Alert archive / North Dakota / Tornado Warnings in 1991

Tornado Warning 5, NWS Grand Forks, ND

June 13, 1991Barnes County, North Dakota

NWS Grand Forks, ND issued this tornado warning at Jun 13, 1991, 8:03 PM CDT for Barnes County, North Dakota. It was in force for 42 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: Jun 13, 1991, 8:03 PM CDT (01:03 UTC)
Expired: Jun 13, 1991, 8:45 PM CDT
In force: 42 min
Issued by: NWS Grand Forks, ND
Area: Whole counties

County Barnes County, ND

What was reported inside it

Time	Report	Where	Remark
Jun 13, 8:45 PM CDT	Thunderstorm Wind 55	Barnes, 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, 1.1 hours before the alert went out and 201 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: 37 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 24 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 204 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.0
Supercell composite: 5.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
TTAA00 KFAR 140103
TORFAR
NDC003-140145-

BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED/EBS ACTIVATION REQUESTED 
TORNADO WARNING 
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FARGO ND
803 PM CDT THU JUN 13 1991

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED A TORNADO WARNING 
EFFECTIVE UNTIL 845 PM CDT FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING 
COUNTIES

   IN THE EAST CENTRAL PART OF NORTH DAKOTA
      WESTERN BARNES...THE CITY OF VALLEY CITY

AT 755 PM CDT A TORNADO WAS REPORTED 5 MILES SOUTH AND 3 MILES EAST
OF JAMESTOWN NORTH DAKOTA MOVING NORTHEAST AT 20 MILES AN HOUR.

IF YOU ARE IN THE PATH OF A TORNADO...THE SAFEST PLACE TO BE IS IN
A BASEMENT.  GET UNDER A WORKBENCH OR PIECE OF STURDY FURNITURE.
IF NO BASEMENT IS AVAILABLE...FIND SHELTER IN A CENTRAL INTERIOR
ROOM SUCH AS A CLOSET ON THE LOWEST FLOOR.  USE BLANKETS...
PILLOWS...OR CUSHIONS TO COVER YOUR BODY AND PROTECT YOUR HEAD.
AVOID WINDOWS.  ABANDON CARS AND MOBILE HOMES FOR A REINFORCED
BUILDING.

DM

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, Jun 13, 2:57 PM CDT, 5 hours 6 minutes before

NDZ012-013-014-015-016-017-018-MNZ001-006-007-010-011-013-132030-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FARGO ND
255 PM CDT THU JUN 13 1991

...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH FOR CENTRAL AND EASTERN NORTH DAKOTA
   AND NORTHWEST MINNESOTA UNTIL 900 PM CDT...

AT 233 PM CDT...INTENSE THUNDERSTORMS HAD DEVELOPED OVER NORTHEAST
NORTH DAKOTA AND NORTH CENTRAL MINNESOTA.

THE STORMS WERE LOCATED 15 MILES EAST OF DEVILS LAKE NORTH DAKOTA
...AND 20 MILES NORTHEAST OF BEMIDJI MINNESOTA.

IN ADDITION TO VERY HEAVY RAIN THESE STORMS COULD PRODUCE FREQUENT
LIGHTING STRIKES...HAIL...AND STRONG GUSTY WINDS.

MOVEMENT WAS NORTHEAST AT 15 TO 20 MILES AN HOUR.  THESE STORMS WILL
BE NEAR THE FOLLOWING CITIES AND TOWNS BY 330 PM CDT.  IN NORTHEAST
NORTH DAKOTA...WHITMAN...ADAMS...AND PARK RIVER.  IN NORTH CENTRAL
MINNESOTA...NORTHOME...KELLIHOR..AND BLACKDUCK.

IF YOU ARE IN OR NEAR ONE OF THE CITIES OR TOWNS MENTIONED...STAY
ALERT FOR THE POSSIBILITY OF SEVERE WEATHER AND BE PREPARED TO GO
TO A SAFE PLACE IF NEEDED.

CONDITIONS ARE RIGHT FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF SEVERE WEATHER THIS
AFTERNOON AND EVENING.  KEEP IN MIND THE ABOVE MENTIONED WATCH AND
LISTEN TO TV...RADIO...AS WELL AS NOAA WEATHER RADIO FOR FURTHER
STATEMENTS AND POSSIBLE WARNINGS.

