Tornado Watch 273

Issued

May 10, 2012, 7:50 PM CDT (00:50 UTC)

Expired

May 11, 2012, 5:00 AM CDT

In force

9 hr

Issued by

the Storm Prediction Center

Largest hail expected

2 in

Strongest gust expected

60 kt

The Austin/San Antonio radar (KEWX), 49 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 00:54 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.

Two or more tornadoes

40%

One or more EF2 to EF5 tornadoes

20%

Ten or more severe wind reports

30%

One or more gusts of 65 knots or more

30%

Ten or more severe hail reports

40%

One or more hailstones of 2 inches or more

30%

Six or more combined severe hail and wind reports

60%

• Mesoscale Discussion 780May 10, 5:43 PM CDT
• Mesoscale Discussion 781May 10, 7:18 PM CDT
• Mesoscale Discussion 782May 10, 9:42 PM CDT
• Mesoscale Discussion 783May 10, 11:36 PM CDT
• Mesoscale Discussion 784May 11, 1:40 AM CDT
• Mesoscale Discussion 785May 11, 2:41 AM CDT

346 
WWUS20 KWNS 110054
SEL3
SPC WW 110054
TXZ000-CWZ000-110800-

URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 273
NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
750 PM CDT THU MAY 10 2012

THE NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF

       SOUTH-CENTRAL AND DEEP SOUTH TEXAS
       COASTAL WATERS

EFFECTIVE THIS THURSDAY NIGHT AND FRIDAY MORNING FROM 750 PM
UNTIL 300 AM CDT.

TORNADOES...HAIL TO 2 INCHES IN DIAMETER...THUNDERSTORM WIND
GUSTS TO 70 MPH...AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE IN THESE
AREAS.

THE TORNADO WATCH AREA IS APPROXIMATELY ALONG AND 70 STATUTE
MILES EAST AND WEST OF A LINE FROM 45 MILES NORTHWEST OF COLLEGE
STATION TEXAS TO 75 MILES SOUTH SOUTHWEST OF ALICE TEXAS.  FOR A
COMPLETE DEPICTION OF THE WATCH SEE THE ASSOCIATED WATCH OUTLINE
UPDATE (WOUS64 KWNS WOU3).

REMEMBER...A TORNADO WATCH MEANS CONDITIONS ARE FAVORABLE FOR
TORNADOES AND SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS IN AND CLOSE TO THE WATCH
AREA. PERSONS IN THESE AREAS SHOULD BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR
THREATENING WEATHER CONDITIONS AND LISTEN FOR LATER STATEMENTS
AND POSSIBLE WARNINGS.

OTHER WATCH INFORMATION...THIS TORNADO WATCH REPLACES TORNADO
WATCH NUMBER 271...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH NUMBER 272. WATCH
NUMBER 271 272 WILL NOT BE IN EFFECT AFTER 750 PM CDT.

DISCUSSION...SEVERE STORM AND TORNADO THREAT WILL PERSIST ACROSS
PORTIONS OF SRN AND SCNTRL TX TONIGHT AS UPPER LOW DEVELOPS EAST
FROM WEST TX AND BELT OF STRONGER MID LEVEL WLY FLOW SPREADS ACROSS
WARM AND UNSTABLE AIRMASS. GREATEST SHORT-TERM THREAT WILL BE ALONG
A OUTFLOW REINFORCED WARM FRONT FROM WEBB COUNTY EAST TO CRP/VCT
AREA. ANOTHER LINEAR BAND OF STORMS WITH LEWP/BOW STRUCTURES WILL
MOVE EAST INTO MARGINALLY UNSTABLE BUT STRONGLY SHEARED REGIME ALONG
I35 CORRIDOR FROM SAN ANTONIO NORTH TO BELL/MILAM COUNTIES. IN
ADDITION TO TORNADO POTENTIAL WITH SOME OF THESE STORMS...LARGE HAIL
AND EXTREME RAINFALL WILL ALSO BE LIKELY. EVOLVING COLD POOLS AND
PERSISTENT ASCENT WITH THE EWD PROGRESSION OF THE UPPER SYSTEM
SHOULD SUPPORT/MAINTAIN MCS AND DAMAGING WIND POTENTIAL WELL INTO
THE NIGHT PERHAPS AS FAR EAST AS WHARTON COUNTY AND AS FAR SOUTH AS
KENEDY COUNTY.

AVIATION...TORNADOES AND A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH HAIL
SURFACE AND ALOFT TO 2 INCHES. EXTREME TURBULENCE AND SURFACE
WIND GUSTS TO 60 KNOTS. A FEW CUMULONIMBI WITH MAXIMUM TOPS TO
600. MEAN STORM MOTION VECTOR 24030.


...CARBIN

Tornado Watches in Texas, 2012Every tornado watch in 2012

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.