Alert archive / Minnesota / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1996

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 99, NWS Grand Forks, ND

July 17, 1996Norman County, Polk County, Minnesota

NWS Grand Forks, ND issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Jul 17, 1996, 11:15 PM CDT for Norman County, Polk County, Minnesota. It was in force for 30 min. 3 reports 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
Jul 17, 1996, 11:15 PM CDT (04:15 UTC)
Expired
Jul 17, 1996, 11:45 PM CDT
In force
30 min
Issued by
NWS Grand Forks, ND
Area
Whole counties

Counties Norman County, MN, Polk County, MN

The radar

The Fargo/Grand Forks radar (KMVX), 67 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 04:15 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
Jul 17, 11:15 PM CDTHail 1Fertile, MN
Jul 17, 11:15 PM CDTHail 1Fertile, MN
Jul 17, 11:24 PM CDTHail 0.75Flaming, MN

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.

The nearest sounding before it

International Fa, MN (KINL), launched 00:00Z, 4.3 hours before the alert went out and 259 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, International Fa, MN at 00:00Z on 1996-07-18Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 784 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, International Fa, MN at 00:00Z on 1996-07-18The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity -5 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
784 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-29 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1261 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
21 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
-5 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
-30 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 KFAR 180416
SVRFAR
MNC119-107-180445-
 
BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EASTERN NORTH DAKOTA ND
1115 PM CDT WED JUL 17 1996
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN EASTERN NORTH DAKOTA HAS ISSUED A
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 1145 PM CDT
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS...
 
IN NORTHWEST MINNESOTA
 
   ...SOUTH CENTRAL POLK COUNTY
 
IN WEST CENTRAL MINNESOTA
 
   ...NORTHEASTERN NORMAN COUNTY
 
AT 1115 PM CDT...DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM NEAR
FLAMING...OR 45 MILES SOUTHEAST OF GRAND FORKS. THE STORM WAS MOVING
SLOWLY NORTHEAST AT 15 MPH.
 
THIS THUNDERSTORM WILL APPROACH THE TOWNS OF RANUM AND RINDAL.
 
REMEMBER SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS CAN AND OCCASIONALLY DO
PRODUCE TORNADOES WITH LITTLE OR NO ADVANCE WARNING.
 
JB

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jul 17, 9:40 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGFNorman20 min
Jul 17, 10:00 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGFNorman15 min
Jul 17, 10:14 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGFNorman31 min
Jul 17, 10:45 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGFNorman30 min
Jul 18, 12:15 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGFPolk30 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Minnesota, 1996Every severe thunderstorm warning in 1996

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.