Alert archive / Kansas / Tornado Warnings in 1998

Tornado Warning 8, NWS Wichita, KS

May 11, 1998Ellsworth County, Lincoln County, Kansas

NWS Wichita, KS issued this tornado warning at May 11, 1998, 7:10 PM CDT for Ellsworth County, Lincoln County, Kansas. It was in force for 60 min. 9 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 11, 1998, 7:10 PM CDT (00:10 UTC)
Expired
May 11, 1998, 8:10 PM CDT
In force
60 min
Issued by
NWS Wichita, KS
Area
Whole counties

Counties Ellsworth County, KS, Lincoln County, KS

The radar

The Wichita radar (KICT), 151 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 00:09 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.

What was reported inside it

TimeReportWhereRemark
May 11, 7:11 PM CDTTornado F0Ellsworth, KS
May 11, 7:40 PM CDTHail 1.75Ellsworth, KS
May 11, 7:48 PM CDTHail 1.75Ellsworth, KS
May 11, 8:04 PM CDTHail 1.75Ellsworth, KSWindows broken in an area near Wilson.
May 11, 8:04 PM CDTThunderstorm Wind 56Ellsworth, KS
May 11, 8:07 PM CDTHail 1.75Ellsworth, KS
May 11, 8:07 PM CDTThunderstorm Wind 65Ellsworth, KSHospital, under construction, sustained extensive damage when 750 feet of metal frame was blown down.
May 11, 8:14 PM CDTTornado F1Ellsworth, KSExtensive damage to farm outbuildings, trucks and a camper.
May 11, 8:15 PM CDTHail 0.75Lincoln, KS

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 11, 6:45 PM CDTTornado WatchSPC6 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Dodge City, (KDDC), launched 00:00Z, 0.2 hours before the alert went out and 192 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, Dodge City, at 00:00Z on 1998-05-12Temperature 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°0°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Dodge City, at 00:00Z on 1998-05-12The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 10 square meters per square second.1939587897Sfc1 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
3561 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
35 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
10 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
78 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.

154 
WFUS1 KICT 120010
TORICT
KSC053-105-120110-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WICHITA KS
710 PM CDT MON MAY 11 1998

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN WICHITA KS HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  ELLSWORTH COUNTY IN CENTRAL KANSAS
  LINCOLN COUNTY IN CENTRAL KANSAS

* UNTIL 810 PM CDT
 
* AT 707 PM CDT ...A TRAINED SPOTTER REPORTED A FUNNEL CLOUD 25
  MILES SOUTHEAST OF RUSSELL OR NEAR BLACK WOLF...MOVING TO THE
  NORTHEAST AT 20 MPH.

* THE TORNADO IS EXPECTED TO AFFECT...
  AREAS ALONG INTERSTATE 70
  WILSON
  LINCOLN

IF YOU ARE CAUGHT IN THE PATH OF A TORNADO...LEAVE THE CAR AND GO
TO A STRONG BUILDING. DO NOT USE YOUR CAR TO TRY TO OUTRUN A
TORNADO.  CARS ARE EASILY TOSSED AROUND BY TORNADO WINDS. IF NO
STRUCTURE IS NEARBY...SEEK SHELTER IN A DITCH OR LOW SPOT.

MARIEN

The office that day

Everything else NWS Wichita, KS issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 11, 7:05 PM CDTTornado WarningICTBarton, Russell60 min
May 11, 8:12 PM CDTTornado WarningICTEllsworth63 min
May 11, 8:38 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningICTRice62 min
May 11, 8:42 PM CDTTornado WarningICTSaline63 min
May 11, 9:17 PM CDTTornado WarningICTRice48 min
May 11, 9:21 PM CDTTornado WarningICTMcPherson64 min
May 11, 10:24 PM CDTTornado WarningICTMcPherson46 min
May 11, 10:30 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningICTMarion60 min
May 11, 11:07 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningICTHarvey63 min
May 11, 11:33 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningICTMarion47 min
May 12, 12:20 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningICTMarion60 min
May 12, 12:51 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningICTChase59 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Kansas, 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.