Alert archive / Kansas / Tornado Warnings in 1991

Tornado Warning 15, NWS Topeka, KS

April 12, 1991Lincoln County, Mitchell County, Ottawa County, Kansas

NWS Topeka, KS issued this tornado warning at Apr 12, 1991, 5:49 PM CDT for Lincoln County, Mitchell County, Ottawa County, Kansas. It was in force for 26 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 12, 1991, 5:49 PM CDT (22:49 UTC)
Expired
Apr 12, 1991, 6:15 PM CDT
In force
26 min
Issued by
NWS Topeka, KS
Area
Whole counties

Counties Lincoln County, KS, Mitchell County, KS, Ottawa County, KS

What was reported inside it

TimeReportWhereRemark
Apr 12, 5:59 PM CDTTornado F0Lincoln, KS
Apr 12, 6:00 PM CDTHail 2.75Mitchell, KS
Apr 12, 6:14 PM CDTHail 1.75Mitchell, 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

Topeka, KS (KTOP), launched 12:00Z, 10.8 hours before the alert went out and 207 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, Topeka, KS at 12:00Z 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 km-30°-20°-10°0°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Topeka, KS at 12:00Z on 1991-04-12The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 309 square meters per square second.19395878Sfc1 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
593 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
24 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
309 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
363 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

Local storm report, Apr 12, 12:30 PM CDT, 5 hours 19 minutes before
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Local storm report, Apr 12, 12:35 PM CDT, 5 hours 14 minutes before
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Special weather statement, Apr 12, 1:30 PM CDT, 4 hours 19 minutes before
KSZ007-008-010-011-121926-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CONCORDIA KS
130 PM CDT FRI APR 12 1991

...TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 125 IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 8 PM EAST OF A LINE FROM
PHILLIPSBURG TO COLDWATER AND WEST OF A LINE FROM BELLEVILLE TO SALINA
TO WICHITA...

AT 125 PM CONCORDIA RADAR SHOWED RAPIDLY DEVELOPING THUNDERSTORMS FROM
20 MILES SOUTHWEST OF GREAT BEND NEAR LARNED TO 20 MILES NORTHWEST OF
GREAT BEND NEAR OTIS.  THESE STOXRMS MAY PRODUCE HEAVY RAIN...SMALL HAIL
AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING AS THEY MOVE NORTH AT 35 MPH.

THE ATMOSPHERE OVER CENTRAL AND NORTH-CENTRAL KANSAS IS VERY UNSTABLE AND
ADDITIONAL THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT IS LIKELY THIS AFTERNOON.

KLEYLA
Special weather statement, Apr 12, 1:56 PM CDT, 3 hours 53 minutes before
KSZ007-008-010-011-122000-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CONCORDIA KS
155 PM CDT FRI APR 12 1991

...TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 125 IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 8 PM EAST OF A LINE FROM
PHILLIPSBURG TO COLDWATER AND WEST OF A LINE FROM BELLEVILLE TO SALINA
TO WICHITA...

AT 155 PM CONCORDIA RADAR SHOWED RAPIDLY DEVELOPING THUNDERSTORMS FROM
20 MILES SOUTHWEST OF GREAT BEND NEAR LARNED TO 25 MILES NORTHWEST OF
GREAT BEND NEAR GALATIA.  THESE STORMS MAY PRODUCE HEAVY RAIN...HAIL
AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING AS THEY MOVE NORTH AT 35 MPH.

THE ATMOSPHERE OVER CENTRAL AND NORTH-CENTRAL KANSAS IS VERY UNSTABLE AND
ADDITIONAL THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT IS LIKELY THIS AFTERNOON.

RK/LS
Special weather statement, Apr 12, 2:38 PM CDT, 3 hours 11 minutes before
KSZ007-008-010-011-122030-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CONCORDIA KS
235 PM CDT FRI APR 12 1991

...TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 125 IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 8 PM EAST OF A LINE FROM
PHILLIPSBURG TO COLDWATER AND WEST OF A LINE FROM BELLEVILLE TO SALINA
TO WICHITA...

AT 235 PM CONCORDIA RADAR SHOWED THUNDERSTORMS FROM 10 MILES WEST OF
GREAT BEND TO JUST SOUTH OF RUSSELL.  THESE STORMS MAY PRODUCE BRIEF
HEAVY RAIN..GUSTY WINDS AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING AS THEY MOVE NORTH AT
35 MPH.

THE ATMOSPHERE OVER CENTRAL AND NORTH-CENTRAL KANSAS IS VERY UNSTABLE AND
ADDITIONAL THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT IS LIKELY THIS AFTERNOON.

LS
Special weather statement, Apr 12, 3:09 PM CDT, 2 hours 40 minutes before
KSZ007-008-010-011-122100-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CONCORDIA KS
3XX PM CDT FRI APR 12 1991

...TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 125 IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 8 PM EAST OF A LINE FROM
PHILLIPSBURG TO COLDWATER AND WEST OF A LINE FROM BELLEVILLE TO SALINA
TO WICHITA...

AT 305 PM CONCORDIA RADAR SHOWED THUNDERSTORMS FROM GREAT BEND TO 15 MILES
SOUTHWEST OF GREAT BEND.  AT 305 PM CDT THE GREAT BEND SHERIFF REPORTED
PEA TO MARBLE SIZE HAIL JUST SOUTHWEST OF GREAT BEND.

OTHER SHOWERS WERE FROM JUST SOUTH OF CONCORDIA TO SALINA TO JUST NORTH OF
MCPHERSON.  ALL THE THUNDERSTORMS AND SHOWERS WER MOVING NORTH AT 30 MPH.

THE ATMOSPHERE OVER CENTRAL AND NORTH-CENTRAL KANSAS IS VERY UNSTABLE AND
ADDITIONAL THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT IS LIKELY THIS AFTERNOON.

LS

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, 9:38 PM CDTTornado WarningTOPSmith52 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, 5:54 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.