Alert archive / Texas / Red Flag Warnings in 2016

Red Flag Warning 3, NWS Brownsville, TX

February 2, 20167 counties in Texas

NWS Brownsville, TX issued this red flag warning at Feb 2, 2016, 10:54 AM CST for 7 counties in Texas. It took effect at Feb 2, 2016, 11:00 AM CST. It was in force for 6 hr. No storm report in the archive falls inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
Feb 2, 2016, 10:54 AM CST (16:54 UTC)
In effect from
Feb 2, 2016, 11:00 AM CST
Expired
Feb 2, 2016, 5:00 PM CST
In force
6 hr
Issued by
NWS Brownsville, TX

Counties Brooks County, TX, Cameron County, TX, Hidalgo County, TX, Jim Hogg County, TX, Kenedy County, TX, Starr County, TX, Willacy County, TX

The radar

The Brownsville radar (KBRO), 105 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 16:52 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 nearest sounding before it

Brownsville Intl, TX (KBRO), launched 12:00Z, 4.9 hours before the alert went out and 108 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, Brownsville Intl, TX at 12:00Z on 2016-02-02Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 184 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 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, Brownsville Intl, TX at 12:00Z on 2016-02-02The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 284 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
184 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-485 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
824 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
25 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
284 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
489 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.2

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted.

842 
WWUS84 KBRO 021654
RFWBRO

URGENT - FIRE WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BROWNSVILLE TX
1054 AM CST TUE FEB 2 2016

...INCREASED THREAT OF RAPID WILDFIRE SPREAD TODAY...

.THE COMBINATION OF GUSTY NORTH WINDS...RELATIVE HUMIDITY VALUES
FALLING INTO THE TEENS...AND RAPIDLY DRYING GRASSLAND AND BRUSH
WILL INCREASE THE CHANCE FOR RAPID GROWTH OF WILDFIRES THIS
AFTERNOON ACROSS MUCH OF DEEP SOUTH TEXAS. 

TXZ249>255-022300-
/O.NEW.KBRO.FW.W.0003.160202T1700Z-160202T2300Z/
JIM HOGG-BROOKS-KENEDY-STARR-HIDALGO-INLAND WILLACY-
INLAND CAMERON-
1054 AM CST TUE FEB 2 2016

...RED FLAG WARNING IN EFFECT UNTIL 5 PM CST THIS AFTERNOON FOR
FOR THE COMBINATION OF HUMIDITY AT OR BELOW 15 PERCENT...GUSTY
NORTH WINDS OF 20 TO 30 MPH...AND VERY DRY VEGETATION...

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN BROWNSVILLE HAS ISSUED A RED FLAG
WARNING...WHICH IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 5 PM CST THIS AFTERNOON. 

* AFFECTED AREA...FIRE WEATHER ZONES 249...250...251...252... 
  253...254 AND 255. 

* WIND...NORTH WINDS FROM 20 TO 25 MPH WITH GUSTS TO 25 TO 30
  MPH.

* HUMIDITY...RELATIVE HUMIDITY VALUES WILL FALL TO NEAR 15 PERCENT
  OR LOWER THROUGH 5 PM.

* HIGHEST THREAT...IS LOCATED ACROSS BROOKS...HIDALGO...KENEDY...
  WESTERN WILLACY AND WESTERN CAMERON COUNTIES.

* IMPACTS...ANY FIRES THAT DEVELOP WILL LIKELY SPREAD RAPIDLY. 
  OUTDOOR BURNING IS NOT RECOMMENDED.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A RED FLAG WARNING MEANS CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS ARE
OCCURRING NOW...OR WILL SHORTLY.  IN GENERAL...THESE CONDITIONS
INCLUDE SUSTAINED 20 FOOT WINDS OF 25 MPH OR GREATER...HUMIDITY
RANGING FROM BELOW 25 PERCENT IN ZAPATA COUNTY TO BELOW
45 PERCENT ALONG THE COAST...EACH LASTING FOR 2 HOURS OR MORE...
AND CURED FUELS.  HUMIDITY BELOW 25 PERCENT IN MOST AREAS WILL
TRIGGER FIRE DANGER AT LOWER WIND SPEEDS.  DETAILED DECISION
TABLES ARE FOUND AT HTTP://WEATHER.GOV/RGV/?N=MAPCOLORS#FIRE.

&&

$$
1 follow-up statement
929 
WWUS84 KBRO 022307
RFWBRO

URGENT - FIRE WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BROWNSVILLE TX
507 PM CST TUE FEB 2 2016

...FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS IMPROVE...

.WINDS ARE DECREASING THIS EVENING.

TXZ249>255-030015-
/O.EXP.KBRO.FW.W.0003.000000T0000Z-160202T2300Z/
JIM HOGG-BROOKS-KENEDY-STARR-HIDALGO-INLAND WILLACY-
INLAND CAMERON-
507 PM CST TUE FEB 2 2016

...RED FLAG WARNING HAS EXPIRED FOR FIRE WEATHER ZONES
249...250...251...252...253...254 AND 255...

POST FRONTAL WINDS ARE DECREASING THIS EVENING SUCH THAT THE RED
FLAG WARNING CRITERION IS NO LONGER BEING MET.

$$

Nearby

Red Flag Warnings in Texas, 2016Every red flag warning in 2016

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.