Alert archive / Wisconsin / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1998

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 1, NWS Milwaukee, WI

March 30, 1998Iowa County, Lafayette County, Wisconsin

NWS Milwaukee, WI issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Mar 30, 1998, 3:24 PM CST for Iowa County, Lafayette County, Wisconsin. It was in force for 41 min. No storm report in the archive falls inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
Mar 30, 1998, 3:24 PM CST (21:24 UTC)
Expired
Mar 30, 1998, 4:05 PM CST
In force
41 min
Issued by
NWS Milwaukee, WI
Area
Whole counties

Counties Iowa County, WI, Lafayette County, WI

The radar

The Milwaukee radar (KMKX), 130 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 21:27 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.

The watch it was issued in

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

IssuedProductOfficeLasted
Mar 30, 2:45 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPC6 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Davenport, (KDVN), launched 12:00Z, 9.4 hours before the alert went out and 138 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, Davenport, at 12:00Z on 1998-03-30Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1173 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, Davenport, at 12:00Z on 1998-03-30The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 268 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
1173 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-43 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
828 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
53 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
268 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
302 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
1.8
Supercell composite
8.5

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

074 
WUUS1 KMKE 302125 RRA
SVRMKE
WIC049-065-302205-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MILWAUKEE/SULLIVAN WI
324 PM CST MON MAR 30 1998

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN MILWAUKEE/SULLIVAN WI HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  IOWA COUNTY IN SOUTH CENTRAL WISCONSIN
  NORTHERN LAFAYETTE COUNTY IN SOUTH CENTRAL WISCONSIN

* UNTIL 405 PM CST

* AT 325 PM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED
  A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM 10 MILES NORTWEST OF PLATTEVILLE... MOVING
  NORTHEAST AT 50 MPH.

* THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WILL BE NEAR...
  DODGEVILLE AT 345 PM CST
  MINERAL POINT AT 345 PM CST

* THIS STORM WILL LIKELY PRODUCE 1 INCH HAIL.

IF YOU ARE IN THESE AREAS... SEEK SAFETY IN A SMALL INTERIOR ROOM
AWAY FROM WINDOWS. A BASEMENT OFFERS THE BEST PROTECTION. SEVERE
THUNDERSTORMS WILL OCCASIONALLY PRODUCE TORNADOES.

DAVIS/HENTZ

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, Mar 30, 11:00 AM CST, 4 hours 24 minutes before
WIZ046-047-051-052-056>060-062>072-311200-

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MILWAUKEE/SULLIVAN WI
1100 AM CST MON MAR 30 1998

...MODERATE RISK OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING
ALONG AND SOUTH OF A JANESVILLE TO MILWAUKEE LINE...
...SLIGHT RISK OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING
REMAINDER OF SOUTHEAST AND SOUTHCENTRAL WISCONSIN...

THREAT...
LARGE HAIL...DAMAGING WINDS...AND HEAVY RAIN.

DISCUSSION...
A COLD FRONT FROM NORTHERN IOWA TO EASTERN WISCONSIN WILL SAG TO
SOUTHERN WISCONSIN THIS AFTERNOON AND STALL.  A STRONG LOW LEVEL JET
SOUTH OF THE REGION WILL OVERRUN THE STALLED FRONT.  NUMEROUS
THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED TO DEVELOP THIS AFTERNOON.  WITH SOME
HEATING OF THE ATMOSPHERE AND UNSTABLE AIR IN PLACE...SOME OF THESE
STORMS MAY BECOME SEVERE.  THE MAIN CONCERN WILL BE LARGE HAIL AND
HEAVY RAIN.

PERIODS OF THUNDERSTORMS ALONG WITH HEAVY RAIN SHOULD CONTINUE TONIGHT.
RAINFALL TOTALS THROUGH TUESDAY MORNING MAY EXCEED 2 INCHES...AND FLASH
FLOODING IS A POSSIBILITY.

SPOTTER ACTIVATION...
STORM SPOTTER GROUPS MAY NEED TO BE ACTIVATED THIS AFTERNOON AND INTO
THE EVENING.

JH
Special weather statement, Mar 30, 11:00 AM CST, 4 hours 24 minutes before
WIZ046-047-051-052-056>060-062>072-311200-

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MILWAUKEE/SULLIVAN WI
1100 AM CST MON MAR 30 1998

...MODERATE RISK OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING
ALONG AND SOUTH OF A JANESVILLE TO MILWAUKEE LINE...
...SLIGHT RISK OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING
REMAINDER OF SOUTHEAST AND SOUTHCENTRAL WISCONSIN...

THREAT...
LARGE HAIL...DAMAGING WINDS...AND HEAVY RAIN.

DISCUSSION...
A COLD FRONT FROM NORTHERN IOWA TO EASTERN WISCONSIN WILL SAG TO
SOUTHERN WISCONSIN THIS AFTERNOON AND STALL.  A STRONG LOW LEVEL JET
SOUTH OF THE REGION WILL OVERRUN THE STALLED FRONT.  NUMEROUS
THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED TO DEVELOP THIS AFTERNOON.  WITH SOME
HEATING OF THE ATMOSPHERE AND UNSTABLE AIR IN PLACE...SOME OF THESE
STORMS MAY BECOME SEVERE.  THE MAIN CONCERN WILL BE LARGE HAIL AND
HEAVY RAIN.

PERIODS OF THUNDERSTORMS ALONG WITH HEAVY RAIN SHOULD CONTINUE TONIGHT.
RAINFALL TOTALS THROUGH TUESDAY MORNING MAY EXCEED 2 INCHES...AND FLASH
FLOODING IS A POSSIBILITY.

SPOTTER ACTIVATION...
STORM SPOTTER GROUPS MAY NEED TO BE ACTIVATED THIS AFTERNOON AND INTO
THE EVENING.

JH

The office that day

Everything else NWS Milwaukee, WI issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Mar 30, 5:58 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMKXSheboygan47 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Wisconsin, 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; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.