Alert archive / North Dakota / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1991

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 2, NWS Grand Forks, ND

May 12, 1991Cass County, Steele County, Traill County, North Dakota

NWS Grand Forks, ND issued this severe thunderstorm warning at May 12, 1991, 8:25 PM CDT for Cass County, Steele County, Traill County, North Dakota. It was in force for 65 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: May 12, 1991, 8:25 PM CDT (01:25 UTC)
Expired: May 12, 1991, 9:30 PM CDT
In force: 65 min
Issued by: NWS Grand Forks, ND
Area: Whole counties

Counties Cass County, ND, Steele County, ND, Traill County, ND

What was reported inside it

Time	Report	Where	Remark
May 12, 8:50 PM CDT	Hail 1	Cass, ND
May 12, 9:34 PM CDT	Thunderstorm Wind 50	Cass, 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, 1.4 hours before the alert went out and 258 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-p

Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.

Hodograph

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: 55 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: -112 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: -26 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.0
Supercell composite: -1.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
TTAA00 KFAR 130125
SVRFAR
NDC017-077-091-097-130230-

BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING 
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FARGO ND
825 PM CDT SUN MAY 12 1991

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM 
WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 930 PM CDT FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING 
COUNTIES

   IN THE EAST CENTRAL PART OF NORTH DAKOTA
      CASS...SOUTHERN STEELE...SOUTHERN TRAILL...THE CITIES OF 
      FARGO/MOORHEAD...

   IN THE SOUTHEAST PART OF NORTH DAKOTA
      RICHLAND...

AT 820 PM CDT A LINE OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS 50 MILES WEST OF
FARGO TO 50 SOUTH OF FARGO NORTH DAKOTA WAS MOVING NORTH AT 40
MPH. THESE THUNDERSTORMS HAD PRODUCED 3/4 INCH HAIL AND STRONG
WINDS OVER WESTERN CASS COUNTY OF NORTH DAKOTA.

SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS PRODUCE DAMAGING WINDS IN EXCESS OF 55
MPH...DESTRUCTIVE HAIL...DEADLY LIGHTNING...AND VERY HEAVY RAIN.
FOR YOUR PROTECTION...MOVE TO AN INTERIOR ROOM ON THE LOWEST FLOOR
OF YOUR HOME OR BUSINESS.

REMEMBER...SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS CAN AND OCCASIONALLY DO PRODUCE
A TORNADO WITH LITTLE OR NO ADVANCE WARNING...SO BE ON THE LOOKOUT.
IF YOU SPOT A FUNNEL OR A TORNADO YOU SHOULD SEEK SHELTER IN A
REINFORCED BUILDING OR IN AN INTERIOR ROOM AWAY FROM OUTSIDE WALLS.

ANDERSEN

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, May 12, 5:47 PM CDT, 2 hours 38 minutes before

NDZ012-013-014-015-016-017-018-MNZ001-006-007-010-011-013-122345-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT AND RADAR SUMMARY
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FARGO ND
545 PM CDT SUN MAY 12 1991

AT 535 PM CDT SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS WERE DEVELOPING ACROSS EASTERN
NORTH DAKOTA FROM NEAR DEVILS LAKE TO THE NORTH/SOUTH DAKOTA STATE LINE
SOUTH OF JAMESTOWN.  THE STRONGEST THUNDERSTORMS WERE IN THE DEVILS
LAKE AREA AND IN THE VALLEY CITY AND LAMOURE AREAS.

MOVEMENT WAS NORTH AT 35 MILES AN HOUR.

THROUGH 700 PM CDT SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED TO CONTINUE TO
DEVELOP OVER EASTERN NORTH DAKOTA.  SOME OF THE STORMS WILL LIKELY BE
SEVERE WITH THE POSSIBILITY OF TORNADOES...LARGE HAIL...DAMAGING WINDS
AND DEADLY LIGHTNING.  THE POTENTIAL EXISTS FOR EXPLOSIVE DEVELOPMENT
OF THE THUNDERSTORMS...WITH RAPID CHANGES IN LOCAL WEATHER CONDITIONS A
GOOD POSSIBILITY THIS EVENING.  IF YOU LIVE IN OR NEAR THE TORNADO
WATCH AREA STAY TUNED TO RADIO...T.V. AS WELL AS NOAA WEAHTHER RADIO
FOR LATER STATEMENTS AND POSSIBLE WARNINGS.
EWENS

Special weather statement, May 12, 6:33 PM CDT, 1 hour 52 minutes before

NDZ012-013-014-015-016-017-018-MNZ001-006-010-130045-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT AND RADAR SUMMARY
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FARGO ND
633 PM CDT SUN MAY 12 1991

...TORNADO WATCH IN EFFECT UNTIL MIDNIGHT FOR EASTERN NORTH DAKOTA...

