Alert archive / Iowa / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1998

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 39, NWS Des Moines, IA

May 15, 1998Cass County, Iowa

NWS Des Moines, IA issued this severe thunderstorm warning at May 15, 1998, 9:28 AM CDT for Cass County, Iowa. It was in force for 37 min. 3 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 15, 1998, 9:28 AM CDT (14:28 UTC)
Expired
May 15, 1998, 10:05 AM CDT
In force
37 min
Issued by
NWS Des Moines, IA
Area
Whole counties

County Cass County, IA

The radar

The Des Moines radar (KDMX), 110 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 14:30 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 15, 9:40 AM CDTThunderstorm Wind 57Atlantic, IA
May 15, 9:41 AM CDTThunderstorm Wind 65Griswold, IA
May 15, 9:47 AM CDTThunderstorm Wind 72Lewis, 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 watch it was issued in

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

IssuedProductOfficeLasted
May 15, 7:45 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPC4 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Omaha, NE (KOAX), launched 12:00Z, 2.5 hours before the alert went out and 120 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, Omaha, NE at 12:00Z on 1998-05-15Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1194 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, Omaha, NE at 12:00Z on 1998-05-15The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity -76 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
1194 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-370 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1627 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
64 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
-76 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
26 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.3

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

416 
WUUS1 KDSM 151429 RRA
SVRDSM
IAC029-151505-

BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DES MOINES IA
928 AM CDT FRI MAY 15 1998

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN DES MOINES HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  CASS COUNTY IN SOUTHWESTERN IOWA

* UNTIL 1005 AM CDT

* AT 928 AM CDT... DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A LINE OF SEVERE
  THUNDERSTORMS 43 MILES EAST SOUTHEAST OF OMAHA OR 8 MILES SOUTH
  SOUTHEAST OF GRISWOLD MOVING NORTH AT 70 MPH.

* THIS STORM CAN BE EXPECTED NEAR...
   LEWIS              BY 933 AM CDT
   ATLANTIC           BY 939 AM CDT
   WIOTA              BY 940 AM CDT
   MARNE              BY 941 AM CDT

THIS STORM HAS A HISTORY OF DAMAGING WIND. GO INSIDE A STURDY
BUILDING AND STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS

JOHNSON

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.

In the hours before

Special weather statement, May 15, 5:32 AM CDT, 3 hours 56 minutes before
IAZ004>006-015-016-023>025-033>036-044>047-057>059-070>072-081>083-
092>094-151700-

CENTRAL IOWA THUNDERSTORM OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DES MOINES IA
532 AM CDT FRI MAY 15 1998

HAZARD NUMEROUS THUNDERSTORMS.  SOME OF THE STORMS MAY BE SEVERE WITH
WIND GUSTS UP TO 70 MPH AND HAIL 3/4 INCH OR LARGER IN DIAMETER.

AREA OF CONCERN ALL OF CENTRAL IOWA WILL BE AFFECTED.  THE GREATEST
THREAT WILL BE THAT AREA EAST OF A MASON CITY TO OTTUMWA LINE.

TIMING DETAILS WESTERN IOWA WILL BEGIN TO BE AFFECTED BY 900 AM THIS
MORNING WITH THE STORMS SPREADING EAST DURING THE DAY.  THEY SHOULD
REACH THE CENTRAL SECTIONS OF THE STATE BY SHORTLY AFTER NOON AND
EASTERN IOWA BY 400 PM.  THE STORMS WILL END BY LATE AFTERNOON OVER
WESTERN INTO CENTRAL IOWA...AND BY MID EVENING OVER EASTERN SECTIONS.

