Alert archive / Kansas / Tornado Warnings in 1991

Tornado Warning 14, NWS Dodge City, KS

April 28, 1991Stafford County, Kansas

NWS Dodge City, KS issued this tornado warning at Apr 28, 1991, 5:04 PM CDT for Stafford County, Kansas. It was in force for 26 min.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
Apr 28, 1991, 5:04 PM CDT (22:04 UTC)
Expired
Apr 28, 1991, 5:30 PM CDT
In force
26 min
Issued by
NWS Dodge City, KS
Area
Whole counties

County Stafford County, KS

The nearest sounding before it

Dodge City, (KDDC), launched 12:00Z, 10.1 hours before the alert went out and 108 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, Dodge City, at 12:00Z on 1991-04-28Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 10 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, Dodge City, at 12:00Z on 1991-04-28The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 169 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
10 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-113 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1405 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
65 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
169 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
243 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 KDDC 282210
TORDDC
KSC185-282230-
 
BULLETIN - EBS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DODGE CITY KS
504 PM CDT SUN APR 28 1991
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN DODGE CITY HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL  530 PM CDT
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATION...
 
IN SOUTH CENTRAL KANSAS
 
   ...SOUTHERN STAFFORD COUNTY
 
A TORNADO WAS ON THE GROUND 7 MILES SOUTH OF DILLWYN
COUNTY...MOVING NORTH AT 20 MPH. IT WILL MOVE BETWEEN DILLWYN
AND ST JOHN...ABOUT 30 MILES NORTH OF PRATT...BY 530 PM CDT.
 
 
IF YOU ARE IN THE PATH OF A TORNADO...THE SAFEST PLACE IS A
BASEMENT.  GET UNDER A STAIRWELL 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.

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before this tornado 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, Apr 28, 1:08 PM CDT, 3 hours 56 minutes before
KSZ003-006-009-281900-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DODGE CITY KS
1208 AM CDT SUN APR 28 1991

...TORNADO WATCH UNTIL 8 PM CDT FOR MUCH OF SOUTHWEST KANSAS...

A TORNADO WATCH HAS BEEN ISSUED FOR A LARGE PART OF SOUTHWEST KANSAS
UNTIL 8 PM CDT. THE WATCH INCLUDES FORD...GRAY...HODGEMAN...BARBER...
COMMANCHE...KIOWA...STAFFORD...EDWARDS...PAWNEE...AND PRATT COUNTIES.

THUNDERSTORMS HAVE BEGUN TO BUILD IN SOUTHWEST KANSAS WITHIN A GENERAL
SHOWER AREA EXPANDING OUT OF SOUTHEAST COLORADO...AND ARE CURRENTLY
SOUTH OG GARDEN CITY...EXTENDING TOWARD ULYSSES...AND IN MORE WESTERN
COUNTIES TOWARD THE COLORADO LINE.

NO REPORTS OF SEVERE WEATHER HAVE YET BEEN RECEIVED...BUT STRONG GUSTY
WINDS...HEAVY RAIN AND LARGE HAIL ARE POSSIBLE WITH THE STORMS AS THEY
MOVE NORTH AT 15 MPH. TORNADOES ARE POSSIBLE WITH THE MOST SEVERE
ACTIVITY.                                          GHOLSON
Special weather statement, Apr 28, 1:11 PM CDT, 3 hours 53 minutes before
KSZ003-006-009-281900-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT...CORRECTED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DODGE CITY KS
112 PM CDT SUN APR 28 1991

...TORNADO WATCH UNTIL 8 PM CDT FOR MUCH OF SOUTHWEST KANSAS...

A TORNADO WATCH HAS BEEN ISSUED FOR A LARGE PART OF SOUTHWEST KANSAS
UNTIL 8 PM CDT. THE WATCH INCLUDES FORD...GRAY...HODGEMAN...BARBER...
COMMANCHE...KIOWA...STAFFORD...EDWARDS...PAWNEE...AND PRATT COUNTIES.

