Alert archive / Colorado / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1997

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 105, NWS Denver/Boulder, CO

July 21, 1997Weld County, Colorado

NWS Denver/Boulder, CO issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Jul 21, 1997, 5:27 PM MDT for Weld County, Colorado. It was in force for 48 min. 1 report came from inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The outline the Iowa Environmental Mesonet reconstructed for it; the warning itself named whole counties, with what was reported inside it.

The facts

Issued
Jul 21, 1997, 5:27 PM MDT (23:27 UTC)
Expired
Jul 21, 1997, 6:15 PM MDT
In force
48 min
Issued by
NWS Denver/Boulder, CO
Area
Whole counties; the outline is the Mesonet’s reconstruction

County Weld County, CO

The radar

The Cheyenne radar (KCYS), 84 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 23:31 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 21, 5:50 PM MDTHail 0.75New Raymer, COLarge hail and strong thunderstorms winds estimated to 50 mph shredded wheat fields.

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

Denver, CO (KDNR), launched 12:00Z, 11.5 hours before the alert went out and 130 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 1997-07-21Temperature 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, Denver, CO at 12:00Z on 1997-07-21The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 17 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
2335 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
22 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
17 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
45 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 KDEN 212329 RRA
SVRDEN
COC123-220015-

BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DENVER CO
527 PM MDT MON JUL 21 1997

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN DENVER HAS ISSUED A SEVERE
THUNDERSTORM WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 615 PM MDT FOR PEOPLE IN THE
FOLLOWING COUNTIES...

IN NORTHEAST COLORADO
     NORTHEASTERN WELD

INCLUDING THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS
     PAWNEE BUTTES

AT 527 PM MDT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM 12 MILES NORTH OF PAWNEE BUTTES...OR ABOUT 45
MILES NORTHWEST OF STERLING.

THE STORM WAS MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 10 MILES PER HOUR AND WILL BE MOVING
INTO THE PAWNEE BUTTES AREA BY 605 PM.  

VERY LARGE HAIL AND STRONG GUSTY WINDS UP TO 60 MPH ARE POSSIBLE WITH 
THIS SEVERE THUNDERSTORM. IF YOU ARE IN THE PATH OF THE STORM...PUT 
YOUR CAR IN A GARAGE AND MOVE TO A SUBSTANTIAL SHELTER.  STAY AWAY 
FROM WINDOWS. 

REPORT SEVERE WEATHER TO THE NEAREST LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY. THEY
WILL RELAY YOUR REPORT TO THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FORECAST
OFFICE IN DENVER.

BARJENBRUCH 

LAT...LON 4099 10373 4081 10368 4081 10400 4100 10404
          4101 10392

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 21, 11:30 AM MDT, 5 hours 57 minutes before
COZ030-032>050-220600-

SIGNIFICANT WEATHER OUTLOOK FOR NORTHEAST AND NORTH CENTRAL COLORADO
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DENVER CO
1130 AM MDT MON JUL 21 1997

THIS OUTLOOK PERTAINS TO THE FOLLOWING COLORADO COUNTIES

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

SYNOPSIS: HIGH SURFACE PRESSURE OVER NEBRASKA AND SOUTH DAKOTA AND A
SURFACE LOW OVER WESTERN COLORADO IS CAUSING LOW LEVEL MOISTURE TO
MOVE INTO NORTHEAST COLORADO FROM OUT OF THE NEBRASKA PANHANDLE
TODAY.  WINDS AT HIGHER ELEVATIONS ARE OUT OF THE WEST AND FAIRLY
WEAK...WITH A BIT STRONGER FLOW OVER SOUTHERN WYOMING.  CLEAR SKIES
THIS MORNING HAVE ALSO ALLOWED FOR GOOD SURFACE HEATING THROUGH THE
MORNING HOURS.

WARM AFTERNOON TEMPERATURES AND INCREASING LOW LEVEL MOISTURE WILL
COMBINE FOR A CHANCE OF AFTERNOON AND EVENING THUNDERSTORMS ON THE
PLAINS...MAINLY NORTHEAST OF DENVER.  TEMPERATURES ALOFT ARE WARM
ENOUGH THAT THE THREAT OF LARGE HAIL WITH THUNDERSTORMS SHOULD BE
MINIMAL.  HOWEVER...HEAVY RAINS WILL BE POSSIBLE SINCE THUNDERSTORMS
WILL BE SLOW MOVING AND THE RELATIVELY HIGH MOISTURE CONTENT.  THE
BEST CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS PRODUCING HEAVY RAINS APPEARS TO BE TO
THE NORTHEAST OF A GREELY TO LAST CHANCE LINE.

SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT EXPECTED TODAY...BUT RESIDENTS ON THE
NORTHEAST COLORADO PLAINS SHOULD REMAIN ALERT TO DEVELOPING WEATHER
SITUATIONS AND KEEP IN MIND THE THREAT OF HEAVY RAINS CAUSING
LOCALIZED FLOODING.

