Alert archive / Minnesota / Tornado Warnings in 1998

Tornado Warning 25, NWS Grand Forks, ND

September 25, 1998Wilkin County, Minnesota; Richland County, North Dakota

NWS Grand Forks, ND issued this tornado warning at Sep 25, 1998, 10:37 PM CDT for Wilkin County, Minnesota; Richland County, North Dakota. It was in force for 33 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
Sep 25, 1998, 10:37 PM CDT (03:37 UTC)
Expired
Sep 25, 1998, 11:10 PM CDT
In force
33 min
Issued by
NWS Grand Forks, ND
Area
Whole counties

Counties Wilkin County, MN, Richland County, ND

The radar

The Fargo/Grand Forks radar (KMVX), 143 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 03:39 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
Sep 25, 10:45 PM CDTThunderstorm WindChristine, NDA 50 foot tall radio tower was blown down in the strong wind.
Sep 25, 10:45 PM CDTThunderstorm WindColfax, NDTwo large railroad crossing arms were blown over in the wind.
Sep 25, 11:00 PM CDTHail 1Lawndale, MN

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

Aberdeen, SD (KABR), launched 00:00Z, 3.6 hours before the alert went out and 205 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, Aberdeen, SD at 00:00Z on 1998-09-26Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 0 joules per kilogram.LCL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Aberdeen, SD at 00:00Z on 1998-09-26The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 189 square meters per square second.1939587897117Sfc1 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
0 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL
2176 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
76 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
189 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
415 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.1

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

696 
WFUS1 KFAR 260339 RRA
TORFAR
MNC167-NDC077-260410-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EASTERN ND/GRAND FORKS ND
1037 PM CDT FRI SEP 25 1998

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN GRAND FORKS HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  NORTHERN WILKIN COUNTY IN WEST CENTRAL MINNESOTA
  NORTHERN RICHLAND COUNTY IN SOUTHEASTERN NORTH DAKOTA

* UNTIL 1110 PM CDT

* AT 1037 PM CDT DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A TORNADO 5 MILES SOUTHEAST
  OF WALCOTT OR 24 MILES NORTHWEST OF WAHPETON. THE STORM WAS MOVING
  NORTHEAST AT 30 MPH.

* THE TORNADO WILL BE NEAR...
  BETWEEN ABERCROMBIS AND WOLVERTON BY 1050 PM

DO NOT OUTRUN A TORNADO IN YOUR CAR.  LEAVE YOUR CAR AND GO TO A
STRONG BUILDING OR SEEK SHELTER IN A DITCH OR LOW SPOT.

KENNEDY

The office that day

Everything else NWS Grand Forks, ND issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Sep 25, 11:14 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGFBecker, Otter Tail31 min
Sep 25, 11:40 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGFOtter Tail, Wadena45 min
Sep 26, 2:34 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGFOtter Tail, Wadena31 min
Sep 25, 9:27 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGFRansom33 min
Sep 25, 10:03 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGFRansom32 min
Sep 25, 10:18 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGFRichland32 min
Sep 25, 10:30 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGFCass30 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Minnesota, 1998Tornado Warnings in North Dakota, 1998Every tornado warning in 1998Tornadoes 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.