Alert archive / Iowa / Tornado Warnings in 1990

Tornado Warning 25, NWS Des Moines, IA

June 16, 1990Buena Vista County, Iowa

NWS Des Moines, IA issued this tornado warning at Jun 16, 1990, 9:29 PM CDT for Buena Vista County, Iowa. It was in force for 31 min.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
Jun 16, 1990, 9:29 PM CDT (02:29 UTC)
Expired
Jun 16, 1990, 10:00 PM CDT
In force
31 min
Issued by
NWS Des Moines, IA
Area
Whole counties

County Buena Vista County, IA

The radar

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

The nearest sounding before it

Minneapolis, MN (KSTC), launched 00:00Z, 2.5 hours before the alert went out and 266 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, Minneapolis, MN at 00:00Z on 1990-06-17Temperature 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, Minneapolis, MN at 00:00Z on 1990-06-17The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 98 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
NaN m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
47 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
98 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
185 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.

000 
TTAA00 KDSM 170228
TORDSM
IAC021-170300-
 
BULLETIN - EBS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DES MOINES IA
929 PM CDT  JUN 16 1990
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN DES MOINES HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 1000 PM CDT
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING COUNTY...
 
IN NORTHWEST IOWA
          ...BUENA-VISTA
 
AT 925 PM...A TORNADO WAS REPORTED ALONG THE CHEROKEE...BUENA VISTA
COUNTY LINE...JUST WEST OF ALTA...OR ABOUT 30 MILES SOUTHWEST OF
SPENCER. THIS TORNADO PRODUCED SIGNIFICANT DAMAGE TO A FARM JUST WEST
OF THE CHEROKEE...BUENA VISTA COUNTY LINE.
 
THE STORM WAS MOVING EAST AT 20 MILES AN HOUR...AND WILL BE AFFECTING
THE CITIES OF ALTA...STORM LAKE...AND ALBERT CITY.
 
IF YOU ARE IN THE PATH OF A TORNADO...THE SAFEST PLACE IS A
BASEMENT.  GET UNDER A WORKBENCH OR PIECE OF STURDY FURNITURE.
IF NO BASEMENT IS AVAILABLE...SEEK SHELTER IN AN INTERIOR ROOM
SUCH AS A CLOSET ON THE LOWEST FLOOR.  USE BLANKETS...PILLOWS...
OR CUSHIONS TO COVER YOUR BODY.  AVOID WINDOWS.
 
DO NOT USE YOUR CAR TO TRY TO OUTRUN A TORNADO.  CARS ARE EASILY
TOSSED AROUND BY TORNADO WINDS.  IF YOU ARE CAUGHT IN THE PATH OF
A TORNADO...LEAVE THE CAR AND GO TO A STRONG BUILDING.  IF NO
STRUCTURE IS NEARBY...SEEK SHELTER IN A DITCH OR LOW SPOT.
 
TRUETT

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jun 16, 7:17 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXLucas18 min
Jun 16, 7:33 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXMonroe27 min
Jun 16, 9:03 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXAppanoose27 min
Jun 16, 9:33 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXClay, Palo Alto, Pocahontas42 min
Jun 16, 9:45 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXAppanoose30 min
Jun 16, 9:50 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXHumboldt, Kossuth40 min
Jun 16, 9:57 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXVan Buren33 min
Jun 16, 9:57 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXMonroe33 min
Jun 16, 10:16 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXAppanoose, Davis, Monroe, Wapello29 min
Jun 16, 10:17 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXEmmet28 min
Jun 16, 10:30 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXWebster, Wright45 min
Jun 16, 10:53 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXJones37 min
Jun 16, 10:53 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXJefferson, Van Buren37 min
Jun 16, 11:11 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXHamilton49 min
Jun 16, 11:34 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXJefferson, Van Buren26 min
Jun 16, 11:47 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXAudubon28 min
Jun 17, 3:14 AM CDTFlash Flood WarningDMXCrawford3 hr
Jun 17, 4:09 AM CDTFlash Flood WarningDMXWashington3 hr

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Iowa, 1990Every tornado warning in 1990Tornadoes in 1990

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.