Alert archive / Colorado / Tornado Warnings in 1993

Tornado Warning 20, NWS Denver/Boulder, CO

July 13, 1993Larimer County, Weld County, Colorado

NWS Denver/Boulder, CO issued this tornado warning at Jul 13, 1993, 12:47 PM MDT for Larimer County, Weld County, Colorado. It was in force for 28 min.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
Jul 13, 1993, 12:47 PM MDT (18:47 UTC)
Expired
Jul 13, 1993, 1:15 PM MDT
In force
28 min
Issued by
NWS Denver/Boulder, CO
Area
Whole counties

Counties Larimer County, CO, Weld County, CO

The nearest sounding before it

Denver, CO (KDEN), launched 12:00Z, 6.8 hours before the alert went out and 166 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, Denver, CO at 12:00Z on 1993-07-13Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 18 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 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, Denver, CO at 12:00Z on 1993-07-13The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity -42 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
18 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-324 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1771 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
31 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
-42 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
132 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.1

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
TTAA00 KDEN 131849
TORDEN
COC069-123-131915-

BULLETIN - EBS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DENVER CO
1247 PM MDT TUE JUL 13 1993

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN DENVER HAS ISSUED A TORNADO
WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 115 PM MDT FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING
COUNTIES

IN NORTH CENTRAL COLORADO
     NORTHEASTERN LARIMER

IN NORTHEASTERN COLORADO
     NORTHWESTERN WELD

INCLUDING THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS
     CARR...NATURAL FORT REST AREA AND ROCKPORT

AT 1247 PM MDT...THE PUBLIC REPORTED 4 SMALL TORNADOES 5 MILES
NORTHWEST OF NUNN.

THESE TORNADOES WERE MOVING NORTHEAST AT 15 MPH.

THE SAFEST PLACE TO BE DURING A TORNADO IS IN A BASEMENT.  GET
UNDER A WORKBENCH OR OTHER PIECE OF STURDY FURNITURE.  IF NO
BASEMENT IS AVAILABLE...SEEK SHELTER ON THE LOWEST FLOOR OF THE
BUILDING IN AN INTERIOR HALLWAY OR ROOM SUCH AS A CLOSET.  USE
BLANKETS OR PILLOWS TO COVER YOUR BODY AND ALWAYS STAY AWAY
FROM WINDOWS.

IF IN MOBILE HOMES OR VEHICLES...EVACUATE THEM AND GET INSIDE A
SUBSTANTIAL SHELTER.  IF NO SHELTER IS AVAILABLE...LIE FLAT IN
THE NEAREST DITCH OR OTHER LOW SPOT AND COVER YOUR HEAD WITH
YOUR HANDS.

TO REPORT SEVERE WEATHER HAVE THE NEAREST LAW ENFORCEMENT
AGENCY REXLAY YOUR REPORT TO THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE
FORECAST OFFICE IN DENVER.

DULONG
LAT...LON 4075 10461 4075 10511 4100 10512 4101 10461

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, Jul 13, 11:38 AM MDT, 1 hour 9 minutes before
COZ002-004-011-012-013-140600-

SIGNIFICANT WEATHER OUTLOOK FOR NORTHEAST AND NORTH CENTRAL COLORADO
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DENVER CO
1140 AM MDT TUE JUL 13 1993

THIS OUTLOOK PERTAINS TO THE FOLLOWING COLORADO COUNTIES

ADAMS          DENVER     JACKSON      LOGAN       SEDGWICK     YUMA
ARAPAHOE       DOUGLAS    JEFFERSON    MORGAN      SUMMIT
BOULDER        GILPIN     LARIMER      PARK        WASHINGTON
CLEAR CREEK    GRAND      LAKE         PHILLIPS    WELD

A COLD FRONT MOVED THROUGH EASTERN COLORADO LAST NIGHT...KEEPING THE
ATMOSPHERE MOIST BUT ALSO IMPORTING COOLER AIR NEAR THE SURFACE.  A
DISTURBANCE WAS APPROACHING NORTHEAST COLORADO FROM THE WEST THIS
MORNING.

LOW LEVEL UPSLOPING NORTHEAST WINDS SHOULD HELP TO TRIGGER NUMEROUS
THUNDERSTORMS OVER AND NEAR THE FOOTHILLS EARLY THIS AFTERNOON.
THIS ACTIVITY SHOULD SPREAD EASTWARD ACROSS THE NORTHEAST PLAINS AND
BORDER BY EARLY EVENING.  THERE IS A REMOTE CHANCE THATd A FEW STORMS
COULD BE SEVERE.  HOWEVER...THE MAIN THREAT FROM STORMS TODAY WILL BE
LOCALLY HEAVY RAIN AND SMALL HAIL.

