES...HAIL TO 2 INCHES IN DIAMETER...THUNDERSTORM WIND GUSTS
TO 80 MPH...AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE IN THESE AREAS.
THE TORNADO WATCH AREA IS ALONG AND 60 STATUTE MILES NORTH AND
SOUTH OF A LINE FROM 35 MILES NORTH OF PADUCAH KENTUCKY TO 55
MILES SOUTHEAST OF LOUISVILLE KENTUCKY.
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 303...WW 304...WW 305...WW
306...WW 307...WW 308...
DISCUSSION...COMPLEX OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS SRN IL WILL CONTINUE
DEVELOPING E/SE ACROSS E/W FRONTAL ZONE VICINITY OH RIVER.
CONDITIONS REMAIN FAVORABLE FOR TORNADIC SUPERCELLS...PARTICULARLY
AS STORMS CROSS SURFACE BOUNDARY
AVIATION...TORNADOES AND A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH HAIL
SURFACE AND ALOFT TO 2 INCHES. EXTREME TURBULENCE AND SURFACE WIND
GUSTS TO 70 KNOTS. A FEW CUMULONIMBI WITH MAXIMUM TOPS TO 550.
MEAN STORM MOTION VECTOR 28035.
...HALES
382,0884 382,0850 364,0850 364,0884SPC that day
Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 8, 10:25 AM CDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | Alexander, Massac, Pulaski | 6 hr |
| May 8, 12:20 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Watch | SPC | Adams, Bond, Brown, Calhoun, Cass, Christian and 42 more | 4 hr |
| May 8, 12:24 PM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Massac | 2 hr |
| May 8, 2:11 PM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Adams, Bond, Brown, Calhoun, Christian, Clay and 35 more | 2 hr |
| May 8, 2:20 PM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Massac | 85 min |
| May 8, 3:40 PM CDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | Bond, Brown, Cass, Champaign, Christian, Clark and 34 more | 5 hr |
| May 8, 9:55 AM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Allen, Barren, Butler, Calloway, Christian, Clinton and 14 more | 3 hr |
Nearby
Tornado Watches in Kentucky, 2003Tornado Watches in Indiana, 2003Tornado Watches in Illinois, 2003Every tornado watch 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.