Alert archive / Kansas / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1997

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 67, NWS Hastings, NE

June 21, 1997Smith County, Kansas

NWS Hastings, NE issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Jun 21, 1997, 2:08 AM CDT for Smith County, Kansas. It was in force for 37 min. No storm report in the archive falls inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
Jun 21, 1997, 2:08 AM CDT (07:08 UTC)
Expired
Jun 21, 1997, 2:45 AM CDT
In force
37 min
Issued by
NWS Hastings, NE
Area
Whole counties

County Smith County, KS

The radar

The Grand Island radar (KUEX), 66 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 07:09 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.

The nearest sounding before it

N. Platte/Lee Bi, NE (KLBF), launched 00:00Z, 7.1 hours before the alert went out and 214 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, N. Platte/Lee Bi, NE at 00:00Z on 1997-06-21Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 3148 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, N. Platte/Lee Bi, NE at 00:00Z on 1997-06-21The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 16 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
3148 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-74 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1727 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
46 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
16 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
109 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.1
Supercell composite
1.7

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.

000 
TTAA00 KGRI 210708 RRA
SVRGRI
KSC183-210745-
 
BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HASTINGS NE
208 AM CDT SAT JUN 21 1997
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN HASTINGS NE  HAS ISSUED A
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL  245 AM CDT
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATION...
 
IN NORTH CENTRAL KANSAS
 
   ...SMITH COUNTY
 
LARGE HAIL IS POSSIBLE IN ATHOL...SMITH CENTER AND LEBANON THROUGH 245
AM.
 
AT 205 AM RADAR INDICATED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM 25 MILES NORTHEAST OF
PHILLIPSBURG OR ABOUT 5 NORTH OF ATHOL.  THIS STORM IS CABABLE OF
PRODUCING HAIL AROUND IN INCH IN DIAMETER.  THE STORM IS MOVING TO THE
EAST AT 25 MPH.  THE STORM SHOULD REACH THE LEBANON AREA BETWEEN 230 AND
245 AM.
 
PEOPLE IN THE WARNED AREA SHOULD GET INTO A REINFORCED SHELTER FOR
PROTECTION FROM DAMAGING WINDS...LARGE HAIL...VERY HEAVY RAIN...AND
DANGEROUS LIGHTNING.
 
KISNER

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.

NWS Hastings, NE wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at Jun 20, 1:00 PM CDT, 13 hours 8 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jun 20, 1:00 PM CDT, 13 hours 8 minutes before
CENTRAL NEBRASKA/NORTH CENTRAL KANSAS FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HASTINGS NE
100 PM CDT FRI JUN 20 1997

ONCE AGAIN...TSTMS AND TEMPS ARE THE MAIN CHALLENGES.

WILL MAKE THIS A QUICK ONE WITH ANTICIPATED STORMS THIS AFTN.
WILL FOLLOW ETA AS IT...AT THIS POINT...HAS PERFORMED VERY WELL
WITH POSITION OF FRONT AND SFC LO PRES...AND ALSO WITH THE AMT
OF LL MOISTURE THAT HAS ADVECTED NORTH INTO AREA TODAY.

AT 17Z...SFC LO WAS DEEPENING AROUND GLD WITH STATIONARY FRONT
SNAKING NORTH THRU THE MIDDLE OF NEB. OUTFLOW BOUNDARY EVIDENT
FROM GRI/HSI SE TO THE SOUTH OF LNK AT 16Z STILL THERE...BUT
TOUGHER TO SEE IN SFC OBS. THE BEGINNING OF A WARM FRONT ALSO
TAKING SHAPE FROM SFC LO EAST ACROSS EXTREME NRN KS.

TEMPS IN THE 80S/90S...AND DWPTS INTO THE LOW/MID 70S MAKING FOR
VERY UNSTABLE CONDITIONS THIS AFTN. JUST WAITING FOR THE CAP TO
BREAK LATE THIS AFTN AS TROF EVIDENT WITH PROFILERS OVER THE HI
PLAINS MOVES EAST INTO THIS JUICY ATMOS.

