Alert archive / Louisiana / Tornado Warnings in 2012

Tornado Warning 60, NWS Lake Charles, LA

October 18, 2012Rapides Parish, Vernon Parish, Louisiana

NWS Lake Charles, LA issued this tornado warning at Oct 18, 2012, 12:58 AM CDT for Rapides Parish, Vernon Parish, Louisiana. It was in force for 32 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
Oct 18, 2012, 12:58 AM CDT (05:58 UTC)
Expired
Oct 18, 2012, 1:30 AM CDT
In force
32 min
Issued by
NWS Lake Charles, LA
Area
Storm-based polygon

Counties Rapides Parish, LA, Vernon Parish, LA

The nearest sounding before it

Lake Charles Mun, LA (KLCH), launched 00:00Z, 6.0 hours before the alert went out and 121 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 2012-10-18Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 2250 joules per kilogram.LCLEL10008507005003002001001 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, Lake Charles Mun, LA at 00:00Z on 2012-10-18The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 176 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
2250 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
0 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
575 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
46 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
176 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
254 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
2.2
Supercell composite
11.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

403 
WFUS54 KLCH 180558
TORLCH
LAC079-115-180630-
/O.NEW.KLCH.TO.W.0060.121018T0558Z-121018T0630Z/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAKE CHARLES LA
1258 AM CDT THU OCT 18 2012

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN LAKE CHARLES HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  WEST CENTRAL RAPIDES PARISH IN CENTRAL LOUISIANA...
  THIS INCLUDES HINESTON...
  EAST CENTRAL VERNON PARISH IN WEST CENTRAL LOUISIANA...

* UNTIL 130 AM CDT

* AT 1257 AM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE METEOROLOGISTS DETECTED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A TORNADO NEAR HINESTON...
  MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 25 MPH.

* THE TORNADO WILL BE NEAR...
  ELMER BY 105 AM 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.

&&

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

LAT...LON 3113 9252 3095 9279 3112 9291 3125 9276
TIME...MOT...LOC 0558Z 314DEG 21KT 3113 9276

$$

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Oct 18, 12:34 AM CDTTornado WarningLCHRapides, Vernon26 min
Oct 18, 12:48 AM CDTTornado WarningLCHRapides27 min
Oct 18, 1:06 AM CDTTornado WarningLCHAvoyelles, Rapides24 min
Oct 18, 1:22 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLCHAllen, Avoyelles, Evangeline, Rapides, Vernon53 min
Oct 18, 1:35 AM CDTSpecial Weather StatementLCHAllen, Avoyelles, Beauregard, Calcasieu, Evangeline55 min
Oct 18, 1:49 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLCHAvoyelles, Saint Landry56 min
Oct 18, 2:39 AM CDTSpecial Weather StatementLCHAllen, Evangeline, Saint Landry66 min
Oct 18, 2:50 AM CDTSpecial Weather StatementLCHCalcasieu55 min
Oct 18, 2:55 AM CDTSpecial Marine WarningLCH65 min
Oct 18, 3:26 AM CDTSpecial Weather StatementLCHAcadia, Jefferson Davis, Lafayette64 min
Oct 18, 4:24 AM CDTSpecial Weather StatementLCHLafayette, Vermilion66 min
Oct 18, 5:25 AM CDTSpecial Weather StatementLCHIberia, Vermilion65 min

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.