THERE IS A CHANCE THAT SPOTTERS WILL BE NEEDED THIS AFTERNOON OR
EVENING.

DULONG
Special weather statement, Jul 13, 11:40 AM MDT, 1 hour 7 minutes before
COZ002-004-011-012-013-140600-

SIGNIFICANT WEATHER OUTLOOK FOR NORTHEAST AND NORTH CENTRAL COLORADO
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DENVER CO
1140 AM MDT TUE JUL 13 1993

THIS OUTLOOK PERTAINS TO THE FOLLOWING COLORADO COUNTIES

ADAMS          DENVER     JACKSON      LOGAN       SEDGWICK     YUMA
ARAPAHOE       DOUGLAS    JEFFERSON    MORGAN      SUMMIT
BOULDER        GILPIN     LARIMER      PARK        WASHINGTON
CLEAR CREEK    GRAND      LAKE         PHILLIPS    WELD

A COLD FRONT MOVED THROUGH EASTERN COLORADO LAST NIGHT...KEEPING THE
ATMOSPHERE MOIST BUT ALSO IMPORTING COOLER AIR NEAR THE SURFACE.  A
DISTURBANCE WAS APPROACHING NORTHEAST COLORADO FROM THE WEST THIS
MORNING.

LOW LEVEL UPSLOPING NORTHEAST WINDS SHOULD HELP TO TRIGGER NUMEROUS
THUNDERSTORMS OVER AND NEAR THE FOOTHILLS EARLY THIS AFTERNOON.
THIS ACTIVITY SHOULD SPREAD EASTWARD ACROSS THE NORTHEAST PLAINS AND
BORDER BY EARLY EVENING.  THERE IS A REMOTE CHANCE THAT A FEW STORMS
COULD BE SEVERE.  HOWEVER...THE MAIN THREAT FROM STORMS TODAY WILL BE
LOCALLY HEAVY RAIN AND SMALL HAIL.

THERE IS A CHANCE THAT SPOTTERS WILL BE NEEDED THIS AFTERNOON OR
EVENING.

DULONG
Special weather statement, Jul 13, 12:30 PM MDT, 17 minutes before
COZ002-011-131900-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DENVER CO
1230 PM MDT TUE JUL 13 1993

...STRONG THUNDERSTORM WITH SMALL HAIL IN LARIMER COUNTY...

AT 1230 PM...DOPPLER RADAR SHOWED A STRONG THUNDERSTORMS WITH
SMALL HAIL FROM 5 MILES NORTHEAST OF FORT COLLINS TO NEAR RUSTIC
IN LARIMER COUNTY.  AT 1222 PM...PEA SIZE HAIL WAS REPORTED AT
THE TOWN OF LAPORTE.

THIS ACTIVITY IS MOVING NORTHEAST AT 20 MPH AND WILL BE AFFECTING
WELLINGTON...FORT COLLINS AND AULT FROM NOW THROUGH 1 PM.

DULONG
Special weather statement, Jul 13, 12:33 PM MDT, 14 minutes before
COZ002-011-131900-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DENVER CO
1230 PM MDT TUE JUL 13 1993

...STRONG THUNDERSTORM WITH SMALL HAIL IN LARIMER COUNTY...

AT 1230 PM...DOPPLER RADAR SHOWED A STRONG THUNDERSTORMS WITH
SMALL HAIL FROM 5 MILES NORTHEAST OF FORT COLLINS TO NEAR RUSTIC
IN LARIMER COUNTY.  AT 1222 PM...PEA SIZE HAIL WAS REPORTED AT
THE TOWN OF LAPORTE.

THIS ACTIVITY IS MOVING NORTHEAST AT 20 MPH AND WILL BE AFFECTING *
WELLINGTON...FORT COLLINS AND AULT FROM NOW THROUGH 1 PM.

DULONG

The office that day

Everything else NWS Denver/Boulder, CO issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jul 13, 4:27 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBOUBoulder33 min
Jul 13, 5:39 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBOUAdams, Weld36 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Colorado, 1993Every tornado warning in 1993Tornadoes in 1993

Sources

The product and its follow-ups from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service and Storm Prediction Center text; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive.