Alert archive / Idaho / Tornado Watches in 1997

Tornado Watch 368

May 31, 199712 counties in Idaho; 4 counties in Oregon; 9 counties in Washington

The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at May 31, 1997, 1:45 PM MDT for 12 counties in Idaho; 4 counties in Oregon; 9 counties in Washington. It was in force for 6 hr.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
May 31, 1997, 1:45 PM MDT (19:45 UTC)
Expired
May 31, 1997, 8:00 PM MDT
In force
6 hr
Issued by
the Storm Prediction Center
All 25 counties

Adams County, ID, Benewah County, ID, Bonner County, ID, Clearwater County, ID, Idaho County, ID, Kootenai County, ID, Latah County, ID, Lewis County, ID, Nez Perce County, ID, Shoshone County, ID, Valley County, ID, Washington County, ID, Baker County, OR, Umatilla County, OR, Union County, OR, Wallowa County, OR, Adams County, WA, Asotin County, WA, Columbia County, WA, Franklin County, WA, Garfield County, WA, Lincoln County, WA, Spokane County, WA, Walla Walla County, WA, Whitman County, WA

The radar

The Spokane radar (KOTX), 129 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 19:47 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.

Warnings issued inside it

27 tornado, severe thunderstorm and flash flood warnings for its counties while it was in force.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 31, 1:45 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOTXGarfield, Whitman60 min
May 31, 2:05 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningPDTUnion55 min
May 31, 2:06 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningPDTUnion54 min
May 31, 2:10 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningPDTUnion50 min
May 31, 2:15 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningPDTUmatilla60 min
May 31, 2:15 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOTXSpokane60 min
May 31, 2:25 PM MDTFlash Flood WarningPDTUmatilla2 hr
May 31, 2:37 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMSOClearwater53 min
May 31, 2:39 PM MDTFlash Flood WarningOTXLatah, Nez Perce66 min
May 31, 2:39 PM MDTFlash Flood WarningOTXLewis66 min
May 31, 2:39 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOTXLatah, Nez Perce66 min
May 31, 2:39 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOTXLewis66 min
May 31, 2:53 PM MDTFlash Flood WarningOTXBonner, Kootenai67 min
May 31, 2:53 PM MDTFlash Flood WarningOTXBenewah67 min
May 31, 2:53 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOTXBonner67 min
May 31, 2:53 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOTXBenewah, Kootenai67 min
May 31, 3:25 PM MDTFlash Flood WarningPDTColumbia110 min
May 31, 3:29 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOTXShoshone61 min
May 31, 3:29 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningPDTWallowa61 min
May 31, 3:46 PM MDTFlash Flood WarningOTXLatah, Nez Perce29 min
May 31, 3:46 PM MDTFlash Flood WarningOTXLewis29 min
May 31, 3:46 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOTXLatah, Nez Perce29 min
May 31, 3:46 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOTXLewis29 min
May 31, 3:50 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMSOClearwater40 min
May 31, 4:08 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOTXBonner, Boundary52 min
May 31, 4:20 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOTXNez Perce25 min
May 31, 4:25 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOTXShoshone50 min

The nearest sounding before it

Spokane, WA (KOTX), launched 12:00Z, 7.8 hours before the alert went out and 121 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, Spokane, WA at 12:00Z on 1997-05-31Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 11 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, Spokane, WA at 12:00Z on 1997-05-31The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 14 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
11 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-225 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1213 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
50 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
14 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
146 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.

670 
WWUS9 KMKC 311913
SEL8  
MKC WW 311913
WAZ000-ORZ000-IDZ000-010200-

BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 368
STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
1213 PM PDT SAT MAY 31 1997

THE STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF

   EASTERN WASHINGTON                         
   EASTERN OREGON                             
   NORTHERN AND CENTRAL IDAHO                              

EFFECTIVE THIS SATURDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING FROM 1245 PM UNTIL
700 PM PDT.

TORNADOES...HAIL TO 1 1/4 INCHES IN DIAMETER...THUNDERSTORM WIND
GUSTS TO 70 MPH...AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE IN THESE
AREAS.

THE TORNADO WATCH AREA IS ALONG AND 95 STATUTE MILES EAST AND WEST
OF A LINE FROM 50 MILES NORTH OF SPOKANE WASHINGTON TO 70 MILES
SOUTHEAST OF BAKER OREGON.

REMEMBER...A TORNADO WATCH MEANS CONDITIONS ARE FAVORABLE FOR
TORNADOES AND SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS IN AND CLOSE TO THE WATCH AREA. 
PERSONS IN THESE AREAS SHOULD BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR THREATENING
WEATHER CONDITIONS AND LISTEN FOR LATER STATEMENTS AND POSSIBLE
WARNINGS.

OTHER WATCH INFORMATION...THIS TORNADO WATCH REPLACES SEVERE
THUNDERSTORM WATCH NUMBER 367.  WATCH NUMBER 367 WILL NOT BE IN
EFFECT AFTER 45 PM PDT.

DISCUSSION...COLD FRONT AND UPPER VORT AXIS ADVANCING INTO WATCH
AREA WHERE AIR MASS UNSTABLE PER 1500 TO 2500 J/KG CAPES. AREA VAD
WIND PROFILES SHOW FAVORABLE SHEAR FOR A FEW TORNADOES WITH
INVERTED V SOUNDINGS ALSO INDICATING DAMAGING DOWNBURSTS.

AVIATION...TORNADOES AND A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH HAIL
SURFACE AND ALOFT TO 1 1/4 INCHES.  EXTREME TURBULENCE AND SURFACE
WIND GUSTS TO 60 KNOTS.  A FEW CUMULONIMBI WITH MAXIMUM TOPS TO
450.  MEAN STORM MOTION VECTOR 24040.


...ROGASH

482,1152 440,1145 440,1184 482,1193

SPC that day

Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 31, 2:30 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCAda, Bannock, Bingham, Blaine, Boise, Bonneville and 21 more6 hr
May 31, 11:00 AM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCBaker, Crook, Gilliam, Grant, Morrow, Sherman and 4 more6 hr

Nearby

Tornado Watches in Idaho, 1997Tornado Watches in Washington, 1997Tornado Watches in Oregon, 1997Every tornado watch 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.