METEOROLOGICAL COMMENTS A VERY UNSTABLE AIRMASS REMAINS IN PLACE OVER
IOWA.  THE AIRMASS HAS BEEN CAPPED OVERNIGHT WITH TEMPERATURES AT 700
MB /AROUND 10000 FEET/ ABOVE 12 DEGREES C.  THIS CAP IS EXPECTED TO
ERODE DURING THE DAY TODAY AS COOLER AIR MOVES IN ALOFT.  SEVERAL
FACTORS WILL COME TOGETHER TO ENHANCE THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT TODAY.
A COLD FRONT OVER CENTRAL NEBRASKA WILL ADVANCE EAST TODAY AND BE IN
WESTERN IOWA BY LATE THIS AFTERNOON...CENTRAL SECTIONS BY
SUNSET...AND EASTERN IOWA BEFORE MIDNIGHT.  IN ADDITION AN
UNSEASONABLY STRONG UPPER LEVEL SYSTEM LOCATED OVER THE TEXAS
PANHANDLE THIS MORNING WILL LIFT NORTHEAST RAPIDLY INTO SOUTHWEST
IOWA BY THIS EVENING.  ALTHOUGH THERE WILL BE A LOT OF CLOUDINESS
AROUND TODAY...ENOUGH SUNSHINE WILL GET THROUGH TO PUSH TEMPERATURES
INTO THE LOW TO MID 80S IN MOST AREAS.  DEW POINT TEMPERATURES HAD
REACHED THE LOW 70S OVER SOUTHWEST AND WEST CENTRAL IOWA...WITH MID
60S FARTHER EAST.  SINCE CONVECTION IS EXPECTED TO TAKE PLACE
RELATIVELY EARLY OVER WESTERN IOWA...THE THREAT OF SEVERE WEATHER
WILL BE REDUCED.  OPTIMUM TIMING FOR THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT OVER
THE EAST MAKES THE LIKELIHOOD OF SEVERE WEATHER HIGHER THERE.

PRECAUTIONS--STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO...COMMERCIAL TELEVISION
OR RADIO STATIONS...OR YOUR CABLE TELEVISION PROVIDER FOR LATER
STATEMENTS CONCERNING THE THUNDERSTORM THREAT.  THE NEXT STATEMENT
WILL BE ISSUED AROUND 1100 AM THIS MORNING.
Special weather statement, May 15, 5:32 AM CDT, 3 hours 56 minutes before
IAZ004>006-015-016-023>025-033>036-044>047-057>059-070>072-081>083-
092>094-151700-

CENTRAL IOWA THUNDERSTORM OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DES MOINES IA
532 AM CDT FRI MAY 15 1998

HAZARD NUMEROUS THUNDERSTORMS.  SOME OF THE STORMS MAY BE SEVERE WITH
WIND GUSTS UP TO 70 MPH AND HAIL 3/4 INCH OR LARGER IN DIAMETER.

AREA OF CONCERN ALL OF CENTRAL IOWA WILL BE AFFECTED.  THE GREATEST
THREAT WILL BE THAT AREA EAST OF A MASON CITY TO OTTUMWA LINE.

TIMING DETAILS WESTERN IOWA WILL BEGIN TO BE AFFECTED BY 900 AM THIS
MORNING WITH THE STORMS SPREADING EAST DURING THE DAY.  THEY SHOULD
REACH THE CENTRAL SECTIONS OF THE STATE BY SHORTLY AFTER NOON AND
EASTERN IOWA BY 400 PM.  THE STORMS WILL END BY LATE AFTERNOON OVER
WESTERN INTO CENTRAL IOWA...AND BY MID EVENING OVER EASTERN SECTIONS.

METEOROLOGICAL COMMENTS A VERY UNSTABLE AIRMASS REMAINS IN PLACE OVER
IOWA.  THE AIRMASS HAS BEEN CAPPED OVERNIGHT WITH TEMPERATURES AT 700
MB /AROUND 10000 FEET/ ABOVE 12 DEGREES C.  THIS CAP IS EXPECTED TO
ERODE DURING THE DAY TODAY AS COOLER AIR MOVES IN ALOFT.  SEVERAL
FACTORS WILL COME TOGETHER TO ENHANCE THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT TODAY.
A COLD FRONT OVER CENTRAL NEBRASKA WILL ADVANCE EAST TODAY AND BE IN
WESTERN IOWA BY LATE THIS AFTERNOON...CENTRAL SECTIONS BY
SUNSET...AND EASTERN IOWA BEFORE MIDNIGHT.  IN ADDITION AN
UNSEASONABLY STRONG UPPER LEVEL SYSTEM LOCATED OVER THE TEXAS
PANHANDLE THIS MORNING WILL LIFT NORTHEAST RAPIDLY INTO SOUTHWEST
IOWA BY THIS EVENING.  ALTHOUGH THERE WILL BE A LOT OF CLOUDINESS
AROUND TODAY...ENOUGH SUNSHINE WILL GET THROUGH TO PUSH TEMPERATURES
INTO THE LOW TO MID 80S IN MOST AREAS.  DEW POINT TEMPERATURES HAD
REACHED THE LOW 70S OVER SOUTHWEST AND WEST CENTRAL IOWA...WITH MID
60S FARTHER EAST.  SINCE CONVECTION IS EXPECTED TO TAKE PLACE
RELATIVELY EARLY OVER WESTERN IOWA...THE THREAT OF SEVERE WEATHER
WILL BE REDUCED.  OPTIMUM TIMING FOR THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT OVER
THE EAST MAKES THE LIKELIHOOD OF SEVERE WEATHER HIGHER THERE.

