Alert archive / Alabama / Tornado Warnings in 2004

Tornado Warning 47, NWS Birmingham, AL

November 23, 2004Bibb County, Tuscaloosa County, Alabama

NWS Birmingham, AL issued this tornado warning at Nov 23, 2004, 3:11 PM CST for Bibb County, Tuscaloosa County, Alabama. It was in force for 34 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: Nov 23, 2004, 3:11 PM CST (21:11 UTC)
Expired: Nov 23, 2004, 3:45 PM CST
In force: 34 min
Issued by: NWS Birmingham, AL
Area: Counties, with a storm outline in the text

Counties Bibb County, AL, Tuscaloosa County, AL

The radar

The Birmingham radar (KBMX), 55 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 21:14 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.

The nearest sounding before it

Birmingham, AL (KBMX), launched 12:00Z, 9.2 hours before the alert went out and 54 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: 586 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -8 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 474 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 39 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 116 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 171 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.0
Supercell composite: 1.6

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WFUS54 KBMX 232111
TORBMX
ALC007-125-232145-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
310 PM CST TUE NOV 23 2004

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN BIRMINGHAM HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  BIBB COUNTY IN CENTRAL ALABAMA
  THIS INCLUDES THE CITY OF BRENT
  TUSCALOOSA COUNTY IN WEST CENTRAL ALABAMA

* UNTIL 345 PM CST

* AT 310 PM CST...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A TORNADO NEAR
  DUNCANVILLE...OR ABOUT 15 MILES SOUTH OF TUSCALOOSA...MOVING EAST
  AT 20 MPH.

* THE TORNADO IS EXPECTED TO BE NEAR...
  6 MILES SOUTHWEST OF WEST BLOCTON AND 7 MILES NORTH OF BRENT BY 345
  PM CST

IN ADDITION TO THE TORNADO...THIS STORM IS CAPABLE OF PRODUCING 
NICKEL SIZE HAIL AND DESTRUCTIVE STRAIGHT LINE WINDS.

HEAVY RAINFALL MAY OBSCURE THIS TORNADO. TAKE COVER NOW IF YOU WAIT
TO SEE OR HEAR IT COMING...IT MAY BE TOO LATE TO GET TO A SAFE PLACE.

THE SAFEST PLACE TO BE DURING A TORNADO IS IN A BASEMENT. GET UNDER A
WORKBENCH OR OTHER PIECE OF STURDY FURNITURE. IF NO BASEMENT IS
AVAILABLE...SEEK SHELTER ON THE LOWEST FLOOR OF THE BUILDING IN AN
INTERIOR HALLWAY OR ROOM SUCH AS A CLOSET. USE BLANKETS OR PILLOWS TO
COVER YOUR BODY AND ALWAYS STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS.

IF IN MOBILE HOMES OR VEHICLES...EVACUATE THEM AND GET INSIDE A
SUBSTANTIAL SHELTER. IF NO SHELTER IS AVAILABLE...LIE FLAT IN THE
NEAREST DITCH OR OTHER LOW SPOT AND COVER YOUR HEAD WITH YOUR HANDS.

LAT...LON 3314 8745 3302 8753 3301 8742 3292 8714
      3322 8712

$$

The office that day

Everything else NWS Birmingham, AL issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Nov 23, 1:39 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BMX	Randolph	36 min
Nov 23, 2:41 PM CST	Tornado Warning	BMX	Chambers	34 min
Nov 23, 3:40 PM CST	Tornado Warning	BMX	Bibb	35 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Alabama, 2004 Every tornado warning in 2004 Tornadoes in 2004

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.