Alert archive / Louisiana / Tornado Warnings in 2012

Tornado Warning 40, NWS Lake Charles, LA

March 11, 2012Vermilion Parish, Louisiana

NWS Lake Charles, LA issued this tornado warning at Mar 11, 2012, 11:11 PM CDT for Vermilion Parish, Louisiana. It was in force for 34 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
Mar 11, 2012, 11:11 PM CDT (04:11 UTC)
Expired
Mar 11, 2012, 11:45 PM CDT
In force
34 min
Issued by
NWS Lake Charles, LA
Area
Storm-based polygon

County Vermilion Parish, LA

The radar

The Lake Charles radar (KLCH), 87 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 04:12 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
Mar 11, 6:42 PM CDTTornado WatchSPC8 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Lake Charles Mun, LA (KLCH), launched 00:00Z, 4.2 hours before the alert went out and 86 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, Lake Charles Mun, LA at 00:00Z on 2012-03-12Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1310 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°0°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Lake Charles Mun, LA at 00:00Z on 2012-03-12The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 150 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
1310 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-14 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
439 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
33 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
150 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
135 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.6
Supercell composite
4.3

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

082 
WFUS54 KLCH 120411
TORLCH
LAC113-120445-
/O.NEW.KLCH.TO.W.0040.120312T0411Z-120312T0445Z/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA
1111 PM CDT SUN MAR 11 2012

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN LAKE CHARLES HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  SOUTHERN VERMILION PARISH IN SOUTHWEST LOUISIANA...
  THIS INCLUDES...PECAN ISLAND...FORKED ISLAND...

* UNTIL 1145 PM CDT

* AT 1107 PM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE METEOROLOGISTS DETECTED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A TORNADO 9 MILES WEST OF
  PECAN ISLAND...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 25 MPH.

* THE TORNADO WILL BE NEAR...
  PECAN ISLAND BY 1125 PM CDT...
  FORKED ISLAND BY 1145 PM CDT...

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR INDICATES A TORNADO MAY FORM AT ANY
TIME. TAKE COVER NOW! ABANDON MOBILE HOMES AND VEHICLES. MOVE TO AN
INTERIOR ROOM OR HALLWAY ON THE LOWEST FLOOR AWAY FROM WINDOWS.

A TORNADO WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 200 AM CDT MONDAY MORNING FOR
SOUTHWESTERN LOUISIANA.

&&

PLEASE REPORT SEVERE WEATHER TO THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AT
337-477-5285 EXTENSION 1.

LAT...LON 2958 9258 2959 9259 2982 9258 2983 9211
      2956 9249
TIME...MOT...LOC 0411Z 232DEG 24KT 2962 9258

$$

19

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Mar 11, 7:41 PM CDTSpecial Marine WarningLCH64 min
Mar 11, 8:02 PM CDTAreal Flood AdvisoryLCHCalcasieu88 min
Mar 11, 8:16 PM CDTTornado WarningLCHRapides29 min
Mar 11, 9:12 PM CDTSpecial Marine WarningLCH63 min
Mar 11, 9:19 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLCHRapides56 min
Mar 11, 9:28 PM CDTTornado WarningLCHCameron, Jefferson Davis32 min
Mar 11, 9:42 PM CDTTornado WarningLCHJefferson Davis33 min
Mar 11, 10:06 PM CDTTornado WarningLCHJefferson Davis24 min
Mar 11, 10:20 PM CDTTornado WarningLCHJefferson Davis25 min
Mar 11, 10:39 PM CDTTornado WarningLCHAcadia, Jefferson Davis36 min
Mar 11, 11:13 PM CDTTornado WarningLCHAcadia, Evangeline, Saint Landry31 min
Mar 11, 11:33 PM CDTSpecial Marine WarningLCH57 min
Mar 11, 11:42 PM CDTTornado WarningLCHVermilion33 min
Mar 11, 11:54 PM CDTAreal Flood AdvisoryLCHAcadia, Jefferson Davis3 hr
Mar 12, 12:02 AM CDTSpecial Weather StatementLCHAcadia58 min
Mar 12, 12:13 AM CDTSpecial Weather StatementLCHVermilion62 min
Mar 12, 12:16 AM CDTSpecial Marine WarningLCH59 min
Mar 12, 12:50 AM CDTAreal Flood AdvisoryLCHAcadia, Evangeline, Saint Landry3 hr
Mar 12, 12:52 AM CDTSpecial Weather StatementLCHSaint Martin38 min
Mar 12, 1:12 AM CDTSpecial Weather StatementLCHSaint Landry48 min
Mar 12, 1:42 AM CDTAreal Flood AdvisoryLCHIberia, St. Mary4 hr
Mar 12, 2:23 AM CDTSpecial Weather StatementLCHSaint Martin67 min
Mar 12, 3:06 AM CDTAreal Flood WarningLCHIberia3 hr
Mar 12, 7:48 AM CDTSpecial Weather StatementLCHSaint Landry57 min
Mar 12, 8:51 AM CDTFlash Flood WarningLCHAcadia, Lafayette, Saint Landry3 hr
Mar 12, 9:48 AM CDTFlash Flood WarningLCHSaint Landry, Saint Martin3 hr
Mar 12, 10:59 AM CDTRiver Flood WarningLCHLafayette, Vermilion35 hr
Mar 12, 11:14 AM CDTAreal Flood WarningLCHAcadia48 hr
Mar 12, 11:26 AM CDTAreal Flood Warning EmergencyLCHAcadia, Lafayette, Saint Landry, Saint Martin12 hr
Mar 12, 11:28 AM CDTFlash Flood Warning EmergencyLCHAcadia, Lafayette, Saint Landry, Saint Martin6 hr
Mar 12, 11:36 AM CDTRiver Flood WarningLCHAcadia, Jefferson Davis8 days
Mar 12, 1:41 PM CDTSpecial Weather StatementLCHLafayette64 min
Mar 12, 2:40 PM CDTAreal Flood AdvisoryLCHEvangeline3 hr
Mar 12, 3:43 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningLCHAllen, Evangeline4 hr
Mar 12, 5:30 PM CDTFlash Flood Warning EmergencyLCHAcadia, Allen, Evangeline, Lafayette, Saint Landry, Saint Martin6 hr
Mar 12, 6:18 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningLCHAllen, Evangeline, Rapides, Vernon3 hr

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Louisiana, 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.