Alert archive / Pennsylvania / Tornado Warnings in 2013

Tornado Warning 7, NWS State College, PA

August 7, 2013Bedford County, Cambria County, Somerset County, Pennsylvania

NWS State College, PA issued this tornado warning at Aug 7, 2013, 7:13 PM EDT for Bedford County, Cambria County, Somerset County, Pennsylvania. It was in force for 47 min. 2 reports came from inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The outline as issued, with what was reported inside it.

The facts

Issued: Aug 7, 2013, 7:13 PM EDT (23:13 UTC)
Expired: Aug 7, 2013, 8:00 PM EDT
In force: 47 min
Issued by: NWS State College, PA
Area: Storm-based polygon

Counties Bedford County, PA, Cambria County, PA, Somerset County, PA

The radar

The State College radar (KCCX), 93 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 23:15 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.

What was reported inside it

Time	Report	Where	Remark
Aug 7, 7:15 PM EDT	FUNNEL CLOUD	3 Se Windber, PA	FUNNEL CLOUD REPORTED 3 SE OF WINDBER
Aug 7, 7:20 PM EDT	TSTM WND DMG	Windber, PA	TREE DOWN

Local storm reports filed while the alert was in force, from inside its polygon or its counties.

The watch it was issued in

The SPC watch in force over the same counties when this warning went out.

Issued	Product	Office	Lasted
Aug 7, 3:49 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Watch	SPC	6 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Pittsburgh, PA (KAGC), launched 12:00Z, 11.2 hours before the alert went out and 122 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-p

Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.

Hodograph

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: 22 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -139 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 1075 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 27 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 61 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 159 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.0
Supercell composite: 0.1

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

037 
WFUS51 KCTP 072313
TORCTP
PAC009-021-111-080000-
/O.NEW.KCTP.TO.W.0007.130807T2313Z-130808T0000Z/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE STATE COLLEGE PA
713 PM EDT WED AUG 7 2013

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN STATE COLLEGE PA HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  NORTHWESTERN BEDFORD COUNTY PENNSYLVANIA...
  SOUTH CENTRAL CAMBRIA COUNTY PENNSYLVANIA...
  NORTHEASTERN SOMERSET COUNTY PENNSYLVANIA...

* UNTIL 800 PM EDT

* AT 710 PM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A TORNADO. THE STORM
  CONTAINING THE POSSIBLE TORNADO WAS NEAR DUNLO...MOVING
  SOUTHEAST AT 20 MPH. AN UNCONFIRMED TORNADO TOUCHDOWN WAS REPORTED
  EARLIER WITH THIS STORM IN EAST TAYLOR...NEAR ROUTE 271. 

* LOCATIONS INCLUDED IN THE WARNING...
  BELMONT...WINDBER...BEAVERDALE...BLUE KNOB STATE PARK...DUNLO...
  GEISTOWN...OGLETOWN...OSTERBURG...QUEEN...SCALP LEVEL AND SIDMAN.

OTHER NOTABLE LOCATIONS IN THE WARNING... UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH AT
JOHNSTOWN.

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 I-99 BETWEEN MILE MARKERS 4 AND 14.

THIS WILL ALSO IMPACT THE FOLLOWING MAJOR ROADS...ROUTE 30...ROUTE
219...ROUTE 220.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

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.

PLEASE REPORT FUNNEL CLOUDS...STRONG WINDS OR WIND DAMAGE TO THE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN STATE COLLEGE THROUGH TWITTER OR
FACEBOOK.

A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 1000 PM EDT
WEDNESDAY EVENING FOR SOUTH CENTRAL PENNSYLVANIA.

