Alert archive / Alabama / Tornado Warnings in 2011

Tornado Warning 169, NWS Birmingham, AL

December 22, 2011Greene County, Hale County, Tuscaloosa County, Alabama

NWS Birmingham, AL issued this tornado warning at Dec 22, 2011, 11:47 AM CST for Greene County, Hale County, Tuscaloosa County, Alabama. It was in force for 25 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: Dec 22, 2011, 11:47 AM CST (17:47 UTC)
Expired: Dec 22, 2011, 12:12 PM CST
In force: 25 min
Issued by: NWS Birmingham, AL
Area: Storm-based polygon

Counties Greene County, AL, Hale County, AL, Tuscaloosa County, AL

The radar

The Birmingham radar (KBMX), 54 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 17:49 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
Dec 22, 10:00 AM CST	Tornado Watch	SPC	7 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Birmingham, AL (KBMX), launched 12:00Z, 5.8 hours before the alert went out and 53 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: 1 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL: 699 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 60 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 102 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 129 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.0
Supercell composite: 0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

206 
WFUS54 KBMX 221747
TORBMX
ALC063-065-125-221830-
/O.NEW.KBMX.TO.W.0169.111222T1747Z-111222T1830Z/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
1147 AM CST THU DEC 22 2011

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN BIRMINGHAM HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  EAST CENTRAL GREENE COUNTY IN WEST CENTRAL ALABAMA...
  NORTHERN HALE COUNTY IN WEST CENTRAL ALABAMA...
  EASTERN TUSCALOOSA COUNTY IN WEST CENTRAL ALABAMA...

* UNTIL 1230 PM CST

* AT 1146 AM CST...THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE INDICATED A SEVERE
  THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A TORNADO. THIS DANGEROUS STORM
  WAS LOCATED NEAR AKRON...OR 8 MILES EAST OF EUTAW...AND MOVING
  NORTHEAST AT 55 MPH.

* LOCATIONS IMPACTED INCLUDE...
  NORTHPORT...TUSCALOOSA...HOLT...KNOXVILLE...MOUNDVILLE...MCFARLAND
  MALL...BRYANT DENNY STADIUM...UNIVERSITY MALL...COALING AND LAKE
  WILDWOOD.

THIS INCLUDES...
INTERSTATE 20 EXIT NUMBERS 45 THROUGH 97...

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

TAKE COVER NOW. FOR YOUR PROTECTION MOVE TO AN INTERIOR ROOM ON THE
LOWEST FLOOR OF A STURDY BUILDING.

&&

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

LAT...LON 3347 8743 3325 8707 3322 8711 3324 8713
      3322 8717 3320 8720 3313 8720 3313 8728
      3312 8729 3301 8733 3300 8742 3298 8742
      3273 8776 3285 8792
TIME...MOT...LOC 1746Z 223DEG 48KT 3291 8771

$$

27

2 follow-up statements

290 
WWUS54 KBMX 221757
SVSBMX

SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
1157 AM CST THU DEC 22 2011

ALC063-065-125-221830-
/O.CON.KBMX.TO.W.0169.000000T0000Z-111222T1830Z/
GREENE AL-HALE AL-TUSCALOOSA AL-
1157 AM CST THU DEC 22 2011

...A TORNADO WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR TUSCALOOSA...NORTHERN HALE
AND EAST CENTRAL GREENE COUNTIES UNTIL 1230 PM CST...

AT 1157 AM CST...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A TORNADO.  THIS DANGEROUS
STORM WAS LOCATED NEAR MOUNDVILLE...OR 18 MILES NORTHEAST OF EUTAW...
MOVING NORTHEAST AT 55 MPH.

LOCATIONS IMPACTED INCLUDE...
  NORTHPORT...TUSCALOOSA...HOLT...MCFARLAND MALL...BRYANT DENNY
  STADIUM...UNIVERSITY MALL...COALING...LAKE WILDWOOD...DEERLICK
  CREEK CAMPGROUNDS AND BEVILLE LOCK AND DAM.

THIS INCLUDES...
INTERSTATE 20 EXIT NUMBERS 45 THROUGH 97...

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

LAT...LON 3347 8743 3325 8707 3322 8711 3324 8713
      3322 8717 3320 8720 3313 8720 3313 8728
      3312 8729 3301 8733 3300 8742 3298 8742
      3273 8776 3285 8792
TIME...MOT...LOC 1757Z 223DEG 48KT 3302 8759

$$

27

493 
WWUS54 KBMX 221812
SVSBMX

SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
1212 PM CST THU DEC 22 2011

ALC063-065-125-221822-
/O.CAN.KBMX.TO.W.0169.000000T0000Z-111222T1830Z/
GREENE AL-HALE AL-TUSCALOOSA AL-
1212 PM CST THU DEC 22 2011

...THE TORNADO WARNING FOR TUSCALOOSA...NORTHERN HALE AND EAST
CENTRAL GREENE COUNTIES IS CANCELLED...

THE STORM WHICH PROMPTED THE WARNING HAS WEAKENED BELOW SEVERE
LIMITS...AND NO LONGER POSES AN IMMEDIATE THREAT TO LIFE OR PROPERTY.

ADDITIONAL STRONG THUNDERSTORMS ARE STILL POSSIBLE...AND A TORNADO 
WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 5 PM.

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

LAT...LON 3347 8743 3325 8707 3322 8711 3324 8713
      3322 8717 3320 8720 3313 8720 3313 8728
      3312 8729 3301 8733 3300 8742 3298 8742
      3273 8776 3285 8792
TIME...MOT...LOC 1812Z 223DEG 48KT 3317 8742

$$

27

The office that day

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

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Dec 22, 8:49 AM CST	Flash Flood Watch	BMX	Fayette, Lamar, Marion, Pickens, Walker, Winston	7 hr
Dec 22, 9:52 AM CST	Special Weather Statement	BMX	Fayette	23 min
Dec 22, 10:13 AM CST	Flash Flood Warning	BMX	Lamar	3 hr
Dec 22, 11:51 AM CST	Tornado Warning	BMX	Greene, Hale, Marengo, Perry	15 min
Dec 22, 12:53 PM CST	Tornado Warning	BMX	Bibb, Chilton, Shelby	52 min
Dec 22, 12:59 PM CST	Tornado Warning	BMX	Bibb, Chilton, Perry, Shelby	31 min
Dec 22, 1:08 PM CST	River Flood Warning	BMX	Greene, Hale, Marengo, Pickens, Sumter	19 hr
Dec 22, 1:42 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BMX	Shelby, Talladega	33 min
Dec 22, 1:54 PM CST	Tornado Warning	BMX	St. Clair, Shelby, Talladega	39 min
Dec 22, 1:59 PM CST	Tornado Warning	BMX	Autauga, Coosa, Elmore, Tallapoosa	46 min
Dec 22, 2:39 PM CST	Tornado Warning	BMX	Clay, Coosa, Tallapoosa	15 min
Dec 22, 3:09 PM CST	Areal Flood Advisory	BMX	Etowah	111 min
Dec 22, 3:34 PM CST	Special Weather Statement	BMX	Pike	41 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Alabama, 2011 Every tornado warning in 2011 Tornadoes in 2011

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.