Alert archive / Iowa / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1995

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 55, NWS Des Moines, IA

July 4, 1995Union County, Iowa

NWS Des Moines, IA issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Jul 4, 1995, 4:39 PM CDT for Union County, Iowa. It was in force for 31 min.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
Jul 4, 1995, 4:39 PM CDT (21:39 UTC)
Expired
Jul 4, 1995, 5:10 PM CDT
In force
31 min
Issued by
NWS Des Moines, IA
Area
Whole counties

County Union County, IA

The radar

The Des Moines radar (KDMX), 89 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 21:42 UTC, the scan nearest the moment this went out.

Open the radar archive at this moment

The archived warnings, watches and discussions in force at that minute are drawn over the scan, this one among them.

The nearest sounding before it

Omaha, NE (KOAX), launched 12:00Z, 9.7 hours before the alert went out and 181 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, Omaha, NE at 12:00Z on 1995-07-04Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 0 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, Omaha, NE at 12:00Z on 1995-07-04The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 65 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
0 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL
651 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
12 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
65 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
53 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 KDSM 042136 RRA
SVRDSM
IAC175-042210-

BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DES MOINES IA
439 PM CDT TUE JUL 4 1995

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR
  UNION COUNTY - SOUTH CENTRAL IOWA

* UNTIL 500 PM CDT
 
* SOME TOWNS AFFECTED
    KENT
    CRESTON
    AFTON

* AT 435 PM CDT RADAR INDICATED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM NEAR LENOX...65
  MILES SOUTHWEST OF DES MOINES MOVING NORTHEAST AT 40 MILES AN HOUR.

* THEl STORM WILL BE NEAR KENT BY 445 PM CDT AND NEAR CRESTON BY 455 PM
  CDT.

THIS IS A DANGEROUS STORM.  DO NOT GO OUTDOORS.




BELLES

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, Jul 4, 1:30 PM CDT, 3 hours 9 minutes before
IAZALL-050000-

IOWA SEVERE WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DES MOINES IA
130 PM CDT TUE JUL 4 1995

HAZARD...SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS PRODUCING DAMAGING WINDS IN EXCESS OF 60
MPH. LARGE HAIL AND AN ISOLATED TORNADO IS ALSO POSSIBLE.

AREA OF CONCERN...ABOUT THE SOUTHEAST TWO-THIRDS OF IOWA...SOUTHEAST
OF A LINE FROM MASON CITY TO OMAHA-COUNCIL BLUFFS.

TIMING DETAILS...WIDELY SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS WERE MOVING RAPIDLY
NORTHEAST ACROSS EAST CENTRAL IOWA EARLY THIS AFTERNOON...BUT THESE
ARE NOT EXPECTED TO BECOME SEVERE. SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS DEVELOPING
OVER NORTHEAST KANSAS WILL RACE INTO SOUTHERN IOWA AFTER 600 PM AND
INTO NORTHERN IOWA AFTER 1000 PM.

METEOROLOGICAL COMMENTS...A FAST-MOVING SITUATION WAS SETTING AS AN
UNUSUALLY STRONG STORM SYSTEM FOR THIS TIME OF YEAR ROTATES OVER
SOUTHEAST SOUTH DAKOTA. EXTREMELY UNSTABLE AIR WAS LIFTING NORTH INTO
IOWA FROM MISSOURI AND KANSAS...WHERE LIFTED INDICES WERE BELOW MINUS
10. VERY STRONG SOUTH WINDS OVER 60 MPH WERE INDICATED ABOUT 3000 FEET
UP IN THE ATMOSPHERE...WHICH MAKES DAMAGING DOWNBURST WINDS THE MAIN
THREAT. IF SOUTHEAST WINDS CONTINUE AT THE SURFACE OVER IOWA...THE
THREAT OF TORNADOES MAY INCREASE.

PRECAUTIONS...PEOPLE WHO HAVE OUTDOOR PLANS THIS EVENING...ALONG WITH
COMMUNITIES HAVING FIREWORKS DISPLAYS...SHOULD MONITOR THIS SITUATION
VERY CLOSELY THIS EVENING. SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE REQUIRED AS WELL.

PYTLAK
Special weather statement, Jul 4, 1:31 PM CDT, 3 hours 8 minutes before
IAZALL-050000-

IOWA SEVERE WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DES MOINES IA
130 PM CDT TUE JUL 4 1995

HAZARD...SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS PRODUCING DAMAGING WINDS IN EXCESS OF 60
MPH. LARGE HAIL AND AN ISOLATED TORNADO IS ALSO POSSIBLE.

AREA OF CONCERN...ABOUT THE SOUTHEAST TWO-THIRDS OF IOWA...SOUTHEAST
OF A LINE FROM MASON CITY TO OMAHA-COUNCIL BLUFFS.