THUNDERSTORMS HAVE BEGUN TO BUILD IN SOUTHWEST KANSAS WITHIN A GENERAL
SHOWER AREA EXPANDING OUT OF SOUTHEAST COLORADO...AND ARE CURRENTLY
SOUTH OF GARDEN CITY...EXTENDING TOWARD ULYSSES...AND IN MORE WESTERN
COUNTIES TOWARD THE COLORADO LINE.

NO REPORTS OF SEVERE WEATHER HAVE YET BEEN RECEIVED...BUT STRONG GUSTY
WINDS...HEAVY RAIN AND LARGE HAIL ARE POSSIBLE WITH THE STORMS AS THEY
MOVE NORTH AT 15 MPH. TORNADOES ARE POSSIBLE WITH THE MOST SEVERE
ACTIVITY.                                          GHOLSON
Special weather statement, Apr 28, 3:17 PM CDT, 1 hour 47 minutes before
KSZ003-006-009-282100-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DODGE CITY KS
315 PM CDT SUN APR 28 1991

...SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ARE SCATTERED ACROSS SOUTHWEST KANSAS...

AT MID AFTERNOON...A LINE OF SHOWERS AND A FEW THUNDERSTORMS STRETCHED
FROM NEAR LAKIN...ABOUT 20 MILES WEST OF GARDEN CITY...TO AROUND 25 MILES
SOUTHEAST OF GARDEN CITY NEAR COPELAND. THE RAIN WILL START IN THE
GARDEN CITY AREA BY 415 PM CDT.

ANOTHER THUNDESTORM...WITH VERY HEAVY RAIN AND POSSIBLY SOME SMALL HAIL...
WAS ABOUT 30 MILES NORTHEAST OF DODGE CITY NEAR HANSTON. ALL THE SHOWERS
AND THUNDERSTORMS ARE MOVING NORTHEAST AT AROUND 20 MPH. THIS STORM WAS
INCREASING IN INTENSITY AND WILL MOVE INTO THE HANSTON AREA BY 330 PM.

A TORNADO WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 800 PM CDT FOR MUCH OF SOUTH
CENTRAL AND PARTS OF SOUTHWEST KANSAS.
.
LETRO
Special weather statement, Apr 28, 4:03 PM CDT, 1 hour 1 minute before
KSZ003-006-009-282200-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DODGE CITY KS
400 PM CDT SUN APR 28 1991

...THE TORNADO WATCH HAS BEEN CANCELLED IN FORD...GRAY...AND HODGEMAN
   COUNTIES...

A TORNADO WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 800 PM CDT FOR PAWNEE...EDWARDS...
KIOWA...COMANCHE...STAFFORD...PRATT...AND BARBER COUNTIES IN SOUTH
CENTRAL KANSAS.

A THUNDERSTORM WITH VERY HEAVY RAIN WAS LOCATED ABOUT 40 MILES NORTHEAST
OF DODGE CITY...NEAR ROZEL IN PAWNEE COUNTY. ITS MOVING NORTHEAST AT 20
MPH AND WILL BE ALONG THE BORDER OF RUSH COUNTY SOUTH OF RUSH CENTER
BEFORE 500 PM CDT. THIS STORM COULD CONTAIN SOME SMALL HAIL.

OTHER THUNDERSTORMS WERE ABOUT 20 MILES WEST OF GARDEN CITY0 NEAR LAKIN...
ALSO MOVING NORTHEAST AT 20 MPH.
.
REMEMBER...A TORNADO WATCH MEANS CONDITIONS ARE FAVORABLE FOR
TORNADOES TO DEVELOP. PERSONS IN THE WATCH AREA SHOULD LISTEN FOR
LATER STATEMENTS OR WARNINGS.

LETRO

The office that day

Everything else NWS Dodge City, KS issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Apr 28, 1:49 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDDCFord, Hodgeman56 min
Apr 28, 4:55 PM CDTTornado WarningDDCPratt50 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Kansas, 1991Every tornado warning in 1991Tornadoes in 1991

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.