&&

LAT...LON 4028 7891 4040 7874 4033 7861 4033 7862
      4031 7856 4020 7838 4000 7870
TIME...MOT...LOC 2311Z 316DEG 14KT 4027 7874

$$

FORECASTER: JUNG

1 follow-up statement

354 
WWUS51 KCTP 072339
SVSCTP

SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE STATE COLLEGE PA
739 PM EDT WED AUG 7 2013

PAC021-072347-
/O.CAN.KCTP.TO.W.0007.000000T0000Z-130808T0000Z/
CAMBRIA PA-
739 PM EDT WED AUG 7 2013

...THE TORNADO WARNING FOR CAMBRIA COUNTY IS CANCELLED...

THE STORM THAT PROMPTED THE TORNADO WARNING HAS MOVED OUT OF THE
AREA...THEREFORE THE TORNADO WARNING HAS BEEN CANCELLED.

PLEASE REPORT HAIL...STRONG WINDS OR WIND DAMAGE TO THE NATIONAL
WEATHER SERVICE IN STATE COLLEGE THROUGH TWITTER OR FACEBOOK.

A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 1000 PM EDT
WEDNESDAY EVENING FOR SOUTH CENTRAL PENNSYLVANIA.

LAT...LON 4024 7888 4025 7887 4027 7890 4025 7887
      4024 7866 4026 7864 4027 7851 4020 7838
      4000 7870
TIME...MOT...LOC 2337Z 316DEG 14KT 4019 7869

$$

PAC009-111-080000-
/O.CON.KCTP.TO.W.0007.000000T0000Z-130808T0000Z/
BEDFORD PA-SOMERSET PA-
739 PM EDT WED AUG 7 2013

...A TORNADO WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 800 PM EDT FOR SOMERSET
AND BEDFORD COUNTIES...

AT 733 PM EDT...WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR CONTINUED TO INDICATE A
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WITH STRONG ROTATION THAT MAY BE PRODUCING A
TORNADO. THIS STORM MAY ALSO PRODUCE LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS.
THIS STORM THAT MAY BE PRODUCING A TORNADO WAS LOCATED NEAR
OGLETOWN...OR 7 MILES EAST OF WINDBER...MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 15 MPH.

LOCATIONS INCLUDED IN THE WARNING...
QUEEN...OSTERBURG...BLUE KNOB STATE PARK...SCHELLSBURG AND NEW PARIS.

THIS WILL IMPACT THE FOLLOWING MAJOR ROADS...ROUTE 30...ROUTE 220.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

PLEASE REPORT HAIL...STRONG WINDS OR WIND DAMAGE TO THE NATIONAL
WEATHER SERVICE IN STATE COLLEGE THROUGH TWITTER OR FACEBOOK.

A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 1000 PM EDT
WEDNESDAY EVENING FOR SOUTH CENTRAL PENNSYLVANIA.

&&

LAT...LON 4024 7888 4025 7887 4027 7890 4025 7887
      4024 7866 4026 7864 4027 7851 4020 7838
      4000 7870
TIME...MOT...LOC 2337Z 316DEG 14KT 4019 7869

$$

FORECASTER: JUNG

The office that day

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

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Aug 7, 4:40 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	CTP	Clearfield, Elk	65 min
Aug 7, 5:36 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	CTP	Centre, Clearfield, Clinton	54 min
Aug 7, 5:57 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	CTP	Cambria, Somerset	63 min
Aug 7, 6:23 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	CTP	Franklin, Fulton, Huntingdon	67 min
Aug 7, 6:27 PM EDT	Tornado Warning	CTP	Bedford, Blair, Cambria, Somerset	48 min
Aug 7, 6:38 PM EDT	Special Weather Statement	CTP	Blair, Centre	37 min
Aug 7, 7:00 PM EDT	Special Weather Statement	CTP	Somerset	45 min
Aug 7, 7:27 PM EDT	Areal Flood Advisory	CTP	Bedford, Blair, Cambria, Somerset	3 hr
Aug 7, 7:58 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	CTP	Bedford, Blair, Cambria, Somerset	62 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Pennsylvania, 2013 Every tornado warning in 2013 Tornadoes in 2013

Sources

The product and its follow-ups from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service and Storm Prediction Center text; local storm reports from the same archive; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.