Alert archive / Kansas / Tornado Warnings in 1991

Tornado Warning 11, NWS Topeka, KS

April 11, 1991Smith County, Kansas

NWS Topeka, KS issued this tornado warning at Apr 11, 1991, 9:38 PM CDT for Smith County, Kansas. It was in force for 52 min. 3 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
Apr 11, 1991, 9:38 PM CDT (02:38 UTC)
Expired
Apr 11, 1991, 10:30 PM CDT
In force
52 min
Issued by
NWS Topeka, KS
Area
Whole counties

County Smith County, KS

What was reported inside it

TimeReportWhereRemark
Apr 11, 10:00 PM CDTHail 0.75Smith, KS
Apr 11, 10:15 PM CDTTornado F1Smith, KS
Apr 11, 10:30 PM CDTHail 0.75Smith, 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

N. Platte/Lee Bi, NE (KLBF), launched 00:00Z, 2.6 hours before the alert went out and 214 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, N. Platte/Lee Bi, NE at 00:00Z on 1991-04-12Temperature 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, N. Platte/Lee Bi, NE at 00:00Z on 1991-04-12The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 141 square meters per square second.1939587897Sfc1 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
935 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
90 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
141 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
220 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
-0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

The text of this product is not in the archive. The NWS text archive before 2002 is incomplete.

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 11, 4:33 PM CDT, 5 hours 5 minutes before
KSZ007-008-010-011-112232-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT...CORRECTION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CONCORDIA KS
432 PM CDT THU APR 11 1991-

...TORNADO WATCH 117 IN EFFECT FOR ALL OF CENTRAL AND NORTH-CENTRAL
KANSAS EXCEPT FOR WASHINGTON AND CLAY COUNTIES...

AT 430 PM CONCORDIA RADAR SHOWED AN AREA OF THUNDERSTORMS WHICH EXTENDED
FROM 25 MILES NORTHEAST OF PHILLIPSBURG OR 10 MILES NORTH OF SMITH CENTER
KANSAS TO KEARNEY IN NEBRASKA.  THESE THUNDERSTORMS WERE CAPABLE OF PRODUCING
HEAVY RAIN...SMALL HAIL AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING.

THESE THUNDERSTORMS WERE MOVING NORTH AT 25 MPH.

THE ATMOSPHERE OVER CENTRAL AND NORTH-CENTRAL KANSAS IS VERY UNSTABLE
AND RAPID THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT IS POSSIBLE IN THE NEXT 1 TO 2 HOURS
ACROSS THE REGION.

WHITMORE
Special weather statement, Apr 11, 5:57 PM CDT, 3 hours 41 minutes before
KSZ007-008-010-011-120000-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CONCORDIA KS
555 PM CDT THU APR 11 1991

...TORNADO WATCH 117 IS IN EFFECT FOR ALL OF CENTRAL AND NORTH-CENTRAL
KANSAS EXCEPT FOR WASHINGTON AND CLAY COUNTIES UNTIL 10 PM CDT...

AT 5:50 PM CDT RADAR SHOWED AN AREA OF THUNDERSTORMS 25 MILES NORTHEAST
OF PHILLIPSBURG TO 40 NMILES NORTHEAST OF PHILLIPSBURG OR JUST NORTH OF
SMITH CENTER.  THESE THUNDERSTORMS WERE CAPABLE OF PRODUCING  HEAVY RAIN
..DANGEROUS LIGHTNING..GUSTY WINDS AND HAIL.  THESE STORMS WERE MOVING
NORTH AT 35 MPH.

OTHER SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WERE NORTH OF A LINE FROM 15 MILES
SOUTH OF PHILLIPSBURG TO 20 MILES NORTHWEST OF CONCORDIA TO SUPERIORK
NEBRASKA.

THE ATMOSPHERE OVER CENTRAL AND NORTH-CENTRAL KANSAS IS VERY UNSTABLE
AND RAPID THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT IS POSSIBLE THIS EVENING.     LS
Special weather statement, Apr 11, 6:46 PM CDT, 2 hours 52 minutes before
KSZ007-008-010-011-120100-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CONCORDIA KS
645 PM CDT THU APR 11 1991

...TORNADO WATCH 117 IS IN EFFECT FOR ALL OF CENTRAL AND NORTH-CENTRAL
KANSAS EXCEPT FOR WASHINGTON AND CLAY COUNTIES UNTIL 10 PM CDT...

AT 645 PM CDT RADAR SHOWED A THUNDERSTORM 10 MILES SOUTHWEST OF SMITH
CENTER.  HEAVY RAIN..GUSTY WINDS..HAIL AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING CAN BE
EXPECTED FROM THIS STORM..THE STORM WAS MOVING NORTH AT 35 MPH AND WILL
BE IN THE SMITH CENTER AREA BY 7 PM CDT.

OTHER SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WERE NORTH OF A LINE FROM NEAR HILL
CITY TO 20 MILES NORTH OF RUSSELL TO JUST WEST OF SUPERIOR NEBRASKA.

THE ATMOSPHERE OVER CENTRAL AND NORTH-CENTRAL KANSAS IS VERY UNSTABLE
AND RAPID THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT IS POSSIBLE THIS EVENING.
LS
Special weather statement, Apr 11, 8:12 PM CDT, 1 hour 26 minutes before
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Special weather statement, Apr 11, 9:18 PM CDT, 20 minutes before
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Special weather statement, Apr 11, 9:20 PM CDT, 18 minutes before
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The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Apr 11, 7:00 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTOPSmith30 min
Apr 11, 7:30 PM CDTTornado WarningTOPSmith15 min
Apr 11, 10:30 PM CDTTornado WarningTOPSmith30 min
Apr 12, 3:17 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTOPBarton43 min
Apr 12, 3:56 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTOPRussell49 min
Apr 12, 4:34 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTOPLincoln41 min
Apr 12, 4:44 PM CDTTornado WarningTOPLincoln31 min
Apr 12, 4:52 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTOPOsborne, Russell53 min
Apr 12, 5:12 PM CDTTornado WarningTOPLincoln33 min
Apr 12, 5:25 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTOPOsborne50 min
Apr 12, 5:49 PM CDTTornado WarningTOPLincoln, Mitchell, Ottawa26 min
Apr 12, 5:54 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTOPRussell51 min
Apr 12, 6:00 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTOPBarton45 min
Apr 12, 6:16 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTOPCloud, Mitchell44 min
Apr 12, 6:21 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTOPCloud, Ottawa54 min
Apr 12, 6:42 PM CDTTornado WarningTOPCloud33 min
Apr 12, 6:54 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTOPClay, Republic, Washington51 min
Apr 12, 6:59 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTOPRussell46 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.