Alert archive / Kansas / Tornado Watches in 1998

Tornado Watch 330

May 11, 199840 counties in Kansas

The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at May 11, 1998, 6:45 PM CDT for 40 counties in Kansas. It was in force for 6 hr.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
May 11, 1998, 6:45 PM CDT (23:45 UTC)
Expired
May 12, 1998, 1:00 AM CDT
In force
6 hr
Issued by
the Storm Prediction Center
All 40 counties

Barber County, KS, Barton County, KS, Brown County, KS, Butler County, KS, Chase County, KS, Clay County, KS, Cloud County, KS, Comanche County, KS, Cowley County, KS, Dickinson County, KS, Ellsworth County, KS, Geary County, KS, Harper County, KS, Harvey County, KS, Jackson County, KS, Jewell County, KS, Kingman County, KS, Kiowa County, KS, Lincoln County, KS, Lyon County, KS, Marion County, KS, Marshall County, KS, McPherson County, KS, Mitchell County, KS, Morris County, KS, Nemaha County, KS, Ottawa County, KS, Pottawatomie County, KS, Pratt County, KS, Reno County, KS, Republic County, KS, Rice County, KS, Riley County, KS, Saline County, KS, Sedgwick County, KS, Shawnee County, KS, Stafford County, KS, Sumner County, KS, Wabaunsee County, KS, Washington County, KS

The radar

The Wichita radar (KICT), 76 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 23:45 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.

Warnings issued inside it

18 tornado, severe thunderstorm and flash flood warnings for its counties while it was in force.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 11, 7:05 PM CDTTornado WarningICTBarton, Russell60 min
May 11, 7:10 PM CDTTornado WarningICTEllsworth, Lincoln60 min
May 11, 7:38 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGIDJewell, Mitchell67 min
May 11, 8:08 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTOPOttawa32 min
May 11, 8:12 PM CDTTornado WarningICTEllsworth63 min
May 11, 8:33 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTOPCloud32 min
May 11, 8:38 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningICTRice62 min
May 11, 8:42 PM CDTTornado WarningICTSaline63 min
May 11, 8:42 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTOPOttawa48 min
May 11, 9:00 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTOPCloud45 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

The nearest sounding before it

Dodge City, (KDDC), launched 12:00Z, 11.8 hours before the alert went out and 181 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 12:00Z on 1998-05-11Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 189 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, Dodge City, at 12:00Z on 1998-05-11The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 528 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
189 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-565 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
993 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
37 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
528 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
593 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.

009 
WWUS9 KMKC 112336 COR
SEL0  
MKC WW 112336 COR
KSZ000-120600-

BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 330
STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
636 PM CDT MON MAY 11 1998

THE STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF

CENTRAL AND NORTHEASTERN KANSAS

EFFECTIVE THIS MONDAY NIGHT AND TUESDAY MORNING FROM 645 PM UNTIL
100 AM CDT.

TORNADOES...HAIL TO 2 INCHES IN DIAMETER...THUNDERSTORM WIND GUSTS
TO 80 MPH...AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE IN THESE AREAS.

THE TORNADO WATCH AREA IS ALONG AND 80 STATUTE MILES EAST AND WEST
OF A LINE FROM 25 MILES SOUTHEAST OF MEDICINE LODGE KANSAS TO 60
MILES NORTH OF MANHATTAN KANSAS.

REMEMBER...A TORNADO WATCH MEANS CONDITIONS ARE FAVORABLE FOR
TORNADOES AND SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS IN AND CLOSE TO THE WATCH AREA. 
PERSONS IN THESE AREAS SHOULD BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR THREATENING
WEATHER CONDITIONS AND LISTEN FOR LATER STATEMENTS AND POSSIBLE
WARNINGS.

OTHER WATCH INFORMATION...  CONTINUE...WW 329...

DISCUSSION...THUNDERSTORMS WILL INCREASE ALONG DRY LINE ADVANCING
INTO WARM MOIST AIR UNSTABLE AIR MASS WHERE CAPES FROM 2000 TO 3000
J/KG. 40 TO 50 KT MID LEVEL FLOW ALONG WITH VEERING WIND PROFILE
INDICATES A FEW TORNADIC SUPERCELLS POSSIBLE. 


AVIATION...TORNADOES AND A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH HAIL
SURFACE AND ALOFT TO 2 INCHES.  EXTREME TURBULENCE AND SURFACE WIND
GUSTS TO 70 KNOTS.  A FEW CUMULONIMBI WITH MAXIMUM TOPS TO 500. 
MEAN STORM MOTION VECTOR 24035.


...ROGASH

370,0994 395,0981 395,0950 370,0964

Nearby

Tornado Watches in Kansas, 1998Every tornado watch 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.