Alert archive / Louisiana / Tornado Watches in 2024

Tornado Watch 2

January 8, 202422 parishes in Louisiana; 4 counties in Mississippi

The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at Jan 8, 2024, 4:33 PM CST for 22 parishes in Louisiana; 4 counties in Mississippi. It was in force for 4 hr.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
Jan 8, 2024, 4:33 PM CST (22:33 UTC)
Expired
Jan 8, 2024, 8:42 PM CST
In force
4 hr
Issued by
the Storm Prediction Center
Largest hail expected
1.5 in
Strongest gust expected
60 kt
All 26 counties

Ascension Parish, LA, Assumption Parish, LA, East Baton Rouge Parish, LA, East Feliciana Parish, LA, Iberville Parish, LA, Jefferson Parish, LA, Lafourche Parish, LA, Livingston Parish, LA, Orleans Parish, LA, Plaquemines Parish, LA, Pointe Coupee Parish, LA, Saint Bernard Parish, LA, Saint Charles Parish, LA, Saint Helena Parish, LA, Saint James Parish, LA, Saint John the Baptist Parish, LA, Saint Tammany Parish, LA, Tangipahoa Parish, LA, Terrebonne Parish, LA, Washington Parish, LA, West Baton Rouge Parish, LA, West Feliciana Parish, LA, Hancock County, MS, Harrison County, MS, Jackson County, MS, Pearl River County, MS

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
40%
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
20%
Six or more combined severe hail and wind reports
70%

Warnings issued inside it

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jan 8, 4:54 PM CSTFlash Flood WarningLIXAssumption, Lafourche, Saint Charles, Saint James, Saint John the Baptist99 min
Jan 8, 5:17 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLIXSaint Tammany43 min
Jan 8, 5:18 PM CSTFlash Flood WarningLIXSaint Tammany3 hr
Jan 8, 5:44 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLIXHancock, Harrison, Pearl River46 min
Jan 8, 6:13 PM CSTFlash Flood WarningLIXHancock, Harrison, Pearl River108 min
Jan 8, 6:25 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLIXHarrison33 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

Slidell Radar S, LA (KSIL), launched 12:00Z, 10.6 hours before the alert went out and 87 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, Slidell Radar S, LA at 12:00Z on 2024-01-08Temperature 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, Slidell Radar S, LA at 12:00Z on 2024-01-08The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 393 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
888 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
46 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
393 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
517 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted.

864 
WWUS20 KWNS 082230
SEL2  
SPC WW 082230
LAZ000-MSZ000-CWZ000-090300-

URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
Tornado Watch Number 2
NWS Storm Prediction Center Norman OK
430 PM CST Mon Jan 8 2024

The NWS Storm Prediction Center has issued a

* Tornado Watch for portions of 
  Southeast Louisiana
  Coastal Mississippi
  Coastal Waters

* Effective this Monday afternoon and evening from 430 PM until
  900 PM CST.

* Primary threats include...
  A couple tornadoes possible
  Scattered damaging wind gusts to 70 mph possible
  Scattered large hail events to 1.5 inches in diameter possible

SUMMARY...Scattered thunderstorms, some with supercell structures,
will continue to spread northeastward through late evening.  A
couple of tornadoes, isolated large hail up to 1.5 inches in
diameter and isolated damaging gusts will all be possible.

The tornado watch area is approximately along and 50 statute miles
north and south of a line from 70 miles west northwest of Houma LA
to 35 miles south southeast of Gulfport MS. For a complete depiction
of the watch see the associated watch outline update (WOUS64 KWNS
WOU2).

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 1...

AVIATION...Tornadoes and a few severe thunderstorms with hail
surface and aloft to 1.5 inches. Extreme turbulence and surface wind
gusts to 60 knots. A few cumulonimbi with maximum tops to 500. Mean
storm motion vector 23045.

...Thompson

SPC that day

Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jan 8, 12:54 PM CSTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAcadia, Allen, Beauregard, Calcasieu, Cameron, Iberia and 6 more2 hr
Jan 8, 1:37 PM CSTTornado WatchSPCAcadia, Allen, Avoyelles, Beauregard, Calcasieu, Cameron and 10 more10 hr
Jan 8, 3:05 PM CSTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAcadia, Allen, Beauregard, Calcasieu, Cameron, Evangeline and 9 more55 min
Jan 8, 3:38 PM CSTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAscension, Assumption, East Baton Rouge, East Feliciana, Iberville, Jefferson and 15 more2 hr
Jan 8, 5:21 PM CSTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAcadia, Allen, Avoyelles, Beauregard, Calcasieu, Cameron and 7 more54 min

Nearby

Tornado Watches in Louisiana, 2024Tornado Watches in Mississippi, 2024Every tornado watch in 2024

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.