Alert archive / Iowa / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1997
Severe Thunderstorm Warning 3, NWS Des Moines, IA
NWS Des Moines, IA issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Apr 5, 1997, 6:26 PM CST for Crawford County, Iowa. It was in force for 19 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
- Apr 5, 1997, 6:26 PM CST (00:26 UTC)
- Expired
- Apr 5, 1997, 6:45 PM CST
- In force
- 19 min
- Issued by
- NWS Des Moines, IA
- Area
- Whole counties
County Crawford County, IA
The radar
The Omaha radar (KOAX), 114 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 00:26 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
| Time | Report | Where | Remark |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 5, 6:29 PM CST | Hail 1.25 | Charter Oak, IA |
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
Omaha, NE (KOAX), launched 00:00Z, 0.4 hours before the alert went out and 114 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.
- Mixed-layer CAPE
- 89 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -20 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 1566 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 27 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 103 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 124 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 0.5
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000
TTAA00 KDSM 060026 RRA
SVRDSM
IAC047-060045-
BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DES MOINES IA
626 PM CST SAT APR 5 1997
* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR
NORTHWESTERN CRAWFORD COUNTY - WEST CENTRAL IOWA
* UNTIL 645 PM CST
* SOME AREAS AFFECTED
SCHLESWIG
RICKETTS
* AT 624PM THE PUBLIC REPORTED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM IN CHARTER
OAK...60 NORTHEAST OF OMAHA MOVING NORTHEAST AT 35 MPH.
* THE STORM WILL BE RICKETTS BY 635 PM AND THROUGH SCHLESWIG BY 640 PM.
THIS IS A DANGEROUS STORM. DO NOT GO OUTDOORS.
SMITHWhat 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, Apr 5, 3:42 PM CST, 2 hours 44 minutes before
IAZ004>007-015>017-023>028-033>039-044>050-057>062-070>075-081>086- 092>097-052245- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DES MOINES IA 342 PM CST SAT APR 5 1997 ...THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH FOR CENTRAL IOWA HAS BEEN CANCELLED BUT REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR EASTERN IOWA UNTIL 7 PM CST... THE THUNDERSTORMS WHICH PRODUCED WIND GUSTS TO 70 MPH HAVE EXITED CENTRAL IOWA AND CONTINUE TO MOVE NORTHEAST AT 40 MPH. AS A RESULT THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH FOR CENTRAL IOWA HAS BEEN CANCELLED. CLEARING CONDITIONS WILL MOVE ACROSS IOWA FROM THE SOUTH THROUGH EARLY EVENING BUT SHOWERS WIILL REDEVELOP ACROSS THE AREA AFTER 10 PM. FAB
Special weather statement, Apr 5, 3:42 PM CST, 2 hours 44 minutes before
IAZ004>007-015>017-023>028-033>039-044>050-057>062-070>075-081>086- 092>097-052245- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT...CORRECTED NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DES MOINES IA 342 PM CST SAT APR 5 1997 ...THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH FOR NORTHERN IOWA HAS BEEN CANCELLED BUT REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR EASTERN IOWA UNTIL 7 PM CST... THE THUNDERSTORMS WHICH PRODUCED WIND GUSTS TO 70 MPH HAVE EXITED CENTRAL IOWA AND CONTINUE TO MOVE NORTHEAST AT 40 MPH. AS A RESULT THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH FOR NORTHERN IOWA HAS BEEN CANCELLED. THE STORMS WILL CONTINUE TO MOVE ACROSS EASTERN IOWA WHERE THE WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT. CLEARING CONDITIONS WILL MOVE ACROSS IOWA FROM THE SOUTH THROUGH EARLY EVENING BUT SHOWERS WIILL REDEVELOP ACROSS THE AREA AFTER 10 PM. FAB
Special weather statement, Apr 5, 3:48 PM CST, 2 hours 38 minutes before
