Alert archive / Kansas / Tornado Warnings in 1995

Tornado Warning 12, NWS Goodland, KS

May 15, 1995Greeley County, Kansas

NWS Goodland, KS issued this tornado warning at May 15, 1995, 6:29 PM MDT for Greeley County, Kansas. It was in force for 46 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 15, 1995, 6:29 PM MDT (00:29 UTC)
Expired
May 15, 1995, 7:15 PM MDT
In force
46 min
Issued by
NWS Goodland, KS
Area
Whole counties

County Greeley County, KS

The radar

The Goodland radar (KGLD), 99 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 00:29 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.

What was reported inside it

TimeReportWhereRemark
May 15, 6:35 PM MDTTornado F0Tribune, KSBrief tornado near highway 27 observed by law enforcement.

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

Dodge City, (KDDC), launched 00:00Z, 0.5 hours before the alert went out and 185 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, Dodge City, at 00:00Z on 1995-05-16Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1357 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, Dodge City, at 00:00Z on 1995-05-16The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 127 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
1357 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-334 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1335 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
42 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
127 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
192 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 KGLD 160030
TORGLD
KSC071-160115-

BULLETIN - EBS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GOODLAND KS
629 PM MDT MON MAY 15 1995

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN GOODLAND HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 715 PM MDT (815 PM CDT)
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATION...

IN WEST CENTRAL KANSAS

   ...SOUTHEASTERN GREELEY COUNTY
 
AT 627 PM MDT...A TORNADO WAS REPORTED BY A SPOTTER 14 MILES SOUTH OF
TRIBUNE MOVING EAST AT 25 MPH. THE TORNADO IS CURRENTLY EXPECTED TO
REMAIN OVER RURAL AREAS.

THIS WARNING UPGRADES THE PRIOR SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR THIS
PORTION OF THE COUNTY.

IF YOU ARE IN A CAR, GO IN A NEARBY STURDY BUILDING! AS A LAST
RESORT LIE FLAT IN A DITCH AND COVER YOUR HEAD.

VJN

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.

NWS Goodland, KS wrote its last area forecast discussion before this tornado warning went out at May 15, 4:47 PM MDT, 1 hour 42 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, May 15, 4:47 PM MDT, 1 hour 42 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION...RETRANSMITTED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GOODLAND KS
147 PM MDT (247 PM CDT) MON MAY 15 1995

MODELS ARE IN PRETTY GOOD AGREEMENT THROUGH SECOND PERIOD WITH SOME
PRETTY IMPRESSIVE DIVERGENCE BEGINING TUE NIGHT. AVN BRINGS IN A BIT
MORE MORE MOISTURE IN THIS AFTERNOON. DEW POINTS ARE SUBSTANTIALLY
HIGHER THAN FWCS WOULD SUGGEST...BUT LATEST ADAP KEEPS DECENT CAP IN
PLACE. DEFINITELY SOME POTENTIAL FOR TRW WITH CAP BREAKING LOCALLY
AND GIVEN CAPES OF AROUND 1500 J/KG AND DECENT HELICITIES WILL HAVE
TO MONITOR ANY STORMS THAT DO FORM VERY CLOSELY.

AS WINDS BECOME DOWNSLOPE LATE TONIGHT INTO TUESDAY...LOW LEVEL
MOISTURE SHOULD TAKE A DIVE. DESPITE COOLING AT MID-LEVELS...
MOISTURE SHOULD BE LIMITED ENOUGH TO DELAY POPS AFTER SECOND PERIOD.
HIGH CLOUDS SHOULD ONCE AGAIN DOMINATE THE REGION TONIGHT AND
TUESDAY AS GRIDDED DATA FROM BOTH ETA AND NGM SHOULD UPPER LEVEL RH
ABOVE 70 PCT THROUGH 00Z WED.

OVERNIGHT TEMRPS SHOULD BE WARM WITH WINDS STAYING UP AND PROGGED 850
TEMPS REMAINING AROUND 20C. WITH WESTERLY COMPONENT TUESDAY...FAVOR
GOING ABOVE TODAYS READINGS IN 80S.

BARKER

In the hours before

Special weather statement, May 15, 3:59 PM MDT, 2 hours 30 minutes before
COZ091>092-KSZ001>004-013>016-027>029-041-042-160100-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GOODLAND KS
358 PM MDT (458 PM CDT) MON MAY 15 1995

...A TORNADO WATCH HAS BEEN ISSUED FOR NORTHWEST KANSAS AND PORTIONS
OF EXTREME EASTERN COLORADO UNTIL 11 PM MDT (MIDNIGHT CDT)...

THE NATIONAL SEVERE STORMS FORECAST CENTER HAS ISSUED A TORNADO
WATCH FOR MUCH OF NORTHWEST KANSAS AND EXTREME EASTERN COLORADO
UNTIL 11 PM MDT (MIDNIGHT CDT).

THE FOLLOWING KANSAS COUNTIES ARE UNDER THIS WATCH...CHEYENNE
RAWLINS...DECATUR...SHERIDAN...GRAHAM...SHERMAN...NORTON...THOMAS...
GOVE...WICHITA...GREELEY...WALLACE...AND LOGAN.

THE FOLLOWING COLORADO COUNTIES ARE UNDER THIS WATCH....EASTERN
CHEYENNE AND EASTERN KIT CARSON.

PEOPLE IN NORTHWEST KANSAS AND EXTREME EASTERN COLORADO SHOULD REVIEW
TORNADO SAFETY RULES NOW.  BE PREPARED TO SEEK SHELTER IF A WARNING
IS ISSUED OR A TORNADO IS SPOTTED.

FURTHER INFORMATION ON THIS DEVELOPING SITUATION WILL BE
CONTAINED UNDER WARNINGS...SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENTS...AND SHORT TERM
FORECASTS.

MENTZER

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 15, 6:16 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGLDGreeley31 min
May 15, 6:41 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGLDWichita64 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Kansas, 1995Every tornado warning in 1995Tornadoes 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; verification from NCEI's Storm Data; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.