Alert archive / Pennsylvania / Tornado Warnings in 2012

Tornado Warning 6, NWS State College, PA

August 26, 2012Franklin County, Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania

NWS State College, PA issued this tornado warning at Aug 26, 2012, 2:30 PM EDT for Franklin County, Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania. It was in force for 17 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
Aug 26, 2012, 2:30 PM EDT (18:30 UTC)
Expired
Aug 26, 2012, 2:47 PM EDT
In force
17 min
Issued by
NWS State College, PA
Area
Storm-based polygon

Counties Franklin County, PA, Huntingdon County, PA

The radar

The State College radar (KCCX), 101 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 18:31 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

Washington/Dulle, VA (KIAD), launched 12:00Z, 6.5 hours before the alert went out and 125 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 2012-08-26Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 926 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 2012-08-26The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 111 square meters per square second.1939Sfc1 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
926 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-13 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
504 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
14 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
111 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
135 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
1.6

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

614 
WFUS51 KCTP 261830
TORCTP
PAC055-061-261900-
/O.NEW.KCTP.TO.W.0006.120826T1830Z-120826T1900Z/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE STATE COLLEGE PA
230 PM EDT SUN AUG 26 2012

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN STATE COLLEGE PA HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  CENTRAL FRANKLIN COUNTY IN SOUTH CENTRAL PENNSYLVANIA...
  SOUTHEASTERN HUNTINGDON COUNTY IN CENTRAL PENNSYLVANIA...

* UNTIL 300 PM EDT

* AT 226 PM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A TORNADO. THE STORM
  CONTAINING THE POSSIBLE TORNADO WAS NEAR ST. THOMAS...MOVING NORTH
  AT 25 MPH.

* LOCATIONS IN THE WARNING INCLUDE...
  UPPER STRASBURG...
  FANNETTSBURG...
  ROXBURY...
  WILLOW HILL AND AMBERSON VALLEY...

WHEN A TORNADO WARNING IS ISSUED BASED ON DOPPLER RADAR...IT MEANS
THAT STRONG ROTATION HAS BEEN DETECTED IN THE STORM. A TORNADO MAY
ALREADY BE ON THE GROUND...OR IS EXPECTED TO DEVELOP SHORTLY.

THIS WILL IMPACT THE PENNSYLVANIA TURNPIKE BETWEEN MILE MARKERS 185
AND 198.

THIS WILL ALSO IMPACT THE FOLLOWING MAJOR ROADS...ROUTE 11...ROUTE
30...ROUTE 522.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

HEAVY RAINFALL MAY OBSCURE THIS TORNADO. IF YOU WAIT TO SEE OR HEAR
IT COMING...IT MAY BE TOO LATE TO GET TO A SAFE PLACE.

TAKE COVER INSIDE NOW. DO NOT WAIT TO SEE OR HEAR THE TORNADO. MOVE
TO AN INTERIOR ROOM ON THE LOWEST LEVEL OF A STURDY BUILDING. PUT AS
MANY WALLS BETWEEN YOU AND THE OUTSIDE AS YOU CAN. AVOID WINDOWS.
PROTECT YOURSELF FROM FLYING DEBRIS.

&&

LAT...LON 3985 7784 4004 7789 4006 7786 4008 7790
      4021 7794 4022 7764 3986 7770
TIME...MOT...LOC 1830Z 178DEG 20KT 3995 7778

$$

FORECASTER: STEINBUGL
1 follow-up statement
426 
WWUS51 KCTP 261847
SVSCTP

SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE STATE COLLEGE PA
247 PM EDT SUN AUG 26 2012

PAC055-061-261857-
/O.CAN.KCTP.TO.W.0006.000000T0000Z-120826T1900Z/
FRANKLIN PA-HUNTINGDON PA-
247 PM EDT SUN AUG 26 2012

...THE TORNADO WARNING FOR HUNTINGDON AND FRANKLIN COUNTIES IS
CANCELLED...

THE STORM HAS WEAKENED TO BELOW SEVERE LIMITS...THEREFORE THE TORNADO
WARNING HAS BEEN CANCELLED.

LAT...LON 3985 7784 4004 7789 4006 7786 4008 7790
      4021 7794 4022 7764 3986 7770
TIME...MOT...LOC 1847Z 178DEG 20KT 4004 7778

$$

FORECASTER: STEINBUGL

The office that day

Everything else NWS State College, PA issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Aug 26, 2:01 PM EDTTornado WarningCTPFranklin, Fulton29 min
Aug 26, 2:51 PM EDTSpecial Weather StatementCTPFranklin24 min
Aug 26, 3:19 PM EDTFlash Flood WatchCTPAdams, Cumberland, Dauphin, Franklin, Fulton, Lancaster and 3 more4 hr
Aug 26, 3:36 PM EDTAreal Flood AdvisoryCTPAdams, Cumberland, Franklin3 hr
Aug 26, 3:46 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningCTPYork3 hr
Aug 26, 4:03 PM EDTSpecial Weather StatementCTPCumberland, Perry57 min
Aug 26, 4:21 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningCTPAdams, Cumberland, Franklin, Perry3 hr
Aug 26, 4:23 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCTPCumberland, Juniata, Perry67 min
Aug 26, 4:47 PM EDTSpecial Weather StatementCTPDauphin, Lebanon43 min
Aug 26, 5:22 PM EDTSpecial Weather StatementCTPCentre, Clinton38 min
Aug 26, 5:29 PM EDTSpecial Weather StatementCTPNorthumberland, Snyder, Union31 min
Aug 26, 5:42 PM EDTSpecial Weather StatementCTPClinton, Lycoming33 min
Aug 26, 6:17 PM EDTSpecial Weather StatementCTPLycoming73 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Pennsylvania, 2012Every tornado warning in 2012Tornadoes in 2012

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.