Alert archive / Alabama / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2008

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 29, NWS Huntsville, AL

March 15, 2008Jackson County, Madison County, Alabama; Franklin County, Lincoln County, Tennessee

NWS Huntsville, AL issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Mar 15, 2008, 2:03 PM CDT for Jackson County, Madison County, Alabama; Franklin County, Lincoln County, Tennessee. It was in force for 42 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
Mar 15, 2008, 2:03 PM CDT (19:03 UTC)
Expired
Mar 15, 2008, 2:45 PM CDT
In force
42 min
Issued by
NWS Huntsville, AL
Area
Storm-based polygon

Counties Jackson County, AL, Madison County, AL, Franklin County, TN, Lincoln County, TN

The radar

The Northeast Alabama radar (KHTX), 21 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 19:06 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

Nashville Metro, TN (KBNA), launched 12:00Z, 7.1 hours before the alert went out and 133 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, Nashville Metro, TN at 12:00Z on 2008-03-15Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 0 joules per kilogram.LCL10008507005003002001001 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, Nashville Metro, TN at 12:00Z on 2008-03-15The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 186 square meters per square second.1939587897117Sfc1 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
0 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL
585 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
51 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
186 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
366 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 Huntsville, AL wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at Mar 15, 11:02 AM CDT, 3 hours 1 minute earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Mar 15, 11:02 AM CDT, 3 hours 1 minute before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HUNTSVILLE AL
1102 AM CDT SAT MAR 15 2008

.DISCUSSION...
THIRD CONVECTIVE COMPLEX TO AFFECT THE AREA OVER THE LAST 30 HOURS
OR SO IS NOW PUSHING OFF INTO NRN GA AND THE EASTERN TN VALLEY.
RAINFALL AMOUNTS HAVE BEEN GENERALLY AROUND ONE INCH...WITH RADAR
ESTIMATES OF HIGHER AMOUNTS 1.5 INCHES PARTICULARLY FROM MORGAN
COUNTY NWWRD INTO INTO PARTS OF LIMESTONE AND LAUDERDALE COUNTIES.
INITIAL REPORTS RECEIVED THUS FAR WITH THIS LATEST PASSAGE...SHOWS
STRONG WINDS 40-45 KTS ESTIMATED...BUT NO SVR LEVEL WINDS. MOST
HAIL REPORTS WERE PEA AND DIME SIZE...ALTHOUGH DID RECEIVE ONE
NICKEL SIZE REPORT FROM THE LACEY SPRINGS AREA IN NERN MORGAN
COUNTY.

NOW FOR THIS AFTN...ALREADY BEGINNING TO SEE REDEVELOPMENT OF DEEP
CONVECTION ALONG THE COLD FRONT IN SWRN TN AND ERN AR. LATEST MSAS
ANALYSIS SHOWS A SFC LOW TRACKING THROUGH WRN TN...SOUTH OF
PARIS...AND WEST OF NASHVILLE MOVING TO THE NE. A COLD FRONT WAS
TRAILING FROM THE LOW AND EXTENDED JUST WEST OF THE MEMPHIS AREA
AND FURTHER SW INTO ERN AR. SOME CLEARING WAS NOTED IN VIS SAT
IMAGERY ACROSS NWRN PORTIONS OF OUR AREA...INTO NERN MS AND WRN
TN...JUST AHEAD OF THE COLD FRONT. WITHIN THIS AREA...AMPLIFYING
SFC THETA-E RIDGE WAS NOTED AS TEMPS WERE BEGINNING TO REBOUND
AMIDST INCREASING INSOLATION. SFC CONVERGENCE ALONG SFC BOUNDARY
WILL CONTINUE TO GENERATE CONVECTION LATE THIS MORNING INTO THE
AFTN HOURS. MID-LEVEL PVA AND STEEPING LAPSE RATES WILL ACCOMPANY
THE FRONT AS IT TRAVERSES THE AREA THIS AFTN. EXPECTING SUFFICIENT
INSTABILITY THIS AFTN TO ALLOW PARCELS TO BECOME SFC BASED...WITH
RESULTING CAPES 500-800J/KG. INSTABILITY WILL BE SUFFICIENTLY
DEEP TO ALLOW FOR CONVECTIVE GROWTH INTO THE HAIL GROWTH ZONE...UP
UNTIL ABOUT 20Z IN THE WEST...AND 22Z IN THE EAST. BEST WIND FIELD
KINEMATICS REMAIN TO OUR SOUTH...BUT CLOSE ENOUGH THAT SRN AREAS
MAY SEE SOME STRONG WIND GUST POTENTIAL. SR HELICITIES REMAIN
FAIRLY STRONG WITH VALUES 200 M2/S2...BUT EXPECTING STRONGEST
SFC BASED INSTABILITY TO BE IN ERN PORTIONS OF THE AREA THIS
AFTN...THUS A SLIGHTLY HIGHER THREAT FOR ROTATION AND POSSIBLE
ISOLATED TORNADOES IN ERN AREAS. OVERALL...PRIMARY THREAT FOR THIS
AFTN REMAINS POTENTIALLY LARGE HAIL...PENNY TO QUARTER SIZE. WILL
BE MONITORING DEVELOPMENT TO OUR WEST CLOSELY AND WILL MAKE
MESOSCALE UPDATES AS NECESSARY.