PRECAUTIONS--STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO...COMMERCIAL TELEVISION
OR RADIO STATIONS...OR YOUR CABLE TELEVISION PROVIDER FOR LATER
STATEMENTS CONCERNING THE THUNDERSTORM THREAT.  THE NEXT STATEMENT
WILL BE ISSUED AROUND 1100 AM THIS MORNING.
Special weather statement, May 15, 8:32 AM CDT, 56 minutes before
IAZ044>047-057>060-070>074-081>085-092>096-151632-

CENTRAL IOWA THUNDERSTORM OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DES MOINES IA
832 AM CDT FRI MAY 15 1998

HAZARD--STRAIGHT-LINE DAMAGING WINDS OF 60 TO 70 MPH.  HAIL TO 3/4
INCH OR LARGER IS ALSO POSSIBLE.

TIMIMG DETAILS AND AREA OF CONCERN--
AREAS SOUTHWEST OF ATLANTIC TO MOUNT AYR FROM 900 TO 1030 AM
AREAS FURTHER NORTHEAST AFTER 1030 AM.

METEOROLOGICAL COMMENTS--A DAMAGING SQUALL LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS
WILL BE RACING NORTHEAST AT 65 MPH FROM SOUTHEAST NEBRASKA AND
NORTHWEST MISSOURI THIS MORNING.  THIS LINE HAS A LONG HISTORY OF
DAMAGING WINDS BACK INTO KANSAS.

PRECAUTIONS--SPOTTER GROUPS AND EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT SHOULD BEGIN
ACTIVATING OVER TAYLOR...ADAMS...CASS AND RINGGOLD COUNTIES SOON.
THEY WILL LIKELY BE NEEDED BY 900-1000 AM.  COUNTIES FURTHER
NORTHEAST MAY ALSO BE NEEDED BETWEEN 1000 AND NOON.  THIS IS A
POTENTIALLY DANGEROUS SITUATION WITH DAMAGING WINDS LIKELY.

KULA

The office that day

Everything else NWS Des Moines, IA issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 15, 9:18 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXTaylor32 min
May 15, 9:46 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXAudubon34 min
May 15, 9:54 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXCrawford36 min
May 15, 10:00 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXCarroll35 min
May 15, 10:11 AM CDTTornado WarningDMXCrawford34 min
May 15, 10:16 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXSac34 min
May 15, 10:24 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXCalhoun36 min
May 15, 12:56 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXCarroll34 min
May 15, 1:04 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXCalhoun, Sac31 min
May 15, 1:09 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXCalhoun36 min
May 15, 1:16 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXHumboldt34 min
May 15, 1:31 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXKossuth34 min
May 15, 1:38 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXKossuth32 min
May 15, 1:42 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXPocahontas33 min
May 15, 1:48 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXCass17 min
May 15, 1:51 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXAudubon34 min
May 15, 2:10 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXKossuth35 min
May 15, 2:38 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXKossuth22 min
May 15, 3:03 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXBoone, Greene32 min
May 15, 3:22 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXWebster33 min
May 15, 3:29 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXHamilton31 min
May 15, 3:37 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXWright33 min
May 15, 3:42 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXStory33 min
May 15, 3:51 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXWapello34 min
May 15, 3:54 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXSac36 min
May 15, 3:59 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXFranklin, Hardin46 min
May 15, 3:59 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXCerro Gordo, Hancock46 min
May 15, 4:09 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXDavis36 min
May 15, 4:13 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXWapello32 min
May 15, 4:24 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXCalhoun, Pocahontas36 min
May 15, 4:40 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXHumboldt35 min
May 15, 4:45 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXTama35 min
May 15, 4:48 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXKossuth, Palo Alto47 min
May 15, 4:59 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXButler, Grundy31 min
May 15, 5:00 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXBlack Hawk35 min
May 15, 5:07 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXBremer33 min
May 15, 5:40 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXBremer35 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Iowa, 1998Every severe thunderstorm warning in 1998

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.