Alert archive / Alabama / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2008

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 467, NWS Birmingham, AL

August 7, 2008Fayette County, Lamar County, Marion County, Alabama

NWS Birmingham, AL issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Aug 7, 2008, 1:21 PM CDT for Fayette County, Lamar County, Marion County, Alabama. It was in force for 54 min. No storm report in the archive falls inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
Aug 7, 2008, 1:21 PM CDT (18:21 UTC)
Expired
Aug 7, 2008, 2:15 PM CDT
In force
54 min
Issued by
NWS Birmingham, AL
Area
Storm-based polygon

Counties Fayette County, AL, Lamar County, AL, Marion County, AL

The radar

The Columbus AFB radar (KGWX), 39 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 18:21 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 watch it was issued in

The SPC watch in force over the same counties when this warning went out.

IssuedProductOfficeLasted
Aug 7, 10:29 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPC7 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Birmingham, AL (KBMX), launched 12:00Z, 6.4 hours before the alert went out and 130 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, Birmingham, AL at 12:00Z on 2008-08-07Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1172 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°0°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Birmingham, AL at 12:00Z on 2008-08-07The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity -8 square meters per square second.1939Sfc1 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
1172 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-51 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1221 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
12 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
-8 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
3 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

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 Birmingham, AL wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at Aug 7, 12:45 PM CDT, 36 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Aug 7, 12:45 PM CDT, 36 minutes before
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Hazardous weather outlook, Aug 7, 11:01 AM CDT, 2 hours 20 minutes before
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
1101 AM CDT THU AUG 7 2008

ALZ011>015-017>050-081130-
AUTAUGA-BARBOUR-BIBB-BLOUNT-BULLOCK-CALHOUN-CHAMBERS-CHEROKEE-
CHILTON-CLAY-CLEBURNE-COOSA-DALLAS-ELMORE-ETOWAH-FAYETTE-GREENE-HALE-
JEFFERSON-LAMAR-LEE-LOWNDES-MACON-MARENGO-MARION-MONTGOMERY-PERRY-
PICKENS-PIKE-RANDOLPH-RUSSELL-SHELBY-ST CLAIR-SUMTER-TALLADEGA-
TALLAPOOSA-TUSCALOOSA-WALKER-WINSTON-
1101 AM CDT THU AUG 7 2008

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR THE COUNTIES SERVED BY THE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OFFICE IN BIRMINGHAM.

.DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT.

STRONG TO SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS ARE POSSIBLE BETWEEN 11 AM THIS
MORNING...THROUGH 9 PM THIS EVENING. THE MAIN THREATS WITH THE
THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE POTENTIALLY DAMAGING WINDS...LOCALIZED HEAVY
RAINFALL...SMALL HAIL AND DEADLY LIGHTNING. THE BEST CHANCE OF STRONG
TO SEVERE STORMS WILL BE NORTH OF INTERSTATE 20 BETWEEN 11 AM AND
7 PM...AND BETWEEN INTERSTATE 20 AND INTERSTATE 85 FROM 3 PM UNTIL 9
PM. THE STORMS WILL GRADUALLY LOSE SOME INTENSITY AFTER SUNSET. THESE
STORMS WILL FORM IN THE VICINITY OF A COLD FRONT AS IT CROSSES
CENTRAL ALABAMA.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY.

NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

ACTIVATION OF STORM SPOTTERS AND EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT IS EXPECTED
THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING.

JD/81

In the hours before

Local storm report, Aug 7, 12:19 PM CDT, 1 hour 2 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
1219 PM CDT THU AUG 07 2008

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

1210 PM     TSTM WND DMG     2 SW VERNON             33.74N 88.14W
08/07/2008                   LAMAR              AL   BROADCAST MEDIA

            TREE REPORTED DOWN ON CR 9 NEAR THE SKATING RINK.

&&

GOLDEN
Special weather statement, Aug 7, 12:22 PM CDT, 59 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
1222 PM CDT THU AUG 7 2008

ALZ019-021-071800-
CALHOUN-CLEBURNE-
1222 PM CDT THU AUG 7 2008

...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ALERT FOR CALHOUN AND CLEBURNE COUNTIES UNTIL
100 PM CDT...

AT 1222 PM CDT...THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IS TRACKING A STRONG
THUNDERSTORM 7 MILES WEST OF PIEDMONT...MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 26 MPH.

PEA SIZE HAIL AND WINDS UP TO 40 MPH ARE EXPECTED WITH THIS STORM.

* LOCATIONS IN OR NEAR THE PATH INCLUDE...
  PIEDMONT.
  LIBERTY HILL.
  OAK LEVEL.
  FRUITHURST.

A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 500 PM CDT
THURSDAY AFTERNOON FOR NORTHERN ALABAMA.

STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO...COMMERCIAL RADIO...OR YOUR LOCAL
TELEVISION STATIONS FOR LATER STATEMENTS AND POSSIBLE WARNINGS
CONCERNING THIS WEATHER SITUATION.

27
Local storm report, Aug 7, 1:02 PM CDT, 19 minutes before
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Local storm report, Aug 7, 1:06 PM CDT, 15 minutes before
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Local storm report, Aug 7, 1:14 PM CDT, 7 minutes before
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Special weather statement, Aug 7, 1:14 PM CDT, 7 minutes before
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The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Aug 7, 12:37 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXLamar, Pickens53 min
Aug 7, 1:48 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXMarion, Walker, Winston35 min
Aug 7, 3:24 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXTalladega35 min
Aug 7, 3:53 PM CDTAreal Flood AdvisoryBMXFayette, Lamar, Marion3 hr
Aug 7, 5:51 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXChambers, Lee, Russell24 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Alabama, 2008Every severe thunderstorm warning in 2008

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.