Alert archive / Alabama / Tornado Warnings in 2012

Tornado Warning 24, NWS Huntsville, AL

May 13, 2012Limestone County, Alabama

NWS Huntsville, AL issued this tornado warning at May 13, 2012, 5:41 PM CDT for Limestone County, Alabama. It was in force for 19 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
May 13, 2012, 5:41 PM CDT (22:41 UTC)
Expired
May 13, 2012, 6:00 PM CDT
In force
19 min
Issued by
NWS Huntsville, AL
Area
Storm-based polygon

County Limestone County, AL

The radar

The Northeast Alabama radar (KHTX), 87 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 22:43 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

Birmingham, AL (KBMX), launched 12:00Z, 10.7 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, Birmingham, AL at 12:00Z on 2012-05-13Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 367 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, Birmingham, AL at 12:00Z on 2012-05-13The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 168 square meters per square second.193958Sfc1 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
367 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-24 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
515 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
25 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
168 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
215 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.

086 
WFUS54 KHUN 132241
TORHUN
ALC083-132300-
/O.NEW.KHUN.TO.W.0024.120513T2241Z-120513T2300Z/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HUNTSVILLE AL
541 PM CDT SUN MAY 13 2012

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN HUNTSVILLE HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  SOUTH CENTRAL LIMESTONE COUNTY IN NORTH CENTRAL ALABAMA...

* UNTIL 600 PM CDT

* AT 539 PM CDT...TRAINED WEATHER SPOTTERS REPORTED A FUNNEL CLOUD 8
  MILES WEST OF BELLE MINA...OR ABOUT NEAR DECATUR...MOVING EAST AT 5
  MPH.

* LOCATIONS NEAR THE PATH OF THIS TORNADO INCLUDE...
  BELLE MINA.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

DO NOT USE HIGHWAY OVERPASSES FOR SHELTER. OVERPASSES DO NOT PROVIDE
PROTECTION FROM TORNADIC WINDS. VEHICLES STOPPED UNDER BRIDGES BLOCK
TRAFFIC AND PREVENT PEOPLE FROM GETTING OUT OF THE STORM'S PATH AND
TO SHELTER. IF YOU CANNOT DRIVE AWAY FROM THE TORNADO...GET OUT OF
YOUR VEHICLE AND LIE FLAT IN A DITCH AS A LAST RESORT.

&&

LAT...LON 3470 8683 3458 8689 3458 8692 3461 8697
      3465 8704 3465 8705 3467 8709 3469 8710
      3475 8707
TIME...MOT...LOC 2241Z 292DEG 6KT 3468 8702

$$

CA
2 follow-up statements
895 
WWUS54 KHUN 132252
SVSHUN

SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HUNTSVILLE AL
552 PM CDT SUN MAY 13 2012

ALC083-132300-
/O.CON.KHUN.TO.W.0024.000000T0000Z-120513T2300Z/
LIMESTONE AL-
552 PM CDT SUN MAY 13 2012

...A TORNADO WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 600 PM CDT FOR SOUTH
CENTRAL LIMESTONE COUNTY...

AT 548 PM CDT...TRAINED WEATHER SPOTTERS REPORTED A FUNNEL CLOUD. 
THIS WAS LOCATED 7 MILES WEST OF BELLE MINA...OR ABOUT NEAR 
DECATUR...MOVING EAST AT 5 MPH.

OTHER LOCATIONS IN THE WARNING INCLUDE BUT ARE NOT LIMITED TO 
MOORESVILLE.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

DO NOT USE HIGHWAY OVERPASSES FOR SHELTER. OVERPASSES DO NOT PROVIDE
PROTECTION FROM TORNADIC WINDS. VEHICLES STOPPED UNDER BRIDGES BLOCK
TRAFFIC AND PREVENT PEOPLE FROM GETTING OUT OF THE STORM'S PATH AND
TO SHELTER. IF YOU CANNOT DRIVE AWAY FROM THE TORNADO...GET OUT OF
YOUR VEHICLE AND LIE FLAT IN A DITCH AS A LAST RESORT.

&&

LAT...LON 3468 8684 3458 8689 3458 8691 3459 8694
      3464 8702 3465 8704 3466 8707 3472 8702
TIME...MOT...LOC 2252Z 292DEG 6KT 3467 8700

$$

CA
099 
WWUS54 KHUN 132258
SVSHUN

SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HUNTSVILLE AL
558 PM CDT SUN MAY 13 2012

ALC083-132308-
/O.EXP.KHUN.TO.W.0024.000000T0000Z-120513T2300Z/
LIMESTONE AL-
558 PM CDT SUN MAY 13 2012

...THE TORNADO WARNING FOR SOUTH CENTRAL LIMESTONE COUNTY EXPIRES AT
600 PM CDT...

WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATES THE THUNDERSTORM THAT
PROMPTED THE TORNADO WARNING HAS WEAKENED AND IS NO LONGER SEVERE.
THEREFORE THE TORNADO WARNING HAS BEEN ALLOWED TO EXPIRE.

HEAVY RAIN...SMALL HAIL...GUSTY WINDS...AND FREQUENT LIGHTNING ARE
STILL POSSIBLE FROM THIS THUNDERSTORM. STAY INDOORS UNTIL THE STORM
HAS PASSED.

LAT...LON 3468 8684 3458 8689 3458 8691 3459 8694
      3464 8702 3465 8704 3466 8707 3472 8702
TIME...MOT...LOC 2258Z 292DEG 6KT 3467 8699

$$

CA

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 13, 4:14 PM CDTSpecial Weather StatementHUNMorgan46 min
May 13, 4:26 PM CDTSpecial Weather StatementHUNLimestone49 min
May 13, 5:15 PM CDTSpecial Weather StatementHUNLimestone45 min
May 13, 5:29 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningHUNLimestone, Morgan16 min
May 13, 5:58 PM CDTSpecial Weather StatementHUNMorgan47 min
May 13, 6:21 PM CDTTornado WarningHUNLimestone, Morgan24 min
May 13, 6:43 PM CDTSpecial Weather StatementHUNMorgan47 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Alabama, 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.