Alert archive / Kansas / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1993

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 2, NWS Wichita, KS

February 20, 1993Cowley County, Kansas

NWS Wichita, KS issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Feb 20, 1993, 8:03 PM CST for Cowley County, Kansas. It was in force for 57 min.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
Feb 20, 1993, 8:03 PM CST (02:03 UTC)
Expired
Feb 20, 1993, 9:00 PM CST
In force
57 min
Issued by
NWS Wichita, KS
Area
Whole counties

County Cowley County, KS

The nearest sounding before it

Topeka, KS (KTOP), launched 00:00Z, 2.1 hours before the alert went out and 222 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 00:00Z on 1993-02-21Temperature 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, Topeka, KS at 00:00Z on 1993-02-21The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 379 square meters per square second.1939587897117Sfc1 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
541 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
73 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
379 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
396 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 KICT 210205
SVRICT
KSC035-210300-
 
BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WICHITA KS
803 PM CST SAT FEB 20 1993
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN WICHITA HAS ISSUED A
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL  900 PM CST
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATION...
 
IN SOUTH CENTRAL KANSAS
 
   ...COWLEY COUNTY
 
AT 800 PM CST...RADAR INDICATED SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS CAPABLE OF
PRODUCING LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS LOCATED BETWEEN ARKANSAS CITY
AND WINFIELD...ALSO JUST NORTH OF DEXTER...OR 15 MILES NORTHEAST OF
ARKANSAS CITY.
 
THESE STORMS ARE MOVING TO THE NORTHEAST AT 40 MILES PER HOUR.  HACKNEY
...CAMBRIDGE...AND DEXTER ARE IN THE PATH OF THESE STORMS.  IF YOU ARE
IN OR NEAR THESE AREAS...MOVE TO INSIDE SHELTER NOW.
 
SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS PRODUCE DAMAGING WIND IN EXCESS OF 55
MPH...DESTRUCTIVE HAIL...DEADLY LIGHTNING...AND VERY HEAVY RAIN.
FOR YOUR PROTECTION MOVE TO AN INTERIOR ROOM ON THE LOWEST FLOOR
OF YOUR HOME OR BUSINESS.  HEAVY RAINS FLOOD ROADS QUICKLY... SO
DON'T DRIVE ONTO WATER-COVERED ROADS.
 
HEDGES

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before this severe thunderstorm 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, Feb 20, 7:16 PM CST, 47 minutes before
KSZ009-011-012-014-017-210215-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WICHITA KS
713 PM CST SAT FEB 20 1993

...THUNDERSTORMS ARE DEVELOPING RAPIDLY ALONG THE KANSAS/OKLAHOMA
BORDER...
...DENSE FOG IS CREATING A TRAVEL HAZARD ACROSS SOUTH KANSAS...

SHORTLY AFTER SUNSET...THUNDERSTORMS BEGAN DEVELOPING OVER NORTHERN
OKLAHOMA.  BY 700 PM...THESE THUNDERSTORMS BEGAN TO CROSS THE BORDER
INTO SOUTH CENTRAL KANSAS.

AT 710 PM...THE THUNDERSTORMS EXTENDED FROM 45 MILES SOUTHEAST OF
PRATT...TO 20 MILES EAST OF ARKANSAS CITY. THESE THUNDERSTORMS WERE
CAPABLE OF PRODUCING BRIEF HEAVY RAIN...FREQUENT DEADLY LIGHTNING...AND
SMALL HAIL.

THESE THUNDERSTORMS WERE MOVING TO THE NORTHEAST AT 40 MPH...AND WILL
CONTINUE TO MOVE INTO SOUTH CENTRAL KANSAS...MAINLY SOUTH OF WICHITA
...DURING THE NEXT FEW HOURS.  THUNDERSTORMS WILL ALSO SPREAD INTO
SOUTHEAST KANSAS...ALONG THE OKLAHOMA BORDER WEST OF COFFEYVILLE... BY 8
PM.

DENSE FOG HAS REDEVELOPED OVER MOST AREAS OF SOUTH CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST
KANSAS...REDUCING VESIBILITIES TO LESS THAN 1/4 MILE.

IF YOU MUST DRIVE TONIGHT...ALLOW EXTRA DRIVING TIME AND SLOW DOWM.  USE
LOW BEAM HEADLIGHTS WHEN DRIVING IN FOG.

HEDGESP
Special weather statement, Feb 20, 7:36 PM CST, 27 minutes before
KSZ009-011-012-014-017-210230-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WICHITA KS
735 PM CST SAT FEB 20 1993

...THUNDERSTORMS CONTINUED TO RAKE ACROSS SOUTHERN PORTIONS OF SOUTH CENTRAL
   AND SOUTHEAST KANSAS...

AT 730 PM CST...SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS...SOME CONTAINING VERY HEAVY RAINS
...FREQUENT CLOUD TO GROUD LIGHTNING...GUSTY WINDS TO NEAR 50 MILES AN HOUR...
AN SMALL HAIL WERE OBSERVED ACROSS PARTS OF SOUTH CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST KANSAS.

THE STRONGEST THUNDERSTORMS IN KANSAS WERE LOCATED JUST WEST OF COFFEYVILLE
AND JUST NORTHWEST OF ARKANSAS CITY.  PERSONS IN BURDEN AND MOUND VALLEY
SHOULD BE READY FOR BRIEF HEAVY DOWNPOURS...GUSTY WINDS AND DEADLY LIGHTNING
BY MOVING INDOORS UNTIL THESE STORMS PASS.

THESE THUNDERSTORMS WERE PART OF A LARGER AREA OF THUNDERSTORMS THAT WAS 65
MILES WIDE AND EXTENDED FROM 40 MILES SOUTHEAST OF PRATT TO NEAR COFFEYVILLE.
MOVEMENT WAS RAPIDLY TO THE NORTHEAST AT 40 MILES AN HOUR.

PERSONS NEAR THE OKLAHOMA BORDER SHOULD BE READY TO MOVE INDOORS IF
THREATNING WEATHER APPROACHES.  STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO FOR
FURTHER UPDATES AND POSSIBLE WARNINGS._

HYSELL

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Feb 20, 7:55 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningICTChautauqua38 min
Feb 20, 9:00 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningICTCowley30 min
Feb 20, 9:11 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningICTElk25 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Kansas, 1993Every severe thunderstorm warning 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.