Alert archive / Texas / Tornado Warnings in 2008

Tornado Warning 2, NWS Lake Charles, LA

February 16, 2008Tyler County, Texas

NWS Lake Charles, LA issued this tornado warning at Feb 16, 2008, 9:37 PM CST for Tyler County, Texas. It was in force for 23 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: Feb 16, 2008, 9:37 PM CST (03:37 UTC)
Expired: Feb 16, 2008, 10:00 PM CST
In force: 23 min
Issued by: NWS Lake Charles, LA
Area: Storm-based polygon

County Tyler County, TX

The radar

The Lake Charles radar (KLCH), 114 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 03:40 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
Feb 16, 8:25 PM CST	Tornado Watch	SPC	6 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Lake Charles Mun, LA (KLCH), launched 00:00Z, 3.6 hours before the alert went out and 116 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: 188 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -263 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 634 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 55 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 354 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 445 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.0
Supercell composite: 2.7

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WFUS54 KLCH 170339
TORLCH
TXC457-170400-
/O.NEW.KLCH.TO.W.0002.080217T0337Z-080217T0400Z/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA
937 PM CST SAT FEB 16 2008

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN LAKE CHARLES HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  SOUTHEASTERN TYLER COUNTY IN SOUTHEAST TEXAS...
  THIS INCLUDES...TOWN BLUFF...FRED...

* UNTIL 1000 PM CST

* AT 935 PM CST...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A TORNADO NEAR FRED...
  MOVING NORTHEAST AT 50 MPH.

* LOCATIONS IN THE PATH INCLUDE...
  FRED
  SPURGER
  TOWN BLUFF

THE SAFEST PLACE TO BE DURING A TORNADO IS IN A SMALL INTERIOR ROOM.
GET UNDER A WORKBENCH OR OTHER PIECE OF STURDY FURNITURE...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 3079 9418 3060 9408 3053 9431 3065 9437
TIME...MOT...LOC 0337Z 245DEG 45KT 3061 9422

$$

ERICKSON

1 follow-up statement

000 
WWUS54 KLCH 170347
SVSLCH

SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA
947 PM CST SAT FEB 16 2008

TXC457-170400-
/O.CON.KLCH.TO.W.0002.000000T0000Z-080217T0400Z/
TYLER TX-
947 PM CST SAT FEB 16 2008

...A TORNADO WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 1000 PM CST FOR EAST
CENTRAL TYLER COUNTY...

AT 944 PM CST...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR CONTINUED TO 
INDICATE A TORNADO.  THIS TORNADO WAS LOCATED BETWEEN SPURGER AND 
FRED...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 50 MPH.

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 3060 9408 3060 9410 3057 9413 3058 9416
      3058 9418 3072 9425 3079 9418
TIME...MOT...LOC 0347Z 245DEG 45KT 3066 9409

$$

ERICKSON

The office that day

Everything else NWS Lake Charles, LA issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Feb 16, 8:29 PM CST	River Flood Warning	LCH	Newton, Orange	36 hr
Feb 16, 10:32 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	LCH	Newton	28 min
Feb 16, 10:39 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	LCH	Jefferson, Orange	36 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Texas, 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.