Alert archive / Minnesota / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1998

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 81, NWS Twin Cities, MN

May 18, 1998Dakota County, Hennepin County, Scott County, Minnesota

NWS Twin Cities, MN issued this severe thunderstorm warning at May 18, 1998, 8:49 PM CDT for Dakota County, Hennepin County, Scott County, Minnesota. It was in force for 61 min. 2 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 18, 1998, 8:49 PM CDT (01:49 UTC)
Expired
May 18, 1998, 9:50 PM CDT
In force
61 min
Issued by
NWS Twin Cities, MN
Area
Whole counties

Counties Dakota County, MN, Hennepin County, MN, Scott County, MN

The radar

The Minneapolis radar (KMPX), 18 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 01:50 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 18, 9:30 PM CDTHail 1Mendota Hgts, MN
May 18, 9:55 PM CDTHail 0.75Jordan, 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 watch it was issued in

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

IssuedProductOfficeLasted
May 18, 4:30 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPC6 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Minneapolis, MN (KMPX), launched 00:00Z, 1.8 hours before the alert went out and 21 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, Minneapolis, MN at 00:00Z on 1998-05-19Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 3617 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, Minneapolis, MN at 00:00Z on 1998-05-19The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 45 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
3617 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-25 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1794 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
26 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
45 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
55 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 KMSP 190149 RRA
SVRMSP
MNC019-037-053-139-190250-

BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TWIN CITIES/CHANHASSEN MN
849 PM CDT MON MAY 18 1998

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN THE TWIN CITIES/CHANHASSEN HAS
ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  CARVER COUNTY IN EAST CENTRAL MINNESOTA
  DAKOTA COUNTY IN EAST CENTRAL MINNESOTA
  HENNEPIN COUNTY IN EAST CENTRAL MINNESOTA
  SCOTT COUNTY IN EAST CENTRAL MINNESOTA

* UNTIL 950 PM CDT

* AT 845 PM CDT...DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A LINE OF SEVERE STORMS
  FROM WATERTOWN TO CHASKA.  THE STORMS WERE MOVING EAST AT 30 MPH.

* SOME LOCATIONS AFFECTED
    WACONIA
    CHANHASSEN
    PRIOR LAKE
    FARMINGTON
    BURNSVILLE
    BLOOMINGTON
    EDINA

THIS IS A DANGEROUS STORM...WITH LARGE HAIL UP TO GOLF BALL SIZE.
STAY INDOORS AWAY FROM WINDOWS.

JMP

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 18, 8:28 PM CDT, 21 minutes before
MNZ041-047-048-054>056-064-190200-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TWIN CITIES/CHANHASSEN MN
828 PM CDT MON MAY 18 1998

...PORTIONS OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH CANCELLED...

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAD CANCELLED PORTIONS OF THE SEVERE
THUNDERSTORM WATCH WHICH HAD BEEN IN EFFECT UNTIL 10PM OVER SOUTHERN
MINNESOTA.

THE WATCH IS NO LONGER IN EFFECT WEST OF A LINE FROM ABOUT
ALEXANDRIA..TO REDWOOD FALLS.

STRONG TO SEVERvE THUNDERSTORMS CONTINUE OVER CENTRAL
MINNESOTA WHERE THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH CONTINUES UNTIL 10 PM.
JPR
Special weather statement, May 18, 8:28 PM CDT, 21 minutes before
MNZ041-047-048-054>056-064-190200-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TWIN CITIES/CHANHASSEN MN
828 PM CDT MON MAY 18 1998

...PORTIONS OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH CANCELLED...

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAD CANCELLED PORTIONS OF THE SEVERE
THUNDERSTORM WATCH WHICH HAD BEEN IN EFFECT UNTIL 10PM OVER SOUTHERN
MINNESOTA.

THE WATCH IS NO LONGER IN EFFECT WEST OF A LINE FROM ABOUT
ALEXANDRIA..TO REDWOOD FALLS.

STRONG TO SEVERvE THUNDERSTORMS CONTINUE OVER CENTRAL
MINNESOTA WHERE THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH CONTINUES UNTIL 10 PM.
JPR
Special weather statement, May 18, 8:35 PM CDT, 14 minutes before
MNZ061-190220-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TWIN CITIES/CHANHASSEN MN
835 PM CDT MON MAY 18 1998

DUE TO NUMEROUS REPORTS OF POSSIBLE FUNNEL CLOUDS IN ANOKA COUNTY
... THE ANOKA COUNTY LAW ENFORCEMENT CENTER HAS SOUNDED
THE SIREN.  NO SEVERE WEATHER WAS DETECTED IN ANOKA COUNTY BY
DOPPLER RADAR AT THIS TIME IN ANOKA COUNTY.

JVM
Special weather statement, May 18, 8:35 PM CDT, 14 minutes before
MNZ061-190220-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TWIN CITIES/CHANHASSEN MN
835 PM CDT MON MAY 18 1998

DUE TO NUMEROUS REPORTS OF POSSIBLE FUNNEL CLOUDS IN ANOKA COUNTY
... THE ANOKA COUNTY LAW ENFORCEMENT CENTER HAS SOUNDED
THE SIREN.  NO SEVERE WEATHER WAS DETECTED IN ANOKA COUNTY BY
DOPPLER RADAR AT THIS TIME IN ANOKA COUNTY.

JVM

The office that day

Everything else NWS Twin Cities, MN issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 18, 7:00 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMPXChippewa, Renville, Yellow Medicine60 min
May 18, 7:08 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMPXMcLeod47 min
May 18, 7:27 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMPXNicollet, Sibley63 min
May 18, 7:27 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMPXCarver63 min
May 18, 7:37 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMPXHennepin, Wright53 min
May 18, 7:55 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMPXMcLeod65 min
May 18, 7:58 PM CDTTornado WarningMPXMcLeod62 min
May 18, 8:04 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMPXDakota, Hennepin, Ramsey, Scott, Washington61 min
May 18, 8:21 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMPXMorrison, Stearns64 min
May 18, 8:38 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMPXKandiyohi, Meeker42 min
May 18, 8:49 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMPXCarver61 min
May 18, 8:57 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMPXBlue Earth, Brown, Nicollet63 min
May 18, 9:26 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMPXBenton, Sherburne, Stearns64 min
May 18, 9:34 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMPXGoodhue, Rice66 min
May 18, 9:55 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMPXBlue Earth, Nicollet40 min
May 18, 10:45 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMPXWaseca30 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Minnesota, 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.