IAZ004>007-015>017-023>028-033>039-044>050-057>062-070>075-081>086- 092>097-052245- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT...CORRECTED NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DES MOINES IA 342 PM CST SAT APR 5 1997 ...THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH FOR NORTHERN IOWA HAS BEEN CANCELLED BUT REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR EASTERN IOWA UNTIL 7 PM CST... THE THUNDERSTORMS WHICH PRODUCED WIND GUSTS TO 70 MPH HAVE EXITED CENTRAL IOWA AND CONTINUE TO MOVE NORTHEAST AT 40 MPH. AS A RESUfLT THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH FOR CENTRAL IOWA HAS BEEN CANCELLED. CLEARING CONDITIONS WILL MOVE ACROSS IOWA FROM THE SOUTH THROUGH EARLY EVENING BUT SHOWERS WIILL REDEVELOP ACROSS THE AREA AFTER 10 PM. FAB
Special weather statement, Apr 5, 3:49 PM CST, 2 hours 37 minutes before
IAZ004>007-015>017-023>028-033>039-044>050-057>062-070>075-081>086- 092>097-052245- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT...CORRECTED NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DES MOINES IA 342 PM CST SAT APR 5 1997 ...THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH FOR NORTHERN IOWA HAS BEEN CANCELLED BUT REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR EASTERN IOWA UNTIL 7 PM CST... THE THUNDERSTORMS WHICH PRODUCED WIND GUSTS TO 70 MPH HAVE EXITED CENTRAL IOWA AND CONTINUE TO MOVE NORTHEAST AT 40 MPH. AS A RESULT THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH FOR NORTHERN IOWA HAS BEEN CANCELLED. THE STORMS WILL CONTINUE TO MOVE ACROSS EASTERN IOWA WHERE THE WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT. CLEARING CONDITIONS WILL MOVE ACROSS IOWA FROM THE SOUTH THROUGH EARLY EVENING BUT SHOjWERS WIILL REDEVELOP ACROSS THE AREA AFTER 10 PM. FAB
Special weather statement, Apr 5, 5:10 PM CST, 1 hour 16 minutes before
IAZ004>007-015>017-023>028-033>039-044>050-057>062-070>075-081>086- 092>097-060200- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DES MOINES IA 510 PM CST SAT APR 5 1997 ...THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH THAT WAS IN EFFECT FOR A PORTION OF EASTERN IOWA HAS BEEN CANCELLED... THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH THAT WAS IN EFFECT FOR A PORTION OF EASTERN IOWA HAS BEEN CANCELLED. THE STORMS THAT PROMPTED THE ISSUANCE OF THE WATCH HAVE MOVED RAPIDLY OUT OF THE STATE AND NO LONGER POSE A THREAT THIS EVENING. ADDITIONAL SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WERE MOVING RAPIDLY OUT OF SOUTHWEST IOWA INTO CENTRAL IOWA. PRESENT INDICATIONS SUGGEST THERE IS THE POTENTIAL FOR SOME SMALL HAIL WITH THESE STORMS...HOWEVER NO WIDEPSREAD SEVERE WEATHER IS EXPECTED WITH THESE STORMS AS THEY TRACK ACROSS THE STATE. SMITH
Special weather statement, Apr 5, 5:11 PM CST, 1 hour 15 minutes before
IAZ004>007-015>017-023>028-033>039-044>050-057>062-070>075-081>086- 092>097-060200- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DES MOINES IA 510 PM CST SAT APR 5 1997 ...THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH THAT WAS IN EFFECT FOR A PORTION OF EASTERN IOWA HAS BEEN CANCELLED... THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH THAT WAS IN EFFECT FOR A PORTION OF EASTERN IOWA HAS BEEN CANCELLED. THE STORMS THAT PROMPTED THE ISSUANCE OF THE WATCH HAVE MOVED RAPIDLY OUT OF THE STATE AND NO LONGER POSE A THREAT THIS EVENING. ADDITIONAL SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WERE MOVING RAPIDLY OUT OF SOUTHWEST IOWA INTO CENTRAL IOWA. PRESENT INDICATIONS SUGGEST THERE IS THE POTENTIAL FOR SOME SMALL HAIL WITH THESE STORMS...HOWEVER NO WIDEPSREAD SEVERE WEATHER IS EXPECTED WITH THESE STORMS AS THEY TRACK ACROSS THE STATE. SMITH
The office that day
Everything else NWS Des Moines, IA issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 5, 6:56 PM CST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | DMX | Sac | 34 min |
Nearby
Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Iowa, 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.