Alert archive / Pennsylvania / Red Flag Warnings in 2016

Red Flag Warning 1, NWS State College, PA

March 24, 201617 counties in Pennsylvania

NWS State College, PA issued this red flag warning at Mar 24, 2016, 5:49 PM EDT for 17 counties in Pennsylvania. It was in force for 2 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
Mar 24, 2016, 5:49 PM EDT (21:49 UTC)
Expired
Mar 24, 2016, 8:00 PM EDT
In force
2 hr
Issued by
NWS State College, PA

Counties Adams County, PA, Bedford County, PA, Blair County, PA, Cambria County, PA, Cameron County, PA, Centre County, PA, Clearfield County, PA, Clinton County, PA, Cumberland County, PA, Elk County, PA, Franklin County, PA, Fulton County, PA, Huntingdon County, PA, Juniata County, PA, Mifflin County, PA, Perry County, PA, Somerset County, PA

The radar

The State College radar (KCCX), 45 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 21:47 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

Pittsburgh, PA (KAGC), launched 12:00Z, 9.8 hours before the alert went out and 178 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, Pittsburgh, PA at 12:00Z on 2016-03-24Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 0 joules per kilogram.LCL10008507005003002001001 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, Pittsburgh, PA at 12:00Z on 2016-03-24The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 167 square meters per square second.1939587897Sfc1 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
0 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL
1531 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
43 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
167 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
203 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted.

762 
WWUS81 KCTP 242149
RFWCTP

URGENT - FIRE WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE STATE COLLEGE PA
549 PM EDT THU MAR 24 2016

...RED FLAG WARNING IN EFFECT UNTIL 8 PM EDT THIS EVENING FOR STRONG
WINDS AND LOW HUMIDITIES FOR PARTS OF CENTRAL PENNSYLVANIA...

PAZ010>012-017>019-024>028-033>036-045-056-063-064-250000-
/O.NEW.KCTP.FW.W.0001.160324T2149Z-160325T0000Z/
ELK-CAMERON-NORTHERN CLINTON-CLEARFIELD-NORTHERN CENTRE-
SOUTHERN CENTRE-CAMBRIA-BLAIR-HUNTINGDON-MIFFLIN-JUNIATA-SOMERSET-
BEDFORD-FULTON-FRANKLIN-SOUTHERN CLINTON-PERRY-CUMBERLAND-ADAMS-
549 PM EDT THU MAR 24 2016

...RED FLAG WARNING IN EFFECT UNTIL 8 PM EDT THIS EVENING FOR
PARTS OF CENTRAL PENNSYLVANIA.

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN STATE COLLEGE HAS ISSUED A RED
FLAG WARNING...WHICH IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 8 PM EDT THIS EVENING.

* AFFECTED AREA...THE LAUGEL HIGHLANDS NORTHWARD THROUGH THE
  CENTRAL MOUNTAINS.

* WINDS...SOUTHERLY 12-15MPH SUSTAINED WITH GUSTS 25 TO 30MPH.

* TIMING...THROUGH 8PM THIS EVENING.

* RELATIVE HUMIDITY...25 TO 29%.

* IMPACTS...THE POTENTIAL EXISTS FOR RAPID AND ERRATIC SPREAD OF
  WILD FIRES...OR FOR PRESCRIBED BURNS TO GET OUT OF CONTROL.
  OUTDOOR BURNING IS NOT RECOMMENDED.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A RED FLAG WARNING MEANS THAT CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS
ARE EITHER OCCURRING NOW...OR WILL SHORTLY. A COMBINATION OF
STRONG WINDS...LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY...AND WARM TEMPERATURES 
CAN CONTRIBUTE TO EXTREME FIRE BEHAVIOR.

&&

$$

FOR MORE INFORMATION FROM NOAA/NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE VISIT...
HTTP://WEATHER.GOV/CTP (ALL LOWER CASE)
1 follow-up statement
207 
WWUS81 KCTP 250006
RFWCTP

URGENT - FIRE WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE STATE COLLEGE PA
806 PM EDT THU MAR 24 2016

...RED FLAG WARNING HAS EXPIRED...

PAZ010>012-017>019-024>028-033>036-045-056-063-064-250115-
/O.EXP.KCTP.FW.W.0001.000000T0000Z-160325T0000Z/
ELK-CAMERON-NORTHERN CLINTON-CLEARFIELD-NORTHERN CENTRE-
SOUTHERN CENTRE-CAMBRIA-BLAIR-HUNTINGDON-MIFFLIN-JUNIATA-SOMERSET-
BEDFORD-FULTON-FRANKLIN-SOUTHERN CLINTON-PERRY-CUMBERLAND-ADAMS-
806 PM EDT THU MAR 24 2016

...THE RED FLAG WARNING THAT HAD BEEN IN EFFECT FOR PARTS OF
CENTRAL PENNSYLVANIA HAS EXPIRED...

RELATIVE HUMIDITIES ACROSS THE AFFECTED REGION HAVE RISEN ABOVE
THIRTY (30) PERCENT...AND ARE FORECAST TO REMAIN ABOVE THIS THRESHOLD
OVERNIGHT AND THROUGH FRIDAY.

$$

FOR MORE INFORMATION FROM NOAA/NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE VISIT...
HTTP://WEATHER.GOV/CTP (ALL LOWER CASE)

Nearby

Red Flag Warnings in Pennsylvania, 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.