Alert archive / Kansas / Tornado Warnings in 1997

Tornado Warning 12, NWS Dodge City, KS

May 29, 1997Ford County, Kansas

NWS Dodge City, KS issued this tornado warning at May 29, 1997, 4:11 PM CDT for Ford County, Kansas. It was in force for 49 min. 5 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
May 29, 1997, 4:11 PM CDT (21:11 UTC)
Expired
May 29, 1997, 5:00 PM CDT
In force
49 min
Issued by
NWS Dodge City, KS
Area
Whole counties

County Ford County, KS

The radar

The Dodge City radar (KDDC), 10 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 21:18 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 29, 4:23 PM CDTHail 0.75Dodge City, KS
May 29, 4:37 PM CDTHail 1.75Dodge City, KS
May 29, 5:00 PM CDTTornado F0Dodge City, KSTornado wrapped in rain much of the time, filmed by chaser.
May 29, 5:03 PM CDTHail 1.75Dodge City, KS
May 29, 5:03 PM CDTThunderstorm Wind 73Dodge City, KSIrrigation system overturned.

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 watch it was issued in

The SPC watch in force over the same counties when this warning went out.

IssuedProductOfficeLasted
May 29, 3:15 PM CDTTornado WatchSPC6 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Dodge City, (KDDC), launched 12:00Z, 9.2 hours before the alert went out and 9 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 12:00Z on 1997-05-29Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 44 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Dodge City, at 12:00Z on 1997-05-29The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 105 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
44 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-133 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
877 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
49 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
105 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
122 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 KDDC 292111 RRA
TORDDC
KSC057-292200-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DODGE CITY KS
411 PM CDT THU MAY 29 1997

* TORNADO WARNING FOR
  NORTHERN FORD COUNTY IN SOUTHWESTERN KANSAS

* UNTIL 500 PM CDT
 
* SOME LOCATIONS AFFECTED
  WRIGHT                     BY 430 PM CDT

* AT 409 PM CDT...DODGE CITY DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A DEVELOPING
  TORNADO 4 MILES NORTH OF DODGE CITY MOVING EAST AT 10 MPH.

* THIS STORM IS CAPABLE OF PRODUCING HAIL UP TO 1 INCH IN DIAMETER.

CURRENT MOTION WILL KEEP THE THREAT AREA NORTH OF THE CITY OF DODGE
CITY.

IF YOU ARE IN THE PATH OF A TORNADO...THE SAFEST PLACE IS IN A
BASEMENT.  IF A BASEMENT IS NOT AVAILABLE...GO THE AN INTERIOR ROOM
ON THE LOWEST FLOOR POSSIBLE

01/REITER]

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 29, 2:49 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDDCMorton46 min
May 29, 2:55 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDDCGray35 min
May 29, 3:16 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDDCHodgeman49 min
May 29, 3:35 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDDCFord45 min
May 29, 3:49 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDDCGrant61 min
May 29, 4:24 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDDCFord46 min
May 29, 4:47 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDDCMorton33 min
May 29, 4:48 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningDDCFord2 hr
May 29, 4:57 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningDDCFord113 min
May 29, 5:02 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDDCMorton, Stanton48 min
May 29, 5:07 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDDCFord48 min
May 29, 5:16 PM CDTTornado WarningDDCClark, Ford34 min
May 29, 5:39 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDDCMorton46 min
May 29, 5:52 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDDCClark63 min
May 29, 6:04 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningDDCClark3 hr
May 29, 6:12 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDDCComanche48 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Kansas, 1997Every tornado warning in 1997Tornadoes 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.