Alert archive / Massachusetts / Tornado Warnings in 2023

Tornado Warning 2, NWS Boston/Norton, MA

July 16, 2023Middlesex County, Massachusetts

NWS Boston/Norton, MA issued this tornado warning at Jul 16, 2023, 8:43 AM EDT for Middlesex County, Massachusetts. It was in force for 22 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: Jul 16, 2023, 8:43 AM EDT (12:43 UTC)
Expired: Jul 16, 2023, 9:05 AM EDT
In force: 22 min
Issued by: NWS Boston/Norton, MA
Area: Storm-based polygon
Tornado: Radar indicated
Hail: 0.75 in

County Middlesex County, MA

The radar

The Boston radar (KBOX), 79 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 12:45 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
Jul 16, 8:21 AM EDT	Tornado Watch	SPC	7 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Gray, ME (KGYX), launched 12:00Z, 0.7 hours before the alert went out and 160 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: 399 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -15 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 454 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 46 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 146 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 128 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.0
Supercell composite: 0.8

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted.

942 
WFUS51 KBOX 161243
TORBOX
MAC017-161315-
/O.NEW.KBOX.TO.W.0002.230716T1243Z-230716T1315Z/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
Tornado Warning
National Weather Service Boston/Norton MA
843 AM EDT Sun Jul 16 2023

The National Weather Service in Boston/Norton has issued a

* Tornado Warning for...
  North central Middlesex County in northeastern Massachusetts...

* Until 915 AM EDT.
    
* At 843 AM EDT, a severe thunderstorm capable of producing a tornado
  was located over Chelmsford, moving northeast at 30 mph.

  HAZARD...Tornado.

  SOURCE...Radar indicated rotation.

  IMPACT...Flying debris will be dangerous to those caught without 
           shelter. Mobile homes will be damaged or destroyed. 
           Damage to roofs, windows, and vehicles will occur.  Tree 
           damage is likely.

* This dangerous storm will be near...
  Lowell, Dracut, Tewksbury and Tyngsborough around 850 AM EDT.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

TAKE COVER NOW! Move to a basement or an interior room on the lowest
floor of a sturdy building. Avoid windows. If you are outdoors, in a
mobile home, or in a vehicle, move to the closest substantial shelter
and protect yourself from flying debris.

&&

LAT...LON 4268 7124 4267 7124 4266 7125 4265 7124
      4256 7134 4258 7144 4270 7139 4270 7129
      4273 7126
TIME...MOT...LOC 1243Z 213DEG 27KT 4261 7137 

TORNADO...RADAR INDICATED
MAX HAIL SIZE...<.75 IN

$$

KC

1 follow-up statement

313 
WWUS51 KBOX 161305
SVSBOX

Severe Weather Statement
National Weather Service Boston/Norton MA
905 AM EDT Sun Jul 16 2023

MAC017-161314-
/O.CAN.KBOX.TO.W.0002.000000T0000Z-230716T1315Z/
Middlesex MA-
905 AM EDT Sun Jul 16 2023

...THE TORNADO WARNING FOR NORTH CENTRAL MIDDLESEX COUNTY IS
CANCELLED...
        
The storm which prompted the warning has moved out of the area.
Therefore, the warning has been cancelled.

A Tornado Watch remains in effect until 300 PM EDT for northeastern
Massachusetts.

LAT...LON 4268 7124 4267 7124 4266 7125 4265 7124
      4256 7134 4258 7144 4270 7139 4270 7129
      4273 7126
TIME...MOT...LOC 1302Z 213DEG 27KT 4274 7125 

$$

KC

The office that day

Everything else NWS Boston/Norton, MA issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Jul 16, 8:15 AM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BOX	Essex, Middlesex, Worcester	45 min
Jul 16, 8:17 AM EDT	Tornado Warning	BOX	Essex, Middlesex	28 min
Jul 16, 9:02 AM EDT	Special Weather Statement	BOX	Worcester	43 min
Jul 16, 9:23 AM EDT	Flash Flood Warning	BOX	Hampden, Hampshire	3 hr
Jul 16, 9:30 AM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BOX	Middlesex, Worcester	45 min
Jul 16, 10:10 AM EDT	Tornado Warning	BOX	Middlesex, Worcester	20 min
Jul 16, 10:16 AM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BOX	Hampden, Hampshire, Worcester	44 min
Jul 16, 10:49 AM EDT	Flash Flood Warning	BOX	Hampden, Worcester	3 hr
Jul 16, 10:53 AM EDT	Flash Flood Warning	BOX	Middlesex, Worcester	3 hr
Jul 16, 11:50 AM EDT	River Flood Warning	BOX	Worcester	6 hr
Jul 16, 11:53 AM EDT	Special Weather Statement	BOX	Essex	52 min
Jul 16, 12:24 PM EDT	Areal Flood Warning	BOX	Essex, Middlesex, Norfolk, Suffolk	3 hr
Jul 16, 12:48 PM EDT	Special Marine Warning	BOX		27 min
Jul 16, 1:36 PM EDT	Flash Flood Warning	BOX	Bristol	6 hr
Jul 16, 1:55 PM EDT	Areal Flood Warning	BOX	Hampshire	88 min
Jul 16, 2:06 PM EDT	Special Weather Statement	BOX	Essex	54 min
Jul 16, 2:19 PM EDT	Flash Flood Warning	BOX	Bristol, Essex, Middlesex, Norfolk, Plymouth, Suffolk and 1 more	5 hr
Jul 16, 5:29 PM EDT	Flash Flood Warning	BOX	Bristol, Plymouth	4 hr
Jul 16, 7:51 PM EDT	River Flood Warning	BOX	Hampden	36 hr

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Massachusetts, 2023 Every tornado warning in 2023 Tornadoes in 2023

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.