Alert archive / Iowa / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1988

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 22, NWS Des Moines, IA

May 8, 1988Franklin County, Iowa

NWS Des Moines, IA issued this severe thunderstorm warning at May 8, 1988, 11:44 AM CDT for Franklin County, Iowa. It was in force for 61 min. 1 report came from inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The counties it named, with what was reported inside it.

The facts

Issued
May 8, 1988, 11:44 AM CDT (16:44 UTC)
Expired
May 8, 1988, 12:45 PM CDT
In force
61 min
Issued by
NWS Des Moines, IA
Area
Whole counties

County Franklin County, IA

The radar

The WSR-88D network and its archive begin in 1991, so there is no radar volume for this alert.

What was reported inside it

TimeReportWhereRemark
May 8, 11:51 AM CDTHail 0.75Franklin, IA

NCEI Storm Data entries that began inside the alert's area while it was in force. Before 2003 the local storm report archive is thin, so this is the record of what happened rather than what was phoned in. Storm Data before 1996 records only tornadoes, thunderstorm wind and hail.

The nearest sounding before it

Omaha, NE (KOAX), launched 12:00Z, 4.7 hours before the alert went out and 301 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, Omaha, NE at 12:00Z on 1988-05-08Temperature 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, Omaha, NE at 12:00Z on 1988-05-08The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 30 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
3576 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
51 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
30 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
106 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

The text of this product is not in the archive. The NWS text archive before 2002 is incomplete.

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.

In the hours before

Local storm report, May 8, 6:50 AM CDT, 4 hours 54 minutes before
LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DES MOINES IA
650 AM CDT SUN MAY 8 1988

THE FOLLOWING ARE THE STORM REPORTS RECEIVED FROM THE LATE MORNING OF
THE 7TH THROUGH THE EARLY MORNING OF THE 8TH.

              ...   MAY 7TH   ...

TIME          EVENT

1049 AM CDT   BEE BEE SIZE HAIL IN WEST DES MOINES. /POLK COUNTY/

1050 AM CDT   PEA SIZE HAIL AND HEAVY RAIN IN WINDSOR HGTS. /POLK
              COUNTY/

1115 AM CDT   PEA TO MARBLE SIZE HAIL IN ANKENY. /POLK COUNTY/

1129 AM CDT   PEA SIZE HAIL AT HIGHLAND PARK. /POLK COUNTY/

1135 AM CDT   1/2 TO 3/4 INCH DIAMETER 3S OF ANKENY. /POLK COUNTY/

 742 PM CDT   1 TO 2 INCH DIAMETER HAIL AT VAIL. /CRAWFORD COUNTY/

 808 PM CDT   MARBLE SIZE HAIL JUST EAST OF DENISON. /CRAWFORD COUNTY/

 826 PM CDT   HAIL (SIZE UNKNOWN) JUST SOUTH OF ULMER. /SAC COUNTY/

 843 PM CDT   TORNADO ON THE GROUND JUST SOUTH OF CHARTER OAK SPOTTED
              BY AN OFFICER.  TORNADO WENT BACK INTO THE CLOUDS AT
              848 PM. /CRAWFORD COUNTY/

 903 PM CDT   PEA SIZE HAIL AT PALMER. /POCAHONTAS COUNTY/

 920 PM CDT   MARBLE SIZE HAIL ALONG THE CLAY/PALO ALTO COUNTY LINE
              JUST SOUTH OF AYRSHIRE.

 925 PM CDT   PEA TO PING PONG BALL SIZE HAIL AT MAPLE HILL.
              /EMMET COUNTY/

 925 PM CDT   ICE CUBE SIZE HAIL AT ARMSTRONG. /EMMET COUNTY/

 930 PM CDT   GOLF BALL SIZE HAIL AT VAIL. /CRAWFORD COUNTY/

1113 PM CDT   MARBLE SIZE HAIL AT LAURENS. /POCAHONTAS COUNTY/

1159 PM CDT   ONE INCH DIAMETER HAIL AT MANILLA. /CRAWFORD COUNTY/

              ...   MAY 8TH   ...

1220 AM CDT   HAIL LARGER THAN MARBLE AT MANILLA. /CRAWFORD COUNTY/

 305 AM CDT   HAIL (SIZE UNKNOWN) AT EARLY. /SAC COUNTY/

 421 AM CDT   MARBLE SIZE HAIL AT FORT DODGE AIRPORT. /WEBSTER COUNTY/

 430 AM CDT   ONE INCH TO GOLF BALL SIZE HAIL AT BADGER...5 NORTH OF
              FORT DODGE.  /WEBSTER COUNTY/

 445 AM CDT   MARBLE SIZE HAIL FOR 3 MINUTES AT ROCKWEJLL CITY.
              /CALHOUN COUNTY/

SCHUMACHER
Special weather statement, May 8, 7:33 AM CDT, 4 hours 11 minutes before
<PQ<
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT.
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WATERLOO IA
735 AM CST SUN MAY 8 1988

AT 730 AM CDT WEATHER RADAR SHOWED AN AREA OF THUNDERSTORMS ABOUT
30 MILES WIDE FROM AMES TO MARSHALLTOWN TO NEAR WATERLOO.
HEAVIEST STORM WES NEARING WATERLOO AS IT MOVES NORTHEAST AT
45 MILES AN HOUR.

PEA TO MARBLE SIZE HAIL...STRONG SURFACE WINDS...AND HEAVY RAINS CAN
BE EXPECTED WITH THE PASSAGE OFF THESE STORMS.
JOHNSON

The office that day

Everything else NWS Des Moines, IA issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 7, 7:45 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXCrawford, Sac30 min
May 7, 8:20 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXCalhoun, Sac25 min
May 7, 8:35 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXCrawford40 min
May 7, 8:50 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXCalhoun, Pocahontas40 min
May 7, 9:05 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXHumboldt35 min
May 7, 9:30 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXEmmet20 min
May 7, 9:31 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXCrawford, Sac44 min
May 8, 12:02 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXCrawford43 min
May 8, 4:38 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXHumboldt37 min
May 8, 9:42 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXRinggold, Taylor33 min
May 8, 10:26 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXRinggold, Taylor34 min
May 8, 11:08 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXMadison52 min
May 8, 11:20 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXClarke, Warren70 min
May 8, 11:41 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXPolk49 min
May 8, 12:01 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXJasper29 min
May 8, 12:15 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXJasper45 min
May 8, 12:25 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXCerro Gordo65 min
May 8, 12:34 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXMarshall41 min
May 8, 12:43 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXClarke32 min
May 8, 12:55 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXTama50 min
May 8, 12:58 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXLucas, Marion, Warren47 min
May 8, 1:24 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXBlack Hawk36 min
May 8, 1:25 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXMarion35 min
May 8, 1:33 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXPoweshiek27 min
May 8, 1:40 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXBremer50 min
May 8, 2:01 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXIowa, Poweshiek29 min
May 8, 2:11 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXKeokuk, Mahaska49 min
May 8, 2:23 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXBuchanan, Fayette42 min
May 8, 2:35 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXIowa30 min
May 8, 2:35 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXJohnson40 min
May 8, 3:00 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXWashington30 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Iowa, 1988Every severe thunderstorm warning in 1988

Sources

The product and its follow-ups from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service and Storm Prediction Center text; verification from NCEI's Storm Data; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive.