Alert archive / Oklahoma / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1997

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 289, NWS Tulsa, OK

July 21, 1997Osage County, Pawnee County, Oklahoma

NWS Tulsa, OK issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Jul 21, 1997, 6:53 PM CDT for Osage County, Pawnee County, Oklahoma. It was in force for 52 min. 4 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
Jul 21, 1997, 6:53 PM CDT (23:53 UTC)
Expired
Jul 21, 1997, 7:45 PM CDT
In force
52 min
Issued by
NWS Tulsa, OK
Area
Whole counties

Counties Osage County, OK, Pawnee County, OK

The radar

The Tulsa radar (KINX), 94 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 23:54 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, 7:30 PM CDTThunderstorm WindCleveland, OK
Jul 21, 7:35 PM CDTThunderstorm WindOsage, OK
Jul 21, 7:37 PM CDTThunderstorm Wind 54Hominy, OK
Jul 21, 7:40 PM CDTThunderstorm WindPonca City, OK

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

Lamont, OK (KLMN), launched 12:00Z, 11.9 hours before the alert went out and 85 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, Lamont, OK at 12:00Z on 1997-07-21Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 464 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, Lamont, OK at 12:00Z on 1997-07-21The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity -80 square meters per square second.1939Sfc1 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
464 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-179 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1232 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
8 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
-80 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
-49 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 KTUL 212354 RRA
SVRTUL
OKC113-117-220045-
 
BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
653 PM CDT MON JUL 21 1997
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN TULSA HAS ISSUED A
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL  745 PM CDT
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS...
 
IN NORTHEAST OKLAHOMA
 
   ...WESTERN OSAGE COUNTY...PAWNEE COUNTY
 
AT 653 PM...RADAR INDICATED ONE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM 5 MILES SOUTH OF
CLEVELAND. THIS STORM WAS NEARLY STATIONARY OR DRIFTING SLOWLY
NORTHEAST. ANOTHER SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WAS LOCATED 12 MILES WEST OF THE
CITY OF PAWNEE. THIS STORM WAS MOVING NORTHEAST AT 10 MPH.
PAWNEE...RALSTON...FAIRFAX...CLEVELAND...WESTPORT AND MANNFORD ARE IN
THE PATHS OF THESE STORMS.
 
HAIL TO THE SIZE OF QUARTERS AND WIND GUSTS TO 60 MPH CAN BE EXPECTED
IN THE WARNED AREA.
 
DURING THE STORM MOVE INDOORS AND STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS.
TO PROTECT YOURSELF FROM LIGHTNING DO NOT USE THE TELEPHOXNE
OR HAND HELD ELECTRICAL APPLIANCES...UNLESS IN AN EMERGENCY.
MOTORISTS SHOULD BE ALERT FOR WATER ON ROADWAYS AND NEVER
DRIVE ONTO A FLOODED ROAD.
 
KEEP TUNED TO THIS STATION FOR THE LATEST WEATHER BULLETINS.

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 Tulsa, OK wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at Jul 21, 3:05 PM CDT, 3 hours 48 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jul 21, 3:05 PM CDT, 3 hours 48 minutes before
FPUS3 KTUL 212004
AFDTUL

EASTERN OKLAHOMA/NORTHWEST ARKANSAS FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
305 PM CDT MON JUL 21 1997

WDLY SCTD TSRA HAVE DEVLPD OVR PARTS OF SE OKLA AND NW ARK THIS
AFTN...WITH CONVECTION BEGINNING TO BUBBLE ALG THE BNDRY ACRS NE
OKLA. WL MENTION WDLY SCTD EVE TSRA ACRS SRN AREAS...BUT WILL PUT
IN CHC POPS TONITE WITH NO TIME CONSTRAINTS ACRS ZONES ALG AND
NORTH OF INTERSTATE 44 WHERE MOIST AXIS/UPR SHEAR ZONE MAY SUPPORT
ACTIVITY INTO THE NITE.

THREAT OF TSRA WL CONT INTO MIDWEEK AS MOIST AIRMASS REMAINS IN
PLACE. UPR RIDGE BUILDS OVR ROCKIES...AND MID LVL TEMPS MAY WARM
SOME OVER THE AREA ON TUES/WEDS. MODELS INDICATE WEAK BNDRIES TO
REMAIN IN AREA TUES AND MAYBE WEDS...BUT WARMING MID LVL TEMPS AND
UNCERTAINTIES WITH RESPECT TO BNDRY LOCATION MAKE LOCATION OF TSRA
DVLPMENT A TUFF FCST. WL GENLY GO WITH 20 POPS TUES NITE/WEDS.

FOR TEMPS...WL GENLY GO WITH MODIFIED PERSISTENCE FCST.

TUL 74/94/74/95 3322    MLC 72/96/73/96 2212
BVO 73/94/72/95 4322    IDB 71/97/71/97 1222
FYV 69/93/69/93 2322    FSM 73/96/73/96 2322

                                                          /9

.TUL...
OK...NONE.
AR...NONE.

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Jul 21, 1:00 PM CDT, 5 hours 53 minutes before
ARZ001-002-010-011-019-029-OKZ054>076-221200-

EASTERN OKLAHOMA/NORTHWEST ARKANSAS THUNDERSTORM OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
100 PM CDT MON JUL 21 1997

ISOLATED SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED IN EASTERN OKLAHOMA AND
NORTHWEST ARKANSAS THIS AFTERNOON AND THIS EVENING.

A FEW THUNDERSTORMS WILL DEVELOP ACROSS THE AREA THIS AFTERNOON
AND CONTINUE INTO THIS EVENING...BEFORE DISSIPATING A LITTLE AFTER
SUNSET.  ATMOSPHERIC CONDITIONS ACROSS EASTERN OKLAHOMA AND
NORTHWEST ARKANSAS WILL BE CHARACTERIZED BY HIGH INSTABILITY AND
WEAK WINDS ALOFT.  THIS WILL LEAD TO THE POTENTIAL FOR PULSE SEVERE
STORMS WITH LOCALLY HEAVY RAIN.

THE MOST NUMEROUS STORMS ARE EXPECTED ALONG AND NEAR A THUNDERSTORM
BOUNDARY WHICH AT 1PM EXTENDED FROM SOUTHERN MADISON COUNTY
ARKANSAS TO JUST NORTH OF TAHLEQUAH TO TULSA TO SOUTHERN OSAGE
COUNTY.  OTHER STORMS WILL ALSO DEVELOP IN THE HIGHER TERRAIN OF
SOUTHEAST OKLAHOMA AND WEST CENTRAL ARKANSAS.

CIVIL DEFENSE AND SPOTTER GROUPS SHOULD MONITOR THE WEATHER
CONDITIONS AND BE PREPARED FOR QUICK ACTIVATION THIS AFTERNOON AND
EVENING.
Special weather statement, Jul 21, 1:04 PM CDT, 5 hours 49 minutes before
ARZ001-002-010-011-019-029-OKZ054>076-221200-

EASTERN OKLAHOMA/NORTHWEST ARKANSAS THUNDERSTORM OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
100 PM CDT MON JUL 21 1997

ISOLATED SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED IN EASTERN OKLAHOMA AND
NORTHWEST ARKANSAS THIS AFTERNOON AND THIS EVENING.

A FEW THUNDERSTORMS WILL DEVELOP ACROSS THE AREA THIS AFTERNOON
AND CONTINUE INTO THIS EVENING...BEFORE DISSIPATING A LITTLE AFTER
SUNSET.  ATMOSPHERIC CONDITIONS ACROSS EASTERN OKLAHOMA AND
NORTHWEST ARKANSAS WILL BE CHARACTERIZED BY HIGH INSTABILITY AND
WEAK WINDS ALOFT.  THIS WILL LEAD TO THE POTENTIAL FOR PULSE SEVERE
STORMS WITH LOCALLY HEAVY RAIN.

THE MOST NUMEROUS STORMS ARE EXPECTED ALONG AND NEAR A THUNDERSTORM
BOUNDARY WHICH AT 1PM EXTENDED FROM SOUTHERN MADISON COUNTY
ARKANSAS TO JUST NORTH OF TAHLEQUAH TO TULSA TO SOUTHERN OSAGE
COUNTY.  OTHER STORMS WILL ALSO DEVELOP IN THE HIGHER TERRAIN OF
SOUTHEAST OKLAHOMA AND WEST CENTRAL ARKANSAS.

CIVIL DEFENSE AND SPOTTER GROUPS SHOULD MONITOR THE WEATHER
CONDITIONS AND BE PREPARED FOR QUICK ACTIVATION THIS AFTERNOON AND
EVENING.

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Oklahoma, 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.