Alert archive / Kansas / Tornado Warnings in 1991
Tornado Warning 17, NWS Wichita, KS
NWS Wichita, KS issued this tornado warning at Apr 17, 1991, 4:47 PM CDT for Kingman County, Reno County, Kansas. It was in force for 28 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
- Apr 17, 1991, 4:47 PM CDT (21:47 UTC)
- Expired
- Apr 17, 1991, 5:15 PM CDT
- In force
- 28 min
- Issued by
- NWS Wichita, KS
- Area
- Whole counties
Counties Kingman County, KS, Reno County, KS
What was reported inside it
| Time | Report | Where | Remark |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 17, 4:50 PM CDT | Tornado F1 | Kingman, KS |
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
Dodge City, (KDDC), launched 12:00Z, 9.8 hours before the alert went out and 157 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.
- Mixed-layer CAPE
- 44 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -715 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 551 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 45 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 200 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 177 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 0.0
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000 TTAA00 KICT 172148 TORICT KSC095-155-172215- BULLETIN - EBS ACTIVATION REQUESTED TORNADO WARNING NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WICHITA KS 447 PM CDT WED APR 17 1991 THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN WICHITA HAS ISSUED A TORNADO WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 515 PM CDT FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS... IN SOUTH CENTRAL KANSAS ...NORTHERN KINGMAN COUNTY...SOUTHERN RENO COUNTY AT 445 PM CDT...A TORNADO WAS ON THE GROUND NEAR ZENDA WIHICH IS 40 MILES SOUTHWEST OF HUTCHINSON. PEOPLE IN THE TOWN OF ZENDA...WILLOWDALE SPIVEY AND CEVELAND TAKE COVER IMMEDIATELY. THIS STORM WAS MOVING TO THE NORTHEAST AT 35 MILES PER HOUR. THIS IS A VERY DANGEROUS STORM. ACT QUICKLY. IF YOU ARE IN THE PATH OF THIS TORNADO MOVE TO A SHELTER BELOW GROUND IF AVAILABLE. OTHERWISE... GO TO A SMALL INTERIOR ROOM ON THE LOWEST FLOOR POSSIBLE. AVOID WINDOWS. ABANDON CARS AND MOBILE HOMES FOR A STURDIER BUILDING OR GET INTO A DITCH OR CULVERT.
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 17, 11:40 AM CDT, 5 hours 7 minutes before
KSZ009-011-012-014-017-171730- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WICHITA KS 1139 AM CDT WED APR 17 1991 ...THUNDERSTORMS COTINUE TO INCREASE IN COVERAGE AND INTENSITY ACROSS SOUTH CENTRAL KANSAS... AT 1127 AM CDT A LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS...25 MILES WIDE...STRETCHED FROM 40 MILES WEST OF SALINA...TO JUST WEST OF HUTCHINSON...TO 60 MILES SOUTHWEST OF WICHITA...NEAR THE KANSAS/OKLAHOMA BORDER. THE STRONGER STORMS WERE LOCATED...15 MILES SOUTHWEST OF HUTCHINSON... NEAR PARTRIDGE. VERY HEAVY RAINS AND SMALL HAIL ARE POSSIBLE WITH THESE STORMS. MOVEMENT OF INDIVIDUAL STORMS WAS NORTH AT 20 MPH... WHILE THE LINE IS MOVING TO THE EAST AT 20 MPH. THE SHOWERS WILL MOVE INTO ThHE HUTCHINSON DURING THE NEXT 20 MINUTES. A FLASH FLOOD WATCH CONTINUES FOR COUNTIES WEST OF WICHITA. PRESTON
Special weather statement, Apr 17, 4:10 PM CDT, 37 minutes before
KSZ009-011-012-014-017-172215- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WICHITA KS 408 PM CDT WED APR 17 1991 AT 400 PM CDT THUNDERSTORMS WITH SMALL HAIL AND VERY HEAVY RAIN CONTINUED OVER PARTS OF SOUTH CENTRAL KANSAS. ONE AREA EXTENDED FROM 30 MILES WEST SOUTHWEST OF EMPORIA SOUTHWARD TO NEAR ARKANSAS CITY. ANOTHER AREA EXTENDED FROM 20 MILES SOUTH OF HUTCHINSON SOUTH SOUTHWESTWARD TO 40 MILES SOUTHEAST OF PRATT NEAR ATTICA. THE STORMS WERE MOVING TO THE NORTH NORTHEAST AT 30 MILES AN HOUR. IN HARVEY COUNTY THE GROUND, ESPECIALLY WEST AND NORTH OF NEWTON, IS ALREADY SATURATED FROM RAINS THAT DROPPED 3 TO 5 INCHES OF RAIN EARLIER THIS AFTERNOON. WITH THUNDERSTORMS MOVING TOWARD THAT AREA, FLOODING WILL LIKELY OCCUR ON SMALL CREEKS AND IN LOW LYING AREAS LATER THIS AFTERNOON AND THIS EVENING. A FLASH FLOOD WARNING IS IN EFFECT FOR HARVEY COUNTY UNTIL 700 PM CDT FOR HARVEY COUNTY. SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH NUMBER 149 CONTINUES UNTIL 600 PM CDT FOR SOUTH CENTRAL AND PARTS OF SOUTHEAST KANSAS. ELDER
The office that day
Everything else NWS Wichita, KS issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 17, 11:39 AM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | ICT | Reno | 66 min |
| Apr 17, 1:00 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | ICT | Harvey, Reno | 60 min |
| Apr 17, 1:30 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | ICT | Marion | 60 min |
| Apr 17, 1:54 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | ICT | Sumner | 66 min |
| Apr 17, 2:14 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | ICT | Harvey | 46 min |
| Apr 17, 2:26 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | ICT | Marion | 64 min |
| Apr 17, 2:54 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | ICT | Butler | 66 min |
| Apr 17, 5:21 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | ICT | Harper, Kingman | 69 min |
| Apr 17, 6:45 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | ICT | Cherokee | 30 min |
| Apr 17, 6:51 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | ICT | Cherokee | 24 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; verification from NCEI's Storm Data; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive.