Alert archive / Pennsylvania / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2022

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 23, NWS Pittsburgh, PA

May 3, 2022Allegheny County, Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania

NWS Pittsburgh, PA issued this severe thunderstorm warning at May 3, 2022, 6:29 PM EDT for Allegheny County, Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania. It was in force for 31 min. No storm report in the archive falls inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
May 3, 2022, 6:29 PM EDT (22:29 UTC)
Expired
May 3, 2022, 7:00 PM EDT
In force
31 min
Issued by
NWS Pittsburgh, PA
Area
Storm-based polygon
Hail
0.75 in
Wind
60.0 mph

Counties Allegheny County, PA, Westmoreland County, PA

The radar

The Pittsburgh radar (KPBZ), 45 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 22:28 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.

IssuedProductOfficeLasted
May 3, 2:29 PM EDTTornado WatchSPC7 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Pittsburgh, PA (KPIT), launched 12:00Z, 10.5 hours before the alert went out and 32 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 2022-05-03Temperature 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, Pittsburgh, PA at 12:00Z on 2022-05-03The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 30 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
0 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL
1925 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
37 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
30 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
49 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before this severe thunderstorm warning went out, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Pittsburgh, PA wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at May 3, 2:38 PM EDT, 3 hours 51 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, May 3, 2:38 PM EDT, 3 hours 51 minutes before
Area Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service Pittsburgh PA
238 PM EDT Tue May 3 2022

.SYNOPSIS...
Showers and thunderstorms tonight will give way to a dry
Wednesday and Thursday with passage of a cold front.

&&

.NEAR TERM /THROUGH TONIGHT/...
The aftn update included the addition of a tornado watch from
PIT, over areas west, and immediately south. Convective activity
is expected to increase with the advance of a cold front this
evening. Deep layer shear is favorable for rotating storms and
any that exhibit an east, to southeast movement will have
tornado potential. Limiting factors includes weak
instability/warm mid levels to in inhibit updraft
strength/explosiveness.

&&

.SHORT TERM /WEDNESDAY THROUGH THURSDAY/...
The cold front should be in the process of exiting the eastern CWA
at 12Z Wednesday. Post-frontal showers will linger in the afternoon,
mainly east of Pittsburgh, due to ongoing advection of colder air
and vorticity, as well as an orographic component. Clouds will
persist in most locations due to lingering low-level moisture. The
passage of the shortwave trough axis during the afternoon will end
showers by evening.  The post-frontal cooler air mass will drop
temperatures a bit below normal.

Surface high pressure will return dry weather to the region for
Wednesday night and Thursday.  Cloud cover will be at a minimum
Thursday morning, before increasing upper moisture on westerly flow
increases sky cover during the afternoon.  Temperatures will recover
back to near climatology.

&&

.LONG TERM /THURSDAY NIGHT THROUGH TUESDAY/...
The next shortwave trough will slowly cross the region during the
end of the week, returning rain chances to the forecast from later
Thursday night into Saturday.  Models/ensembles appear to take this
system on a more southerly track, which could keep any severe
weather chance suppressed as well.  Clouds and rain will likely keep
diurnal temperature ranges small, trending below-normal during the
day.

Thereafter, model trends still point to a CONUS blocking pattern,
with troughs just off of the Atlantic Seaboard and over the
Rockies/western states.  This would place the Ohio Valley in a
ridging pattern that would persist from Sunday into at least the
middle of next week.  Dry weather and a warming trend thus appear
likely.

&&

.AVIATION /19Z TUESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY/...
VFR/high based -shra will continue to advance newd in
association with a warm front. Visible satellite imagery then
suggests clearing ahead of an approaching cold front, with
additional shra/tsra becoming widespread by late afternoon and
evening across all ports. These storms have the potential to
promote damaging wind and large hail provided sufficient shear.
Subsequent cig deterioration to MVFR/IFR should accompany that
FROPA tonight, with remnant -shra and poor flight restrictions
persisting through early Wed via cold advection.

.Outlook...
High pressure should return VFR by late Wed/Thurs, with
approaching low pressure reintroducing restrictions early Fri.

&&

.PBZ WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
PA...None.
OH...None.
WV...None.

&&
Hazardous weather outlook, May 3, 6:10 PM EDT, 19 minutes before
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In the hours before

Local storm report, May 3, 5:25 PM EDT, 1 hour 4 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PITTSBURGH PA
525 PM EDT TUE MAY 03 2022

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0405 PM     TSTM WND DMG     SONORA                  39.98N  81.90W
05/03/2022                   MUSKINGUM          OH   PUBLIC

            LARGE TREE LIMB FELL ON A CAR. SEVERAL TREES DOWN.

&&

EVENT NUMBER PBZ2202226

07
Local storm report, May 3, 5:32 PM EDT, 57 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PITTSBURGH PA
532 PM EDT TUE MAY 03 2022

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0528 PM     TSTM WND GST     3 W WEST LIBERTY        40.17N  80.64W
05/03/2022  M64 MPH          OHIO               WV   ASOS

            MEASURED WIND GUST AT HLG AIRPORT.

&&

EVENT NUMBER PBZ2202227

07
Local storm report, May 3, 5:45 PM EDT, 44 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PITTSBURGH PA
545 PM EDT TUE MAY 03 2022

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0520 PM     TSTM WND DMG     BROOKSIDE               40.07N  80.76W
05/03/2022                   BELMONT            OH   911 CALL CENTER

            TREES DOWN BLOCING ROAD

&&

EVENT NUMBER PBZ2202228

07
Local storm report, May 3, 6:10 PM EDT, 19 minutes before
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Local storm report, May 3, 6:18 PM EDT, 11 minutes before
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Local storm report, May 3, 6:27 PM EDT, 2 minutes before
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The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 3, 4:11 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningPBZGreene, Washington34 min
May 3, 5:35 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningPBZAllegheny, Beaver, Washington25 min
May 3, 5:42 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningPBZGreene, Washington33 min
May 3, 5:49 PM EDTTornado WarningPBZAllegheny, Washington26 min
May 3, 6:11 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningPBZAllegheny, Greene, Washington, Westmoreland22 min
May 3, 6:36 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningPBZGreene, Washington39 min
May 3, 6:40 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningPBZFayette, Westmoreland35 min
May 3, 6:56 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningPBZFayette, Indiana, Westmoreland34 min
May 3, 7:15 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningPBZBeaver30 min
May 3, 7:56 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningPBZFayette, Greene34 min
May 3, 3:38 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningPBZMuskingum37 min
May 3, 4:06 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm Warning Considerable damage threatPBZCoshocton, Guernsey, Muskingum24 min
May 3, 4:27 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm Warning Considerable damage threatPBZBelmont, Guernsey, Harrison, Tuscarawas33 min
May 3, 4:52 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm Warning Considerable damage threatPBZBelmont, Guernsey, Harrison, Jefferson, Tuscarawas38 min
May 3, 5:12 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningPBZBelmont, Monroe33 min
May 3, 5:53 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningPBZCoshocton, Guernsey, Monroe, Muskingum, Noble52 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Pennsylvania, 2022Every severe thunderstorm warning in 2022

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.