DANKERS
Special weather statement, Jul 21, 11:32 AM MDT, 5 hours 55 minutes before
COZ030-032>050-220600-

SIGNIFICANT WEATHER OUTLOOK FOR NORTHEAST AND NORTH CENTRAL COLORADO
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DENVER CO
1130 AM MDT MON JUL 21 1997

THIS OUTLOOK PERTAINS TO THE FOLLOWING COLORADO COUNTIES

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

SYNOPSIS: HIGH SURFACE PRESSURE OVER NEBRASKA AND SOUTH DAKOTA AND A
SURFACE LOW OVER WESTERN COLORADO IS CAUSING LOW LEVEL MOISTURE TO
MOVE INTO NORTHEAST COLORADO FROM OUT OF THE NEBRASKA PANHANDLE
TODAY.  WINDS AT HIGHER ELEVATIONS ARE OUT OF THE WEST AND FAIRLY
WEAK...WITH A BIT STRONGER FLOW OVER SOUTHERN WYOMING.  CLEAR SKIES
THIS MORNING HAVE ALSO ALLOWED FOR GOOD SURFACE HEATING THROUGH THE
MORNING HOURS.

WARM AFTERNOON TEMPERATURES AND INCREASING LOW LEVEL MOISTURE WILL
COMBINE FOR A CHANCE OF AFTERNOON AND EVENING THUNDERSTORMS ON THE
PLAINS...MAINLY NORTHEAST OF DENVER.  TEMPERATURES ALOFT ARE WARM
ENOUGH THAT THE THREAT OF LARGE HAIL WITH THUNDERSTORMS SHOULD BE
MINIMAL.  HOWEVER...HEAVY RAINS WILL BE POSSIBLE SINCE THUNDERSTORMS
WILL BE SLOW MOVING AND THE RELATIVELY HIGH MOISTURE CONTENT.  THE
BEST CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS PRODUCING HEAVY RAINS APPEARS TO BE TO
THE NORTHEAST OF A GREELY TO LAST CHANCE LINE.

SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT EXPECTED TODAY...BUT RESIDENTS ON THE
NORTHEAST COLORADO PLAINS SHOULD REMAIN ALERT TO DEVELOPING WEATHER
SITUATIONS AND KEEP IN MIND THE THREAT OF HEAVY RAINS CAUSING
LOCALIZED FLOODING.

DANKERS
Special weather statement, Jul 21, 1:25 PM MDT, 4 hours 2 minutes before
COZ049-212000-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DENVER CO
125 PM MDT MON JUL 21 1997

...THUNDERSTORM WITH HEAVY RAIN IN CENTRAL WASHINGTON COUNTY...

AT 123 PM MDT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
THUNDERSTORM JUST WEST OF ELBA...OR ABOUT 16 MILES SOUTH OF AKRON.
THIS STORM WAS PRODUCING TORRENTIAL RAIN...SMALL HAIL...AND GUSTY
WINDS UP TO 50 MPH.

THE STORM WAS NEARLY STATIONARY...AND WILL PRODUCE 1 TO 2 INCHES OF
RAIN IN 30 MINUTES OR LESS.

HEAVY RAINS MAY FLOOD LOW LYING AREAS.  DO NOT DRIVE ACROSS FLOODED
ROADS.  WATER LEVELS OF SMALL STREAMS AND RIVERS MAY ALSO
RISE...THEREFORE SEEK HIGHER GROUND IF THREATENED BY FLOOD WATERS.

BARJENBRUCH
Special weather statement, Jul 21, 1:26 PM MDT, 4 hours 1 minute before
COZ049-212000-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DENVER CO
125 PM MDT MON JUL 21 1997

...THUNDERSTORM WITH HEAVY RAIN IN CENTRAL WASHINGTON COUNTY...

AT 123 PM MDT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
THUNDERSTORM JUST WEST OF ELBA...OR ABOUT 16 MILES SOUTH OF AKRON.
THIS STORM WAS PRODUCING TORRENTIAL RAIN...SMALL HAIL...AND GUSTY
WINDS UP TO 50 MPH.

THE STORM WAS NEARLY STATIONARY...AND WILL PRODUCE 1 TO 2 INCHES OF
RAIN IN 30 MINUTES OR LESS.

HEAVY RAINS MAY FLOOD LOW LYING AREAS.  DO NOT DRIVE ACROSS FLOODED
ROADS.  WATER LEVELS OF SMALL STREAMS AND RIVERS MAY ALSO
RISE...THEREFORE SEEK HIGHER GROUND IF THREATENED BY FLOOD WATERS.

BARJENBRUCH

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Colorado, 1997Every severe thunderstorm warning in 1997

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.