Alert archive / Tennessee / Tornado Warnings in 2014

Tornado Warning 4, NWS Memphis, TN

February 20, 2014Shelby County, Tennessee; Crittenden County, Arkansas; DeSoto County, Mississippi

NWS Memphis, TN issued this tornado warning at Feb 20, 2014, 4:08 PM CST for Shelby County, Tennessee; Crittenden County, Arkansas; DeSoto County, Mississippi. It was in force for 37 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: Feb 20, 2014, 4:08 PM CST (22:08 UTC)
Expired: Feb 20, 2014, 4:45 PM CST
In force: 37 min
Issued by: NWS Memphis, TN
Area: Storm-based polygon

Counties Crittenden County, AR, DeSoto County, MS, Shelby County, TN

The radar

The Memphis radar (KNQA), 53 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 22:10 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.

Issued	Product	Office	Lasted
Feb 20, 2:23 PM CST	Tornado Watch	SPC	7 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Little Rock, AR (KBYH), launched 12:00Z, 10.1 hours before the alert went out and 37 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: 4 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -24 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 632 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 51 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 366 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 420 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.

140 
WFUS54 KMEG 202208
TORMEG
ARC035-MSC033-TNC157-202245-
/O.NEW.KMEG.TO.W.0004.140220T2208Z-140220T2245Z/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEMPHIS TN
408 PM CST THU FEB 20 2014

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN MEMPHIS HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  SOUTHEASTERN CRITTENDEN COUNTY IN EASTERN ARKANSAS...
  NORTHWESTERN DESOTO COUNTY IN NORTHEAST MISSISSIPPI...
  SOUTHWESTERN SHELBY COUNTY IN SOUTHWEST TENNESSEE...

* UNTIL 445 PM CST

* AT 408 PM CST...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM PRODUCING A TORNADO NEAR HORSESHOE LAKE...OR 7
  MILES EAST OF HUGHES...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 50 MPH.

* LOCATIONS IN THE WARNING INCLUDE BUT ARE NOT LIMITED TO MIDTOWN
  MEMPHIS AND T O FULLER STATE PARK.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

.THE SAFEST PLACE TO BE DURING A TORNADO IS IN A STORM SHELTER. IF NO
STORM SHELTER IS AVAILABLE...SEEK SHELTER ON THE LOWEST FLOOR OF THE
BUILDING IN AN INTERIOR HALLWAY OR ROOM SUCH AS A CLOSET. USE
BLANKETS OR PILLOWS TO COVER YOUR BODY AND ALWAYS STAY AWAY FROM
WINDOWS.

IF IN MOBILE HOMES OR VEHICLES...EVACUATE THEM AND GET INSIDE A
SUBSTANTIAL SHELTER. IF NO SHELTER IS AVAILABLE...LIE FLAT IN THE
NEAREST DITCH OR OTHER LOW SPOT AND COVER YOUR HEAD WITH YOUR HANDS.

&&

LAT...LON 3500 9040 3501 9040 3523 8998 3507 8986
      3488 9037 3495 9042 3496 9041 3500 9041
TIME...MOT...LOC 2208Z 240DEG 44KT 3495 9032

$$

1 follow-up statement

287 
WWUS54 KMEG 202223
SVSMEG

SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEMPHIS TN
423 PM CST THU FEB 20 2014

ARC035-MSC033-TNC157-202233-
/O.CAN.KMEG.TO.W.0004.000000T0000Z-140220T2245Z/
DESOTO MS-SHELBY TN-CRITTENDEN AR-
423 PM CST THU FEB 20 2014

...THE TORNADO WARNING FOR SOUTHEASTERN CRITTENDEN...SOUTHWESTERN
SHELBY AND NORTHWESTERN DESOTO COUNTIES IS CANCELLED...

AT 423 PM CST...WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED THAT THE 
THUNDERSTORMS WHICH PROMPTED THE WARNING HAVE MOVED OUT OF THE 
AREA...AND NO LONGER POSE AN IMMEDIATE THREAT TO LIFE OR PROPERTY. 
THEREFORE...THE TORNADO WARNING IS CANCELLED.

.A TORNADO WATCH ALSO REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR THE ALERT AREA.

LAT...LON 3500 9040 3501 9040 3523 8998 3507 8986
      3488 9037 3495 9042 3496 9041 3500 9041
TIME...MOT...LOC 2223Z 240DEG 44KT 3504 9013

$$

The office that day

Everything else NWS Memphis, TN issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Feb 20, 4:06 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MEG	Fayette, Shelby	39 min
Feb 20, 4:12 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MEG	Benton, Carroll, Henry	33 min
Feb 20, 4:19 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MEG	Shelby	41 min
Feb 20, 4:31 PM CST	Tornado Warning	MEG	Lake, Obion	44 min
Feb 20, 4:40 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MEG	Benton	20 min
Feb 20, 4:52 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MEG	Fayette, Hardeman	38 min
Feb 20, 5:01 PM CST	Tornado Warning	MEG	Lake, Obion	44 min
Feb 20, 5:01 PM CST	Tornado Warning	MEG	Fayette	29 min
Feb 20, 5:22 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MEG	Chester, Fayette, Hardeman, McNairy, Madison	38 min
Feb 20, 2:53 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MEG	Phillips	52 min
Feb 20, 3:06 PM CST	Special Weather Statement	MEG	Craighead	24 min
Feb 20, 3:13 PM CST	Special Weather Statement	MEG	Lee	32 min
Feb 20, 3:28 PM CST	Special Weather Statement	MEG	Craighead	32 min
Feb 20, 3:28 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MEG	Lee, St. Francis	47 min
Feb 20, 3:35 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MEG	Craighead, Mississippi	40 min
Feb 20, 3:38 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MEG	Phillips	52 min
Feb 20, 3:49 PM CST	Special Weather Statement	MEG	Crittenden	26 min
Feb 20, 3:50 PM CST	Tornado Warning	MEG	Crittenden, Lee, St. Francis	25 min
Feb 20, 3:57 PM CST	Tornado Warning	MEG	Craighead, Mississippi	48 min
Feb 20, 4:02 PM CST	Tornado Warning	MEG	Coahoma, Panola, Quitman, Tate, Tunica	28 min
Feb 20, 4:11 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MEG	Panola, Quitman, Tate, Tunica	49 min
Feb 20, 4:22 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MEG	Coahoma, Panola, Quitman, Tallahatchie, Yalobusha	53 min
Feb 20, 4:35 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MEG	Benton, DeSoto, Lafayette, Marshall, Panola, Tate and 1 more	40 min
Feb 20, 5:10 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MEG	Coahoma, Panola, Quitman, Tallahatchie, Yalobusha	50 min
Feb 20, 5:11 PM CST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MEG	Alcorn, Benton, Lafayette, Marshall, Panola, Tate and 2 more	49 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Tennessee, 2014 Tornado Warnings in Arkansas, 2014 Tornado Warnings in Mississippi, 2014 Every tornado warning in 2014 Tornadoes in 2014

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.