SCT TRWS TO FIRE LATE AFTN INTO THE EVENING. SVR STORMS LIKELY.
AN MCS ALSO FCST TO FORM FROM CONVECTION THAT FIRES WEST OF US.
THIS WORKS INTO CWA OVERNIGHT. WITH ALL THIS JUICE...WILL LEAVE
MENTION OF HEAVY RAIN IN FCST. GIVEN LOWS THIS AM...AND ALL THE
CLDS AND PRECIP EXPECTED TONIGHT...WILL BUMP LOWS TO ABOUT 70
SRN PART OF NEB...MID 60S NW. 70/75 KS. GENERAL S WIND 10/20
SHIFTING TO NE...GUSTY/VARIABLE WITH STORMS.

TOMR...GOOD CHC STORMS LEFTOVER IN AM AND AGAIN LATE IN DAY FROM
EXTREME SRN NEB INTO NCNTRL KS. SOME CHC TO THE NORTH AS WELL
TEMPS RANGING FROM MID 80S NORTH OF FRONT IN NEB...TO 90/95 KS.
NORTHEAST WIND 5/15 NEB.

TOMR NIGHT...PRETTY QUITE AFTER EVENING STORMS FROM NEB/KS BORDER
SOUTH. NEXT SYS ALSO BEGINS TO TAKE SHAPE WEST ON HI PLAINS...BUT
WILL LIKELY NOT MAKE IT INTO CNTRL NEB JUST YET. LOWS ABIT COOLER
WITH 65ISH TEMPS MORE WIDESPREAD IN NEB...ABOUT 70 IN KS.

INTO SUNDAY...CHC TRWS AGAIN LATE IN DAY AS NEXT SYSTEM TAKES
SHAPE VERY WARM TEMPS AGAIN AS SOUTHERLY FLOW REALLY PICKS UP.
WOULD PUT INTO THE 90S AGAIN IN MANY AREAS...AND WELL INTO THE 90S
KS. 30% AFTN POPS...ALLOW THEY MAY HOLD OFF TIL EVENING.

GRI BU 070/085/065/092 6303
ODX BU 065/082/060/091 6303
LXN BU 065/084/060/093 6303
HBR BB 072/087/067/092 6433
BEL BB 075/092/069/094 6443

GURNEY

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Jun 21, 2:00 AM CDT, 8 minutes before
NEZ075-061-076-060-077-084-082-072-040-062-063-083-047-074-048-
041-086-073-049-046-087-039-085-064-210800-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HASTINGS NE
200 AM CDT SAT JUN 21 1997

...TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 491 FOR MOST OF CENTRAL AND SOUTH-CENTRAL
NEBRASKA HAS EXPIRED AND WILL NOT BE REISSUED...

...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH NUMBER 492 FOR PARTS OF SOUTH-CENTRAL
NEBRASKA HAS EXPIRED AND WILL NOT BE REISSUED...

EVENTHOUGH THUNDERSTORMS WILL CONTINUE TO RUMBLE ACROSS CENTRAL AND
SOUTH-CENTRAL NEBRASKA UNTIL AT LEAST SUNRISE...THE CHANCES FOR SEVERE
WEATHER HAVE DECREASED.  THEREFORE THE TORNADO WATCH...NUMBER 491...FOR
CENTRAL AND SOUTH-CENTRAL NEBRASKA AND THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH...
NUMBER 492...HAVE EXPIRED AT 2 AM AND WILL NOT BE REISSUED.

AT 2 O/CLOCK...THUNDERSTORMS EXTENDED FROM NEAR YORK TO GRAND ISLAND TO
HOLDREGE.  THE STORMS ARE MAKING THEIR WAY TO THE EAST AT ABOUT 25 MPH.
MORE SHOWERS EXTENDED TO THE NORTH OF THESE STORMS. THE HEAVIEST STORMS
WILL PRODUCE VERY HEAVY DOWNPOURS...GUSTY WINDS OF 25 TO 35 MPH...SMALL
HAIL AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING.

WITH THE RAIN CONTINUING THIS MORNING...THOSE PLANNING TO BE OUTSIDE
SHOULD BE PREPARED FOR THE WET WEATHER.  MOVE INDOORS WHEN STORMS ARE IN
THE AREA.  THOSE TRAVELING ACROSS SOUTH-CENTRAL NEBRASKA SHOULD SLOW
DOWN WHILE DRIVING IN HEAVY RAINS.

KISNER

The office that day

Everything else NWS Hastings, NE issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jun 21, 3:06 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGIDJewell, Mitchell54 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Kansas, 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; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.