Alert archive / Alabama / Tornado Warnings in 2008

Tornado Warning 7, NWS Birmingham, AL

January 10, 2008Marengo County, Sumter County, Alabama

NWS Birmingham, AL issued this tornado warning at Jan 10, 2008, 3:31 PM CST for Marengo County, Sumter County, Alabama. It was in force for 29 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: Jan 10, 2008, 3:31 PM CST (21:31 UTC)
Expired: Jan 10, 2008, 4:00 PM CST
In force: 29 min
Issued by: NWS Birmingham, AL
Area: Storm-based polygon

Counties Marengo County, AL, Sumter County, AL

The radar

The Birmingham radar (KBMX), 145 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 21:34 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.

Issued	Product	Office	Lasted
Jan 10, 11:33 AM CST	Tornado Watch PDS	SPC	9 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Birmingham, AL (KBMX), launched 12:00Z, 9.5 hours before the alert went out and 145 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: 261 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -34 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 621 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 41 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 162 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 132 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.0
Supercell composite: 0.5

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WFUS54 KBMX 102131 RRA
TORBMX
ALC091-119-102200-
/O.NEW.KBMX.TO.W.0007.080110T2131Z-080110T2200Z/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
331 PM CST THU JAN 10 2008

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN BIRMINGHAM HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  NORTHWESTERN MARENGO COUNTY IN SOUTHWEST ALABAMA...
  SOUTHERN SUMTER COUNTY IN WEST CENTRAL ALABAMA...

* UNTIL 400 PM CST

* AT 329 PM CST...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A TORNADO NEAR WARD...OR
  11 MILES SOUTH OF CUBA...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 45 MPH.

* THE TORNADO WILL BE NEAR...
  WHITFIELD BY 345 PM CST...
  LILITA BY 350 PM CST...
  6 MILES NORTHWEST OF US 80 AND AL 28 AND 6 MILES NORTHWEST OF
  DEMOPOLIS MUNICIPAL AIRPORT BY 355 PM CST...
  MCDOWELL BY 400 PM CST...

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.

A TORNADO WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 700 PM CST THURSDAY EVENING
FOR WESTERN ALABAMA.

TO REPORT SEVERE WEATHER...
CALL 1-800-856-0758.

LAT...LON 3265 8808 3264 8807 3261 8807 3259 8805
      3260 8801 3247 8782 3230 8810 3230 8842
      3231 8843
TIME...MOT...LOC 2131Z 226DEG 42KT 3231 8829

$$

1 follow-up statement

000 
WWUS54 KBMX 102143
SVSBMX

SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
343 PM CST THU JAN 10 2008

ALC091-119-102200-
/O.CON.KBMX.TO.W.0007.000000T0000Z-080110T2200Z/
MARENGO AL-SUMTER AL-
343 PM CST THU JAN 10 2008

...A TORNADO WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 400 PM CST FOR
SOUTHEASTERN SUMTER AND NORTHWESTERN MARENGO COUNTIES...

AT 339 PM CST...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR CONTINUED TO
INDICATE A TORNADO.  THIS TORNADO WAS LOCATED NEAR WARD...OR ABOUT 11
MILES SOUTHEAST OF YORK...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 60 MPH.

THE TORNADO WILL BE NEAR...
  US 80 AND AL 28...DUG HILL AND COATOPA BY 350 PM CST...
  DEMOPOLIS MUNICIPAL AIRPORT BY 355 PM CST...
  MCDOWELL BY 400 PM CST...

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 3235 8836 3265 8808 3259 8806 3260 8801
      3247 8782 3231 8811
TIME...MOT...LOC 2143Z 238DEG 56KT 3239 8814

$$
STEFKOVICH

The office that day

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

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Jan 10, 4:21 AM CST	Lake Wind Advisory	BMX	Autauga, Barbour, Bibb, Blount, Bullock, Calhoun and 33 more	16 hr
Jan 10, 12:26 PM CST	Tornado Warning	BMX	Greene, Hale, Sumter	34 min
Jan 10, 12:51 PM CST	Tornado Warning	BMX	Marengo	24 min
Jan 10, 1:00 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BMX	Greene, Hale, Tuscaloosa	30 min
Jan 10, 1:16 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BMX	Dallas, Hale, Marengo, Perry	29 min
Jan 10, 1:53 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BMX	Lamar, Marion, Winston	29 min
Jan 10, 2:03 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BMX	Lamar	42 min
Jan 10, 2:14 PM CST	Tornado Warning	BMX	Lamar	46 min
Jan 10, 2:40 PM CST	Tornado Warning	BMX	Fayette, Lamar, Marion	24 min
Jan 10, 2:48 PM CST	Tornado Warning	BMX	Pickens	42 min
Jan 10, 3:31 PM CST	Tornado Warning	BMX	Pickens, Tuscaloosa	44 min
Jan 10, 3:57 PM CST	Tornado Warning	BMX	Greene, Hale, Marengo, Sumter	33 min
Jan 10, 4:11 PM CST	Tornado Warning	BMX	Jefferson, Tuscaloosa, Walker	34 min
Jan 10, 4:43 PM CST	Tornado Warning	BMX	Blount, Jefferson, Walker	34 min
Jan 10, 5:49 PM CST	Tornado Warning	BMX	Shelby	41 min
Jan 10, 5:56 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BMX	Cherokee	19 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Alabama, 2008 Every tornado warning in 2008 Tornadoes 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.