Alert archive / Tennessee / Tornado Watches in 2018

Tornado Watch 14

March 19, 201820 counties in Tennessee

The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at Mar 19, 2018, 3:40 PM CDT for 20 counties in Tennessee. It was in force for 5 hr.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
Mar 19, 2018, 3:40 PM CDT (20:40 UTC)
Expired
Mar 19, 2018, 8:11 PM CDT
In force
5 hr
Issued by
the Storm Prediction Center
Largest hail expected
2 in
Strongest gust expected
50 kt

Counties Cannon County, TN, Cheatham County, TN, Davidson County, TN, DeKalb County, TN, Dickson County, TN, Hickman County, TN, Jackson County, TN, Macon County, TN, Montgomery County, TN, Putnam County, TN, Robertson County, TN, Rutherford County, TN, Smith County, TN, Sumner County, TN, Trousdale County, TN, Van Buren County, TN, Warren County, TN, White County, TN, Williamson County, TN, Wilson County, TN

The radar

The Nashville radar (KOHX), 6 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 20:39 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 SPC expected

The probabilities SPC published with the watch, for the watch area over its life.

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
10%
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
50%

Warnings issued inside it

2 tornado, severe thunderstorm and flash flood warnings for its counties while it was in force.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Mar 19, 3:43 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOHXRobertson32 min
Mar 19, 5:25 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOHXRobertson, Sumner21 min

Discussions around it

SPC mesoscale discussions over the same counties from four hours before the watch to its end.

The nearest sounding before it

Nashville Metro, TN (KBNA), launched 12:00Z, 8.7 hours before the alert went out and 11 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, Nashville Metro, TN at 12:00Z on 2018-03-19Temperature 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°0°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Nashville Metro, TN at 12:00Z on 2018-03-19The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 113 square meters per square second.1939587897117Sfc1 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
1252 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
45 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
113 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
231 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted.

985 
WWUS20 KWNS 192038
SEL4  
SPC WW 192038
TNZ000-200400-

URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
Tornado Watch Number 14
NWS Storm Prediction Center Norman OK
340 PM CDT Mon Mar 19 2018

The NWS Storm Prediction Center has issued a

* Tornado Watch for portions of 
  Northern Middle Tennessee

* Effective this Monday afternoon and evening from 340 PM until
  1100 PM CDT.

* Primary threats include...
  A couple tornadoes possible
  Scattered large hail and isolated very large hail events to 2
    inches in diameter possible
  Isolated damaging wind gusts to 60 mph possible

SUMMARY...A few severe storms should develop east through the
evening with a risk for large hail, tornadoes, and damaging winds.

The tornado watch area is approximately along and 40 statute miles
north and south of a line from 35 miles south of Clarksville TN to
70 miles east of Nashville TN. For a complete depiction of the watch
see the associated watch outline update (WOUS64 KWNS WOU4).

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

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...CONTINUE...WW 13...

AVIATION...Tornadoes and a few severe thunderstorms with hail
surface and aloft to 2 inches. Extreme turbulence and surface wind
gusts to 50 knots. A few cumulonimbi with maximum tops to 450. Mean
storm motion vector 25040.

...Grams

SPC that day

Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Mar 19, 2:06 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCFranklin, Giles, Hardin, Lawrence, Lincoln, McNairy and 3 more84 min
Mar 19, 3:28 PM CDTTornado Watch PDSSPCBedford, Coffee, Franklin, Giles, Grundy, Hardin and 8 more9 hr
Mar 19, 6:22 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCCannon, Davidson, DeKalb, Jackson, Macon, Putnam and 8 more83 min

Nearby

Tornado Watches in Tennessee, 2018Every tornado watch in 2018

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.