Alert archive / Tennessee / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2004

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 12, NWS Memphis, TN

March 20, 2004Gibson County, Obion County, Weakley County, Tennessee

NWS Memphis, TN issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Mar 20, 2004, 12:28 PM CST for Gibson County, Obion County, Weakley County, Tennessee. It was in force for 47 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: Mar 20, 2004, 12:28 PM CST (18:28 UTC)
Expired: Mar 20, 2004, 1:15 PM CST
In force: 47 min
Issued by: NWS Memphis, TN
Area: Counties, with a storm outline in the text

Counties Gibson County, TN, Obion County, TN, Weakley County, TN

The radar

The Paducah radar (KPAH), 91 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 18:29 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
Mar 20, 11:50 AM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Watch	SPC	6 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Little Rock, AR (KLZK), launched 12:00Z, 6.5 hours before the alert went out and 185 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: 320 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -329 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 818 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 22 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 107 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 209 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.0
Supercell composite: 0.3

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

259 
WUUS54 KMEG 201828
SVRMEM
TNC053-131-183-201915-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEMPHIS TN
1228 PM CST SAT MAR 20 2004

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN MEMPHIS HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  GIBSON COUNTY IN NORTHWEST TENNESSEE
  OBION COUNTY IN NORTHWEST TENNESSEE
  WEAKLEY COUNTY IN NORTHWEST TENNESSEE

* UNTIL 115 PM CST

* AT 1228 PM CST...DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM OVER
  RIVES...MOVING EAST AT 45 MPH.

* THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WILL BE NEAR...
  KENTON...RUTHERFORD AROUND 1230 PM CST
  MARTIN AROUND 1240 PM CST
  SHARON...GREENFIELD AROUND 1245 PM CST
  DRESDEN...CRONANVILLE AROUND 1250 PM CST
  GLEASON AROUND 1255 PM CST
  PALMERSVILLE AROUND 100 PM CST

.DAMAGING WINDS IN EXCESS OF 60 MPH AND LARGE HAIL ARE LIKELY WITH
THIS STORM. IF YOU ARE IN THE PATH OF THIS STORM...MOVE INDOORS.

.STAY TUNED TO THIS BROADCAST FOR THE LATEST UPDATES AND INFORMATION.
TO REPORT SEVERE WEATHER ONLY...CALL 1 800 4 3 2 0 8 7 5.

LAT...LON 3641 8916 3612 8916 3592 8874 3616 8854
          3649 8853

$$

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 Memphis, TN wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at Mar 20, 10:15 AM CST, 2 hours 13 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Mar 20, 10:15 AM CST, 2 hours 13 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEMPHIS TN
1015 AM CST SAT MAR 20 2004

.DISCUSSION...

A LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS HAS DEVELOPED FROM S INDIANA TO SE MO
INTO NC AR. ALSO SHOWERS HAVE FORMED IN NE AR AND CENTRAL AR. ALL
THIS ACTIVITY IS HEADED OUR WAY. THE FRONT CAUSING ALL THIS WILL
MOVE SOUTHEAST INTO THE AREA THIS AFTERNOON AND GO ON THROUGH
SOUTHERN COUNTIES THIS EVENING.

POTENTIAL FOR SEVERE STORMS STILL REMAINS...WITH LARGE HAIL AND
SOME WIND STORMS BEING THE GREATEST THREAT.

&&

.MEG...WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
AR...NONE.
MS...NONE.
MO...NONE.
TN...NONE.
&&

WER

Hazardous weather outlook, Mar 20, 5:00 AM CST, 7 hours 28 minutes before

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEMPHIS TN
500 AM CST SAT MAR 20 2004

ARZ008-009-017-018-026>028-035-036-048-049-058-MOZ113-115-MSZ001>017-
020>024-TNZ001>004-019>021-048>055-088>092-211100-
ALCORN-BENTON-CALHOUN-CARROLL-CHESTER-CHICKASAW-CLAY-COAHOMA-
CRAIGHEAD-CRITTENDEN-CROCKETT-CROSS-DECATUR-DESOTO-DUNKLIN-DYER-
FAYETTE-GIBSON-GREENE-HARDEMAN-HARDIN-HAYWOOD-HENDERSON-HENRY-
ITAWAMBA-LAFAYETTE-LAKE-LAUDERDALE-LAWRENCE-LEE(AR)-LEE(MS)-MADISON-
MARSHALL-MCNAIRY-MISSISSIPPI-MONROE-OBION-PANOLA-PEMISCOT-PHILLIPS-
POINSETT-PONTOTOC-PRENTISS-QUITMAN-RANDOLPH-SHELBY-ST. FRANCIS-
TALLAHATCHIE-TATE-TIPPAH-TIPTON-TISHOMINGO-TUNICA-UNION-WEAKLEY-
YALOBUSHA-
500 AM CST SAT MAR 20 2004

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR NORTHEAST ARKANSAS...NORTH
MISSISSIPPI...WEST TENNESSEE AND THE MISSOURI BOOTHEEL.

.DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT

A COLD FRONT WILL MOVE ACROSS THE MID SOUTH THIS AFTERNOON AND
EVENING. SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL DEVELOP ALONG THE FRONT AND
A FEW STORMS COULD BECOME SEVERE. THE GREATEST RISK OF SEVERE
STORMS WILL BE ACROSS EAST ARKANSAS...THE MISSOURI BOOTHEEL...WEST
TENNESSEE AND EXTREME NORTHERN MISSISSIPPI. THE TIME OF GREATEST
THREAT WILL BEGIN FROM 1 PM TO 4 PM ACROSS NORTHERN SECTIONS OF THE
MID SOUTH...INCLUDING JONESBORO...DYERSBURG AND PARIS. EXPECT THE
THREAT TO SHIFT SOUTH TO MEMPHIS...BOLIVAR AND SAVANNAH FROM 4
PM TO 7 PM. THE MAIN THREAT WILL BE HAIL WITH PERHAPS SOME DAMAGING
WINDS.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SUNDAY THROUGH FRIDAY

THE PROBABILITY OF HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS LOW.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE NECESSARY THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING.

STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO AND OTHER LOCAL MEDIA FOR
FURTHER DETAILS OR UPDATES. FOR ADDITIONAL WEATHER INFORMATION...
CHECK OUR WEB SITE AT HTTP://WWW.SRH.NOAA.GOV/MEG.

SJM

The office that day

Everything else NWS Memphis, TN issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Mar 20, 1:12 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MEG	Dyer	33 min
Mar 20, 1:31 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MEG	Crockett, Gibson	44 min
Mar 20, 2:19 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MEG	Madison	41 min
Mar 20, 3:13 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MEG	Dyer, Obion	32 min
Mar 20, 3:40 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MEG	Tipton	50 min
Mar 20, 4:25 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MEG	Madison	35 min
Mar 20, 4:59 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MEG	Shelby	61 min
Mar 20, 5:38 PM CST	Flash Flood Warning	MEG	Shelby	2 hr
Mar 20, 5:57 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MEG	Shelby	48 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Tennessee, 2004 Every severe thunderstorm warning 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.