ZONE UPDATES OUT SHORTLY.

&&

.PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS...
HUNTSVILLE    68  43  61  41 /  70   0   0   0
SHOALS        67  42  62  42 /  70   0   0   0
CULLMAN       70  41  61  42 /  70   0   0   0
FAYETTEVILLE  67  42  58  41 /  70  10   0   0
ALBERTVILLE   69  43  63  42 /  80   0   0   0
FORT PAYNE    68  44  66  39 /  80  10   0   0

&&

.HUN WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
AL...NONE.
TN...NONE.
&&

03.KDW
Hazardous weather outlook, Mar 15, 11:04 AM CDT, 2 hours 59 minutes before
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HUNTSVILLE AL
1104 AM CDT SAT MAR 15 2008

ALZ001>010-016-TNZ076-096-097-160000-
LAUDERDALE-COLBERT-FRANKLIN AL-LAWRENCE-LIMESTONE-MADISON-MORGAN-
MARSHALL-JACKSON-DE KALB-CULLMAN-MOORE-LINCOLN-FRANKLIN TN-
1104 AM CDT SAT MAR 15 2008

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR NORTH ALABAMA AND PORTIONS
OF SOUTHERN MIDDLE TENNESSEE.

.DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT...

ANOTHER ROUND OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE POSSIBLE THIS
AFTERNOON ACROSS THE TENNESSEE VALLEY. SEVERE WEATHER THREATS WILL BE
LARGE HAIL...HEAVY RAIN AND DAMAGING WINDS. THERE IS ALSO A
CHANCE OF ISOLATED TORNADOES MAINLY OVER NORTHEAST ALABAMA THIS
AFTERNOON. THE SEVERE WEATHER THREAT WILL END AROUND 6 PM AS DRIER
AND MORE STABLE AIR MOVES ACROSS THE AREA.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SUNDAY THROUGH FRIDAY...

ANOTHER STORM SYSTEM IS POISED TO AFFECT THE TENNESSEE VALLEY LATE
TUESDAY INTO WEDNESDAY WITH SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS. WHILE
UNCERTAINTY EXISTS WITH REGARDS TO TIMING AND PLACEMENT...THIS
SYSTEM IS BEING MONITORED FOR POSSIBLE SEVERE WEATHER.

.SPOTTER CALL TO ACTION STATEMENT...

ACTIVATION OF STORM SPOTTERS AND EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT PERSONNEL
MAY BE NEEDED THIS AFTERNOON.

SS

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Mar 15, 12:59 PM CDT, 1 hour 4 minutes before
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Local storm report, Mar 15, 1:17 PM CDT, 46 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HUNTSVILLE AL
117 PM CDT SAT MAR 15 2008

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

0103 PM     HAIL             6 NNE UNDERWOOD-PETERSV 34.95N 87.67W
03/15/2008  E0.50 INCH       LAUDERDALE         AL   PUBLIC

&&

DL
Special weather statement, Mar 15, 1:18 PM CDT, 45 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HUNTSVILLE AL
118 PM CDT SAT MAR 15 2008

ALZ005-006-151845-
LIMESTONE-MADISON-
118 PM CDT SAT MAR 15 2008

...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ALERT FOR LIMESTONE AND MADISON COUNTIES UNTIL
145 PM CDT...