AT 625 PM CDT SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS...A FEW STRONG...CONTINUED OVER
EASTERN NORTH DAKOTA FROM NEAR DEVILS LAKE TO THE NORTH/SOUTH DAKOTA
STATE LINE SOUTH OF VALLEY CITY.  THE STRONGEST STORMS WERE 20 MILES
SOUTH OF VALLEY CITY APPROACHING LITCHVILLE NORTH DAKOTA.  OTHER
STORMS WITH VERY HEAVY RAINS WERE IN THE ENDERLIN AND GWINNER AREAS.

MOVEMENT WAS NORTH AT 35 MILES AN HOUR.

THROUGH 800 PM CDT SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS WILL CONTINUE OVER EASTERN
NORTH DAKOTA FROM THE DEVILS LAKE AREA...THROUGH THE VALLEY CITY AREA
TO NEAR LIDGERWOOD.  THE STORMS WILL MOVE NORTH AT 30 MILES AN HOUR AND
HAVE THE POTENTIAL TO DEVELOP RAPIDLY AND PRODUCE LARGE HAIL...DEADLY
LIGHTNING...DAMAGING WINDS AND TORRENTIAL RAINS AS WELL AS THE THREAT
OF TORNADOES.   ALSO CONDITIONS ARE FAVORABLE FOR THE RAPID DEVELOPMENT
OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS NORTH AND EAST OF THIS AREA OF STORMS.

PLEASE STAY TUNED TO RADIO...T.V. AS WELL AS NOAA WEATHER RADIO FOR LATER
STATEMENTS AND POSSIBLE WARNINGS.
EWENS

Special weather statement, May 12, 7:34 PM CDT, 51 minutes before

NDZ012-013-014-015-016-017-018-MNZ001-006-010-130135-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT AND RADAR SUMMARY
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FARGO ND
733 PM CDT SUN MAY 12 1991

...TORNADO WATCH IN EFFECT UNTIL MIDNIGHT FOR EASTERN NORTH DAKOTA...

AT 730 PM CDT SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS...A FEW STRONG...CONTINUED OVER
EASTERN NORTH DAKOTA FROM NORTH OF DEVILS LAKE NORTH DAKOTA SOUTH TO
THE NORTH/SOUTH DAKOTA STATE LINE SOUTH OF VALLEY CITY NORTH DAKOTA.
OTHER THUNDERSTORMS HAD STARTED TO DEVELOP 25 TO 30 MILES SOUTH OF
FARGO NORTH DAKOTA. BRIEF HEAVY RAIN AND LARGE HAIL ARE POSSIBLE WITH
ANY OF THESE THUNDERSTORMS.
MOVEMENT WAS NORTH AT 35 MILES AN HOUR.

THROUGH 830 PM CDT SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS WILL CONTINUE OVER EASTERN
NORTH DAKOTA FROM THE DEVILS LAKE AREA...THROUGH THE VALLEY CITY AREA
ON INTO WEST CENTRAL MINNESOTA. THESE THUNDERSTORMS WILL MOVE NORTH AT
30 MPH AND HAVE THE POTENTIAL TO DEVELOP RAPIDLY PRODUCING VERY HEAVY
RAIN...LARGE HAIL...DAMAGING WINDS.
 ALSO CONDITIONS ARE FAVORABLE FOR THE RAPID DEVELOPMENT OF SEVERE
THUNDERSTORMS NORTH AND EAST OF THIS AREA OF STORMS. TORNADOES ARE
POSSIBLE WITH ANY OF THESE STORMS.
PLEASE STAY TUNED TO RADIO...T.V. AS WELL AS NOAA WEATHER RADIO4 FOR LATER
STATEMENTS AND POSSIBLE WARNINGS.
ANDERSEN

The office that day

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

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
May 12, 7:50 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FGF	Cass, Richland	55 min
May 12, 8:25 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FGF	Richland	65 min
May 12, 9:31 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FGF	Cass, Traill	44 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in North Dakota, 1991 Every severe thunderstorm warning 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; verification from NCEI's Storm Data; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive.