Alert archive / Pennsylvania / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2009

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 161, NWS Philadelphia/Mount Holly

July 31, 2009Chester County, Delaware County, Pennsylvania

NWS Philadelphia/Mount Holly issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Jul 31, 2009, 3:36 PM EDT for Chester County, Delaware County, Pennsylvania. 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 outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
Jul 31, 2009, 3:36 PM EDT (19:36 UTC)
Expired
Jul 31, 2009, 4:30 PM EDT
In force
54 min
Issued by
NWS Philadelphia/Mount Holly
Area
Storm-based polygon

Counties Chester County, PA, Delaware County, PA

The radar

The Dover AFB radar (KDOX), 127 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 19:36 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
Jul 31, 1:18 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPC7 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Washington/Dulle, VA (KIAD), launched 12:00Z, 7.6 hours before the alert went out and 165 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, Washington/Dulle, VA at 12:00Z on 2009-07-31Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 276 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Washington/Dulle, VA at 12:00Z on 2009-07-31The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity -25 square meters per square second.19395878Sfc1 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
276 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-61 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
888 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
42 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
-25 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
18 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
-0.0
Supercell composite
-0.3

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WUUS51 KPHI 311936
SVRPHI
PAC029-045-312030-
/O.NEW.KPHI.SV.W.0161.090731T1936Z-090731T2030Z/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MOUNT HOLLY NJ
336 PM EDT FRI JUL 31 2009

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN MOUNT HOLLY NJ HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  CHESTER COUNTY IN SOUTHEAST PENNSYLVANIA...
  THIS INCLUDES THE CITY OF WEST CHESTER...
  NORTHERN DELAWARE COUNTY IN SOUTHEAST PENNSYLVANIA...

* UNTIL 430 PM EDT

* AT 335 PM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING QUARTER SIZE HAIL...AND
  DESTRUCTIVE WINDS IN EXCESS OF 70 MPH.  THIS STORM WAS LOCATED NEAR
  MOUNT VERNON...AND MOVING NORTHEAST AT 30 MPH.

* THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WILL BE NEAR...
  COCHRANVILLE AROUND 345 PM EDT...
  WEST GROVE AROUND 350 PM EDT...
  COATESVILLE AROUND 400 PM EDT...
  MARSHALLTON AND DOWNINGTOWN AROUND 410 PM EDT...
  WEST CHESTER AROUND 415 PM EDT...
  LIONVILLE AROUND 420 PM EDT...

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

DOPPLER RADAR HAS INDICATED SOME WEAK ROTATION WITHIN THIS STORM.
WHILE NOT IMMEDIATELY LIKELY...A TORNADO MAY STILL DEVELOP. IF A
TORNADO IS SPOTTED...ACT QUICKLY AND MOVE TO A PLACE OF SAFETY IN A
STURDY STRUCTURE...SUCH AS A BASEMENT OR SMALL INTERIOR ROOM.

A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 900 PM EDT FRIDAY
EVENING FOR DELAWARE AND NORTHEASTERN MARYLAND AND NEW JERSEY AND
EASTERN PENNSYLVANIA.

&&

LAT...LON 3984 7603 3985 7603 3987 7601 3992 7601
      3993 7600 3997 7599 4024 7567 3997 7532
      3972 7604 3977 7608
TIME...MOT...LOC 1936Z 236DEG 28KT 3983 7598

$$

IOVINO

The office that day

Everything else NWS Philadelphia/Mount Holly issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jul 31, 2:13 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningPHICarbon, Monroe4 hr
Jul 31, 3:04 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningPHIBucks, Chester, Montgomery3 hr
Jul 31, 3:40 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningPHIChester65 min
Jul 31, 4:03 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningPHIChester, Delaware57 min
Jul 31, 4:08 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningPHIBucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery, Philadelphia3 hr
Jul 31, 4:31 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningPHIBucks, Delaware, Montgomery, Philadelphia59 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Pennsylvania, 2009Every severe thunderstorm warning in 2009

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.