Alert archive / North Dakota / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1989

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 33, NWS Bismarck, ND

July 11, 1989Dunn County, McKenzie County, North Dakota

NWS Bismarck, ND issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Jul 11, 1989, 7:42 PM MDT for Dunn County, McKenzie County, North Dakota. It was in force for 48 min. 2 reports 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
Jul 11, 1989, 7:42 PM MDT (01:42 UTC)
Expired
Jul 11, 1989, 8:30 PM MDT
In force
48 min
Issued by
NWS Bismarck, ND
Area
Whole counties

Counties Dunn County, ND, McKenzie County, ND

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
Jul 11, 8:00 PM MDTHail 2Mckenzie, ND
Jul 11, 8:40 PM MDTHail 1Dunn, ND

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

Bismarck Municip, ND (KBIS), launched 00:00Z, 1.7 hours before the alert went out and 195 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, Bismarck Municip, ND at 00:00Z on 1989-07-12Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 512 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 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, Bismarck Municip, ND at 00:00Z on 1989-07-12The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity -29 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
512 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-38 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1864 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
24 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
-29 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
18 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
-0.2

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

Special weather statement, Jul 11, 5:51 PM MDT, 1 hour 51 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WILLISTON ND
645 PM CDT TUE JUL 11 1989

...A THUNDERSTORM IS DEVELOPING RAPIDLY NORTHWEST OF WILLISTON NORTH
   DAKOTA...

  AT 640 PM CDT THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR IN WILLISTON
INDICATED A RAPIDLY DEVELOPING THUNDERSTORM 14 MILES NORTHWEST OF
WILLISTON. THE THUNDERSTORM WAS MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 25 MILES AN HOUR
AND WILL BE OVER THE CITY OF WILLISTON SHORTLY AFTER 7 PM CDT.

  THIS THUNDERSTORM WILL PRODUCE BRIEF HEAVY ALONG WITH POSSIBLE
STRONG GUSTY WINDS...HAIL AND DEADLY LIGHTNING.

 IF YOU ARE IN THE PATH OF THIS THUNDERSTORM BE PREPARED TO GO TO A
SAFE SHELTER.

KENNEDY
Special weather statement, Jul 11, 5:53 PM MDT, 1 hour 49 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT ...CORRECTED...
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WILLISTON ND
645 PM CDT TUE JUL 11 1989

...A THUNDERSTORM IS DEVELOPING RAPIDLY NORTHWEST OF WILLISTON NORTH
   DAKOTA...

  AT 640 PM CDT THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR IN WILLISTON
INDICATED A RAPIDLY DEVELOPING THUNDERSTORM 14 MILES NORTHWEST OF
WILLISTON. THE THUNDERSTORM WAS MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 25 MILES AN HOUR
AND WILL BE OVER THE CITY OF WILLISTON SHORTLY AFTER 7 PM CDT.

  THIS THUNDERSTORM WILL PRODUCE BRIEF HEAVY RAIN ALONG WITH POSSIBLE
STRONG GUSTY WINDS...HAIL AND DEADLY LIGHTNING.

 IF YOU ARE IN THE PATH OF THIS THUNDERSTORM BE PREPARED TO GO TO A
SAFE SHELTER.

KENNEDY
Special weather statement, Jul 11, 6:18 PM MDT, 1 hour 24 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BISMARCK ND
715 PM CDT TUE JUL 11 1989

...THUNDERSTORM MOVING INTO THE CITY OF MINOT...

AT 715 PM CDT A THUNDERSTORM WAS MOVING INTO THE CITY OF MINOT2.
THE THUNDERSTORM HAS INCREASED IN INTENSITY DURING THE PAST 15 MINUTES.
VERY HEAVY RAIN...SMALL HAIL...WIND GUSTING TO 50 MPH AND INTENSE
DANGEROUS LIGHTNING CAN BE EXPECTED IN THE CITY OF MINOT UNTIL 8 PM
CDT.