DM

Local storm report, Jun 13, 5:29 PM CDT, 2 hours 34 minutes before

STORM REPORTS
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FARGO ND
525 PM CDT THU JUN 13 1991

TIME           EVENT
435 PM CDT     NELSON COUNTY SHERIFFS OFFICE REPORTED QUARTER SIZED
               HAIL NORTH OF TOLNA NORTH DAKOTA OR 25 MILES SOUTHEAST
               OF DEVILS LAKE ND.
450 PM CDT     GRAND FORKS AFB PERSONEL REPORTED TORNADO 10 MILES EAST
               OF BROCKET ND OR 30 MILES EAST OF DEVILS LAKE ND.
505 PM CDT     AIR FORCE MISSLE SILO PERSONEL ON WALSH COUNTY LINE
               REPORTED TORNADO 5 MILES NORTHEAST OF BROCKET ND MOVING
               NORTHEAST. THEY WERE TAKING SHELTER.
510 PM CDT     OBSERVER IN GRIGGS COUNTY NORTH DAKOTA REPORTED 45 MPH
               WIND AND PEA SIZED EHAIL AT SUTTON NORTH DAKOTA.
517 PM CDT     AIR FORCE MISSLE SILO PERSONEL AT LANGDON NORTH DAKOTA
               REPORTED MARBLE SIZED HAIL AND A FUNNEL CLOUD.
ANDERSEN

Special weather statement, Jun 13, 5:41 PM CDT, 2 hours 22 minutes before

NDZ012-013-014-015-016-017-018-MNZ001-006-007-010-011-013-132330-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT AND RADAR SUMMARY
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FARGO ND
530 PM CDT THU JUN 13 1991

...A TORNADO WATCH IS IN EFFECT FOR PARTS OF EASTERN NORTH DAKOTA
AND NORTHWEST MINNESOTA UNTIL 9 PM CDT...

A LINE OF INTENSE THUNDERSTORMS EXTENDED FROM 60 MILES NORTHWEST OF
GRAND FORKS NORTH DAKOTA SOUTH TO 30 MILES SOUTH OF JAMESTOWN NORTH
DAKOTA. THESE THUNDERSTORMS WERE MOVING NORTH AT 20 TO 25 MPH.

EARLIER THIS LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS HAD PRODUCED LARGE HAIL AND FUNNEL
CLOUDS OVER RAMSEY AND NELSON COUNTIES OF NORTH DAKOTA. PEA TO MARBLE
SIZED HAIL AND GUSTY WINDS HAD ALSO BEEN REPORTED NEAR LANGDON...SUTTON
AND IN JAMESTOWN NORTH DAKOTA. THIS LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS WAS MOVING
SLOW ENOUGH TO PRODUCE SMALL STREAM AND LOW LYING AREA FLOODING.

PERSONS IN THE WATCH AREA SHOULD REMAIN ALERT FOR RAPIDLY CHANGING
WEATHER CONDITIONS.
PLEASE STAY TUNED TO YOUR LOCAKL RADIO AND TV STATIONS AND NOAA
WEATHER RADIO FOR LATEST INFORMATION ON THESE THUNDERSTORMS.
ANDERSEN

Local storm report, Jun 13, 7:32 PM CDT, 31 minutes before

STORM REPORTS
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FARGO ND
720 PM CDT THU JUN 13 1991

TIME           EVENT
544 PM CDT     3/4 INCH HAIL REPORTED AT NEKOMA NORTH DAKOTA...10 MILES
               SOUTH OF LANGDON NORTH DAKOTA.
515 PM CDT     DELAYED REPORT...ONE EAST AND 1/2 MILE SOUTH OF NEKOMA
               NORTH DAKOTA REPORTED ROOF TAKEN OFF OF HOUSE. BARN
               MOVED OFF FOUNDATION. ONE MILE SOUTH OF THAT LOCATION
               A FARM SUFFERED EXTENSIVE DAMAGE...NO DETAILS.
718 PM CDT     CONFIRMED REPORT OF TORNADO 6 MILES NORTHEAST OF WARREN
               MINNESOTA...25 MILES NORTHEAST OF GRAND FORKS NORTH
               DAKOTA...TREES UPROOTED...OTHER MINOR DAMAGE. REPORT
               FROM LAW ENFORCEMENT.
ANDERSEN

The office that day

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

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Jun 13, 8:16 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FGF	Griggs, Steele	59 min
Jun 13, 8:53 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FGF	Barnes	67 min
Jun 13, 9:14 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FGF	Cass	46 min
Jun 13, 9:44 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FGF	Cass	61 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in North Dakota, 1991 Every tornado warning in 1991 Tornadoes 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.