Alert archive / North Dakota / Tornado Warnings in 1992

Tornado Warning 1, NWS Bismarck, ND

May 21, 1992Emmons County, Kidder County, North Dakota

NWS Bismarck, ND issued this tornado warning at May 21, 1992, 4:17 PM CDT for Emmons County, Kidder County, North Dakota. 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
May 21, 1992, 4:17 PM CDT (21:17 UTC)
Expired
May 21, 1992, 4:45 PM CDT
In force
28 min
Issued by
NWS Bismarck, ND
Area
Whole counties

Counties Emmons County, ND, Kidder County, ND

What was reported inside it

TimeReportWhereRemark
May 21, 4:35 PM CDTHail 0.75Emmons, 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 12:00Z, 9.3 hours before the alert went out and 55 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, Bismarck Municip, ND at 12:00Z on 1992-05-21Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 194 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 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, Bismarck Municip, ND at 12:00Z on 1992-05-21The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 32 square meters per square second.193958Sfc1 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
194 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-292 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1120 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
17 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
32 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
95 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
TTAA00 KBIS 212122 COR
TORBIS
NDC043-029-212145-

BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED/EBS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING  ...CORRECTED TO ADD TOWNS IN PATH OF STORM...
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BISMARCK ND
417 PM CDT THU MAY 21 1992

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED A TORNADO WARNING
EFFECTIVE UNTIL 445 PM CDT FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING
COUNTIES

   IN THE CENTRAL PART OF NORTH DAKOTA
      SOUTHERN KIDDER...

   IN THE SOUTH CENTRAL PART OF NORTH DAKOTA
      NORTHERN EMMONS...

AT 412 PM CDT A TORNADO WAS SPOTTED 2 MILES SOUTH OF BRADDOCK OR
40 MILES SOUTHEAST OF BISMARCK MOVING NORTHEAST AT 30 MPH. TOWNS
IN THE PATH OF THIS STORM INCLUDE STEELE AND DAWSON.
IF YOU ARE IN THE PATH OF THIS TORNADO GO TO THE BASEMENT OF A HOUSE
IF AVAILABLE...OTHERWISE TO A CENTRAL INTERIOR ROOM ON THE LOWEST
FLOOR...STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS.  ABANDON CARS AND MOBILE HOMES.

THIS STORM IS ACCOMPANIED BY DANGEROUS LIGHTNING...LARGE HAIL...
VERY HEAVY RAIN...AND DAMAGING STRAIGHT LINE WINDS.

 RSL

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, May 21, 2:57 PM CDT, 1 hour 20 minutes before
NDZ005>014-212100-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BISMARCK ND
245 PM CDT THU MAY 22 1992

...THUNDERSTORMS DEVELOPING IN CENTRAL NORTH DAKOTA...

AT 240 PM CDT...BISMARCK RADAR SHOWED A NARROW BAND OF THUNDERSTORMS
DEVELOPING ALONG A COLD FRONT IN CENTRAL NORTH DAKOTA. THE BAND WAS
20 MILES WIDE AND EXTENDED FROM 75 MILES NORTHEAST OF BISMARCK
THROUGH BISMARCK TO THE SOUTH DAKOTA BORDER NEAR THE MISSOURI RIVER.

THREE STRONG STORMS WERE NOTED ON THE RADAR SCREEN. THE FIRST WAS
5 MILES NORTH OF HURDSFIELD OR 75 MILES NORTHEAST OF BISMARCK. THE
SECOND WAS 5 MILES NORTH OF BISMARCK...AND THE THIRD WAS 5 MILES
NORTH OF SHIELDS OR 45 MILES SOUTHWEST OF BISMARCK. THIS 3 STORMS
LIKELY CONTAIN BRIEF HEAVY RAIN AND GUSTY WINDS. THEY COULD ALSO
CONTAIN SMALL HAIL. THE STORMS WERE MOVING NORTH NORTHEAST AT 20 MPH.

THE AIR IS BECOMING UNSTABLE OVER CENTRAL NORTH DAKOTA...AND
THUNDERSTORMS COULD BECOME QUITE VIGOROUS. PERSONS SHOULD BE ALERT TO
DEVELOPING THUNDERSTORMS.

LM
Special weather statement, May 21, 3:45 PM CDT, 32 minutes before
NDZ005>014-212100-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BISMARCK ND
340 PM CDT THU MAY 22 1992

...THUNDERSTORMS CONTINUE TO DEVELOP AND INTENSIFY OVER CENTRAL
NORTH DAKOTA...

AT 330 PM CDT...BISMARCK RADAR SHOWED A LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS THAT
EXTENDS FROM NORTHWEST OF DEVILS LAKE SOUTH THROUGH HURDSFIELD TO
STEELE THEN SOUTHWEST TO SOUTH OF BISMARCK TO NEAR SELFRIDGE
ALONG THE SOUTH DAKOTA BORDER.

THE STRONGEST THUNDERSTORMS WERE LOCATED IN TOWNER COUNTY NEAR CANDO
...IN WELLS COUNTY NEAR HURDSFIELD-FESSENDEN AREA...IN KIDDER COUNTY
NEAR STEELE AND TUTTLE AND IN SIOUX COUNTY NEAR SELFRIDGE.  THESE
THUNDERSTORMS WERE MOVING TOWARD THE NORTHEAST AT 25 MPH.

PERSONS IN CENTRAL AND EASTERN NORTH DAKOTA SHOULD BE ALERT FOR SEVERE
WEATHER WITH THESE THUNDERSTORMS THAT MAY PRODUCE HEAVY RAIN...HAIL...
AND  POSSIBLE TORNADOES.

DES

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 20, 10:53 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBISMcKenzie37 min
May 21, 5:05 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBISKidder40 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in North Dakota, 1992Every tornado warning in 1992Tornadoes in 1992

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.