VAN ESS
Special weather statement, Jul 11, 6:39 PM MDT, 1 hour 3 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BISMARCK ND
740 PM CDT TUE JUL 11 1989

...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR WARD COUNTY INCLUDING THE CITY
OF MINOT UNTIL 8 PM CDT...

AT 740 PM CDT A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WAS MOVING THROUGH THE CITY OF
MINOT. THIS STORM WAS MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 25 MPH AND WILL BE OUT OF
MINOT BY 8 PM CDT.

THIS STORM WILL PRODUCE LARGE HAIL...HEAVY RAIN...FREQUENT CLOUD TO
GROUND LIGHTNING AND WINDS GUSTING TO OVEXR 60 MPH.

AT 721 PM CDT WINDS WERE GUSTING TO 58 MPH AT THE MINOT AIRPORT.

AT 726 PM CDT WINDS DOWNED TREES IN BURLINGTON OR ABOUT 8 MILES
NORTHWEST OF MINOT.

MCMULLEN
Special weather statement, Jul 11, 6:50 PM MDT, 52 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WILLISTON ND
750 PM CDT TUE JUL 11 1989

...SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS CONTINUE OVER NORTHWEST NORTH DAKOTA...

  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNINGS REMAIN IN EFFECT FOR SOUTHWEST
MOUNTRAIL COUNTY UNTIL 815 PM CDT AND FOR SOUTHERN WILLIAMS AND
NORTHERN MCKENZIE COUNTIES UNTIL 830 PM CDT.
  AT 745 PM CDT SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WERE 20 MILES SOUTHEAST OF WILLISTON
AND 5 MILES NORTHWEST OF NEW TOWN MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 25 MILES AN HOUR.
  HAIL UP TO 1 INCH AND WIND GUSTS TO NEAR 65 MILES AN HOUR WERE
PRODUCED BY THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM THAT PASS THROUGH THE WILLISTON
AREA.
 THESE ARE DANGEROUS THUNDERSTORMS. IF THEY APPROACH YOUR AREA GO TO
A SAFE SHELTERi.

KENNEDY
Special weather statement, Jul 11, 7:11 PM MDT, 31 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BISMARCK ND
810 PM CDT TUE JUL 11 1989

...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH FOR MUCH OF WESTERN AND CENTRAL NORTH
DAKOTA UNTIL 1 AM CDT...

AT 810 PM CDT A THUNDERSTORM WAS LOCATED IN WESTERN MCHENRY COUNTY
12 MILES SOUTHEAST OF MINOT. THE THUNDERSTORM WAS LOCATED BETWEEN
GRANVILLE...KARLSRUHE AND VELVA AND HEADING FOR THE TOWN OF KARLSRUHE.

THIS THUNDERSTORM UPROOTED TREES...DISRUPTED POWER...PRODUCED LARGE
HAIL AND WIND GUSTING TO NEAR 60 MPH IN MINOT. DURING THE PAST 15
MINUTES THE STORM HAS DECREASED RAPIDLY IN INTENSITY.

THE THUNDERSTORM WILL MOVE INTO THE TOWN OF KARLSRUHE BETWEEN 830 AND
9 PM CDT. IT WILL LIKELY PRODUCE VERY HEAVY RAIN...HAIL AND GUSTY
WINDS.
VAN ESS

The office that day

Everything else NWS Bismarck, ND issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jul 11, 6:09 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBISMcKenzie, Mountrail66 min
Jul 11, 6:21 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBISWard39 min
Jul 11, 6:24 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBISMcKenzie, Williams66 min
Jul 11, 7:28 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBISMountrail32 min
Jul 11, 7:40 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBISMcHenry35 min
Jul 11, 7:52 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBISMcLean68 min
Jul 11, 8:07 PM MDTTornado WarningBISMcHenry23 min
Jul 11, 8:34 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBISDunn56 min
Jul 11, 9:55 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBISMercer, Morton35 min
Jul 11, 10:10 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBISGrant65 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in North Dakota, 1989Every severe thunderstorm warning in 1989

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.