Alert archive / California / Tornado Warnings in 2004

Tornado Warning 2, NWS Los Angeles, CA

December 28, 2004Los Angeles County, California

NWS Los Angeles, CA issued this tornado warning at Dec 28, 2004, 10:10 PM PST for Los Angeles County, California. It was in force for 50 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
Dec 28, 2004, 10:10 PM PST (06:10 UTC)
Expired
Dec 28, 2004, 11:00 PM PST
In force
50 min
Issued by
NWS Los Angeles, CA
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

County Los Angeles County, CA

The radar

The Santa Ana Mts radar (KSOX), 87 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 06:13 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

San Diego, CA (KNKX), launched 00:00Z, 6.2 hours before the alert went out and 135 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, San Diego, CA at 00:00Z on 2004-12-29Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 31 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, San Diego, CA at 00:00Z on 2004-12-29The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 105 square meters per square second.1939587897117136Sfc1 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
31 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-47 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
678 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
89 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
105 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
208 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.

000
WFUS56 KLOX 290610
TORLOX
CAC037-290700-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OXNARD CA
1010 PM PST TUE DEC 28 2004

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN OXNARD HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  EXTREME SOUTH CENTRAL LOS ANGELES COUNTY IN SOUTHWEST CALIFORNIA

* UNTIL 1100 PM PST

* AT 1004 PM PST...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A TORNADO 9 MILES
  SOUTHWEST OF AVALON...OR ABOUT 39 MILES SOUTHWEST OF HUNTINGTON
  BEACH...MOVING NORTH AT 40 MPH.

* THE TORNADO IS EXPECTED TO BE NEAR...
  CATALINA AIRPORT AND TWO HARBORS BY 1020 PM PST

WHEN A TORNADO WARNING IS ISSUED BASED ON DOPPLER RADAR...IT MEANS
THAT STRONG ROTATION HAS BEEN DETECTED IN THE STORM. A TORNADO MAY
ALREADY BE ON THE GROUND...OR IS EXPECTED TO DEVELOP SHORTLY. IF YOU
ARE IN THE PATH OF THIS DANGEROUS STORM...MOVE INDOORS AND TO THE
LOWEST LEVEL OF THE BUILDING. STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS. IF DRIVING...DO
NOT SEEK SHELTER UNDER A HIGHWAY OVERPASS.

IF YOU ARE CAUGHT OUTSIDE...SEEK SHELTER IN A NEARBY REINFORCED
BUILDING. AS A LAST RESORT...SEEK SHELTER IN A CULVERT...DITCH OR LOW
SPOT AND COVER YOUR HEAD WITH YOUR HANDS.

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 3324 11857 3321 11835 3369 11823 3373 11850

$$

BRUNO/ASR/RAT

The office that day

Everything else NWS Los Angeles, CA issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Dec 28, 4:48 PM PSTSpecial Marine WarningLOX57 min
Dec 28, 5:29 PM PSTSpecial Marine WarningLOX61 min
Dec 28, 5:40 PM PSTSpecial Marine WarningLOX65 min
Dec 28, 8:20 PM PSTSpecial Marine WarningLOX3 hr
Dec 28, 10:12 PM PSTTornado WarningLOXLos Angeles48 min
Dec 28, 10:43 PM PSTTornado WarningLOXLos Angeles47 min
Dec 28, 11:30 PM PSTSpecial Marine WarningLOX3 hr
Dec 29, 1:50 AM PSTFlash Flood WarningLOXLos Angeles3 hr
Dec 29, 4:37 AM PSTFlash Flood WarningLOXLos Angeles3 hr
Dec 29, 7:30 AM PSTFlash Flood WarningLOXLos Angeles2 hr

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in California, 2004Every tornado warning in 2004Tornadoes 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.