TIMING DETAILS...WIDELY SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS WERE MOVING RAPIDLY
NORTHEAST ACROSS EAST CENTRAL IOWA EARLY THIS AFTERNOON...BUT THESE
ARE NOT EXPECTED TO BECOME SEVERE. SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS DEVELOPING
OVER NORTHEAST KANSAS WILL RACE INTO SOUTHERN IOWA AFTER 600 PM AND
INTO NORTHERN IOWA AFTER 1000 PM.

METEOROLOGICAL COMMENTS...A FAST-MOVING SITUATION WAS SETTING AS AN
UNUSUALLY STRONG STORM SYSTEM FOR THIS TIME OF YEAR ROTATES OVER
SOUTHEAST SOUTH DAKOTA. EXTREMELY UNSTABLE AIR WAS LIFTING NORTH INTO
IOWA FROM MISSOURI AND KANSAS...WHERE LIFTED INDICES WERE BELOW MINUS
10. VERY STRONG SOUTH WINDS OVER 60 MPH WERE INDICATED ABOUT 3000 FEET
UP IN THE ATMOSPHERE...WHICH MAKES DAMAGING DOWNBURST WINDS THE MAIN
THREAT. IF SOUTHEAST WINDS CONTINUE AT THE SURFACE OVER IOWA...THE
THREAT OF TORNADOES MAY INCREASE.

PRECAUTIONS...PEOPLE WHO HAVE OUTDOOR PLANS THIS EVENING...ALONG WITH
COMMUNITIES HAVING FIREWORKS DISPLAYS...SHOULD MONITOR THIS SITUATION
VERY CLOSELY THIS EVENING. SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE REQUIRED AS WELL.

PYTLAK
Special weather statement, Jul 4, 1:38 PM CDT, 3 hours 1 minute before
IAZALL-050000-

IOWA SEVERE WEATHER OUTLOOK...CORRECTION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DES MOINES IA
138 PM CDT TUE JUL 4 1995

HAZARD...SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS PRODUCING DAMAGING WINDS IN EXCESS OF 60
MPH. LARGE HAIL AND AN ISOLATED TORNADO IS ALSO POSSIBLE.

AREA OF CONCERN...ABOUT THE SOUTHEAST TWO-THIRDS OF IOWA...SOUTHEAST
OF A LINE FROM MASON CITY TO OMAHA-COUNCIL BLUFFS.

TIMING DETAILS...WIDELY SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS WERE MOVING RAPIDLY
NORTHEAST ACROSS EAST CENTRAL IOWA EARLY THIS AFTERNOON...BUT THESE
ARE NOT EXPECTED TO BECOME SEVERE. SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS DEVELOPING
OVER NORTHEAST KANSAS WILL RACE INTO SOUTHERN IOWA AFTER 600 PM AND
INTO NORTHERN IOWA AFTER 1000 PM.

METEOROLOGICAL COMMENTS...A FAST-MOVING SITUATION WAS DEVEOPING AS AN
UNUSUALLY STRONG STORM SYSTEM FOR THIS TIME OF YEAR ROTATES OVER
SOUTHEAST SOUTH DAKOTA. EXTREMELY UNSTABLE AIR WAS LIFTING NORTH INTO
IOWA FROM MISSOURI AND KANSAS...WHERE LIFTED INDICES WERE BELOW MINUS
10. VERY STRONG SOUTH WINDS OVER 60 MPH WERE INDICATED ABOUT 3000 FEET
UP IN THE ATMOSPHERE...WHICH MAKES DAMAGING DOWNBURST WINDS THE MAIN
THREAT. IF SOUTHEAST WINDS CONTINUE AT THE SURFACE OVER IOWA...THE
THREAT OF TORNADOES MAY INCREASE.

PRECAUTIONS...PEOPLE WHO HAVE OUTDOOR PLANS THIS EVENING...ALONG WITH
COMMUNITIES HAVING FIREWORKS DISPLAYS...SHOULD MONITOR THIS SITUATION
VERY CLOSELY THIS EVENING. SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE REQUIRED AS WELL.

PYTLAK
CORRECTION FOR WORDING IN 3RD PARAGRAPH

The office that day

Everything else NWS Des Moines, IA issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jul 4, 4:18 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXTaylor32 min
Jul 4, 5:08 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXUnion12 min
Jul 4, 5:34 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXPolk16 min
Jul 4, 5:56 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXPolk14 min
Jul 4, 6:37 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXJasper, Marshall13 min
Jul 4, 6:52 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXMahaska, Wapello23 min
Jul 4, 6:52 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXPoweshiek23 min
Jul 4, 6:58 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXMarshall, Tama32 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Iowa, 1995Every severe thunderstorm warning in 1995

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; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.