AT 114 PM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR WAS TRACKING A
STRONG THUNDERSTORM 5 MILES WEST OF HARVEST...OR 9 MILES NORTHEAST OF
ATHENS...MOVING EAST NORTHEAST AT 50 MPH.

DIME SIZE HAIL AND WINDS UP TO 30 MPH ARE EXPECTED WITH THIS STORM.

* LOCATIONS IN OR NEAR THE PATH INCLUDE...
  TONEY.
  GLADSTONE.
  HAZEL GREEN.
  PLEVNA.

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

KDW
Special weather statement, Mar 15, 1:33 PM CDT, 30 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HUNTSVILLE AL
133 PM CDT SAT MAR 15 2008

ALZ005-TNZ096-151900-
LIMESTONE-LINCOLN-
133 PM CDT SAT MAR 15 2008

...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ALERT FOR LIMESTONE AND LINCOLN COUNTIES UNTIL
200 PM CDT...

AT 131 PM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR WAS TRACKING A
STRONG THUNDERSTORM 10 MILES WEST OF ARDMORE...OR 13 MILES NORTH OF
ATHENS...MOVING EAST NORTHEAST AT 50 MPH.

DIME SIZE HAIL AND WINDS UP TO 30 MPH ARE EXPECTED WITH THIS STORM.

* LOCATIONS IN OR NEAR THE PATH INCLUDE...
  ELKMONT.
  ARDMORE.
  CASH POINT.
  COLDWATER.
  SKINEM.
  MOLINO.

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

KDW
Local storm report, Mar 15, 1:54 PM CDT, 9 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HUNTSVILLE AL
154 PM CDT SAT MAR 15 2008

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

0123 PM     HAIL             FAYETTEVILLE            35.15N 86.56W
03/15/2008  E0.25 INCH       LINCOLN            TN   NWS EMPLOYEE

            PEA SIZED HAIL IN DOWNTOWN FAYETTEVILLE

0150 PM     HAIL             FAYETTEVILLE            35.15N 86.56W
03/15/2008  E0.50 INCH       LINCOLN            TN   NWS EMPLOYEE

            DIME SIZED HAIL REPORTED IN DOWNTOWN FAYETTEVILLE

&&

DL
Special weather statement, Mar 15, 1:55 PM CDT, 8 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HUNTSVILLE AL
155 PM CDT SAT MAR 15 2008

TNZ097-151930-
FRANKLIN-
155 PM CDT SAT MAR 15 2008

...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ALERT FOR FRANKLIN COUNTY UNTIL 230 PM CDT...

AT 153 PM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR WAS TRACKING A
STRONG THUNDERSTORM 6 MILES NORTHEAST OF HUNTLAND...OR 8 MILES
SOUTHWEST OF WINCHESTER...MOVING EAST NORTHEAST AT 60 MPH.

ONE HALF INCH DIAMETER HAIL AND WINDS UP TO 40 MPH ARE EXPECTED WITH
THIS STORM.

* LOCATIONS IN OR NEAR THE PATH INCLUDE...
  BELVIDERE.
  COWAN.
  SEWANEE.

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

KDW

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Mar 15, 1:57 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningHUNCullman48 min
Mar 15, 3:08 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningHUNMarshall37 min
Mar 15, 6:24 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningHUNColbert, Franklin, Lauderdale35 min
Mar 15, 7:02 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningHUNColbert, Franklin43 min
Mar 15, 7:35 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningHUNLawrence25 min
Mar 15, 2:25 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningHUNJackson, Limestone, Madison, Marshall50 min
Mar 15, 2:48 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningHUNJackson27 min
Mar 15, 3:10 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningHUNDeKalb, Jackson35 min
Mar 15, 3:41 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningHUNDeKalb17 min
Mar 15, 3:45 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningHUNDeKalb, Marshall30 min
Mar 15, 9:01 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningHUNFranklin, Lincoln44 min
Mar 15, 2:15 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningHUNFranklin30 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Alabama, 2008Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Tennessee, 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.