Alert archive / Pennsylvania / Tornado Watches in 2004
Tornado Watch 252
The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at May 22, 2004, 5:45 PM EDT for 19 counties in New York; 22 counties in Pennsylvania. It was in force for 5 hr.
The area
The outline as issued.
The facts
- Issued
- May 22, 2004, 5:45 PM EDT (21:45 UTC)
- Expired
- May 22, 2004, 11:00 PM EDT
- In force
- 5 hr
- Issued by
- the Storm Prediction Center
All 41 counties
Allegany County, NY, Broome County, NY, Cattaraugus County, NY, Cayuga County, NY, Chautauqua County, NY, Chemung County, NY, Chenango County, NY, Cortland County, NY, Livingston County, NY, Madison County, NY, Onondaga County, NY, Ontario County, NY, Schuyler County, NY, Seneca County, NY, Steuben County, NY, Tioga County, NY, Tompkins County, NY, Wyoming County, NY, Yates County, NY, Armstrong County, PA, Beaver County, PA, Bradford County, PA, Butler County, PA, Cameron County, PA, Clarion County, PA, Clearfield County, PA, Clinton County, PA, Crawford County, PA, Elk County, PA, Erie County, PA, Forest County, PA, Jefferson County, PA, Lawrence County, PA, Lycoming County, PA, McKean County, PA, Mercer County, PA, Potter County, PA, Susquehanna County, PA, Tioga County, PA, Venango County, PA, Warren County, PA
The radar
The Buffalo radar (KBUF), 105 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 21:49 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
18 tornado, severe thunderstorm and flash flood warnings for its counties while it was in force.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 22, 6:23 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BUF | Livingston | 52 min |
| May 22, 6:37 PM EDT | Tornado Warning | BUF | Allegany, Livingston | 38 min |
| May 22, 6:44 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BGM | Steuben | 61 min |
| May 22, 7:31 PM EDT | Tornado Warning | BGM | Steuben | 29 min |
| May 22, 7:36 PM EDT | Tornado Warning | BGM | Steuben | 24 min |
| May 22, 7:52 PM EDT | Tornado Warning | BGM | Schuyler | 53 min |
| May 22, 7:56 PM EDT | Tornado Warning | BGM | Schuyler | 49 min |
| May 22, 8:25 PM EDT | Tornado Warning | BGM | Chemung, Tompkins | 65 min |
| May 22, 8:45 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BUF | Ontario | 60 min |
| May 22, 8:49 PM EDT | Tornado Warning | BGM | Tioga | 41 min |
| May 22, 9:15 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BGM | Yates | 60 min |
| May 22, 9:44 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BGM | Seneca | 46 min |
| May 22, 10:02 PM EDT | Flash Flood Warning | BUF | Livingston, Ontario | 4 hr |
| May 22, 10:05 PM EDT | Tornado Warning | BGM | Seneca | 25 min |
| May 22, 10:08 PM EDT | Tornado Warning | BGM | Cayuga | 67 min |
| May 22, 10:11 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BUF | Genesee, Livingston, Monroe | 49 min |
| May 22, 10:32 PM EDT | Tornado Warning | BGM | Cortland | 43 min |
| May 22, 10:57 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BGM | Steuben | 48 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
Buffalo Intl Airport, NY (KBUF), launched 12:00Z, 9.8 hours before the alert went out and 102 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
- 0 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- No buoyant parcel
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 580 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 35 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 259 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 270 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 0.0
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000
WWUS20 KWNS 222146
SEL2
SPC WW 222145
NYZ000-PAZ000-LEZ000-230300-
URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 252
NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
545 PM EDT SAT MAY 22 2004
THE NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF
WESTERN AND CENTRAL NEW YORK
NORTHERN AND WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA
LAKE ERIE
EFFECTIVE THIS SATURDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING FROM 545 PM UNTIL
1100 PM 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 30 MILES WEST OF FRANKLIN PENNSYLVANIA TO 35
MILES NORTHEAST OF BINGHAMTON NEW YORK.
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 247...WW 248...WW 249...WW
250...WW 251...
DISCUSSION...WARM FRONT SRN NY LIFTING SLOWLY NWD WITH VERY UNSTABLE
AIRMASS AVAILABLE IN WARM SECTOR. VEERING SHEAR PROFILES VICINITY
OF FRONT WILL SUPPORT SUPERCELL DEVELOPMENT. TORNADOES ALONG WITH
LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS WILL BE ASSOCIATED WITH SUPERCELLS
THAT DEVELOP. STORMS ALSO COULD EVOLVE INTO SHORT LINES/BOWS FOR
ENHANCED WIND DAMAGE POTENTIAL
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 25035.
...HALES
421,0802 432,0752 414,0752 402,0802SPC that day
Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 22, 1:26 PM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Allegany, Cattaraugus | 94 min |
| May 22, 5:23 PM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Allegany, Broome, Cattaraugus, Cayuga, Chautauqua, Chemung and 11 more | 97 min |
| May 22, 2:25 AM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Allegheny, Armstrong, Beaver, Butler, Clarion, Crawford and 10 more | 2 hr |
Nearby
Tornado Watches in Pennsylvania, 2004Tornado Watches in New York, 2004Every tornado watch 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.