Alert archive / Nebraska / Tornado Warnings in 1999

Tornado Warning 53, NWS North Platte, NE

August 17, 1999Garden County, Nebraska

NWS North Platte, NE issued this tornado warning at Aug 17, 1999, 2:51 PM MDT for Garden County, Nebraska. It was in force for 64 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
Aug 17, 1999, 2:51 PM MDT (20:51 UTC)
Expired
Aug 17, 1999, 3:55 PM MDT
In force
64 min
Issued by
NWS North Platte, NE
Area
Whole counties

County Garden County, NE

The radar

The North Platte radar (KLNX), 151 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 20:55 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
Aug 17, 2:55 PM MDTTornado F0Lewellen, NESpotters reported two tornadoes touched down breifly in a rural area.
Aug 17, 3:02 PM MDTTornado F0Lewellen, NEA spotter reported a tornado that touched down briefly in a rural area.
Aug 17, 4:02 PM MDTHail 1.75Lewellen, NE

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

N. Platte/Lee Bi, NE (KLBF), launched 12:00Z, 8.9 hours before the alert went out and 155 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, N. Platte/Lee Bi, NE at 12:00Z on 1999-08-17Temperature 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 km-30°-20°-10°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, N. Platte/Lee Bi, NE at 12:00Z on 1999-08-17The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 10 square meters per square second.193958Sfc1 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
2024 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
27 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
10 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
-9 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 KLBF 172053 RRA
TORLBF
NEC069-172155-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NORTH PLATTE NE
351 PM CDT (251 PM MDT) TUE AUG 17 1999

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN NORTH PLATTE HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  SOUTHERN AND EASTERN GARDEN COUNTY IN THE NEBRASKA PANHANDLE

* UNTIL 355 PM MDT (455 PM CDT)

* AT 252 PM MDT... DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A TORNADO 31 MILES
  NORTHWEST   OF OGALLALA OR 6 MILES NORTH OF LEWELLEN... MOVING
  EAST AT 10 MPH. SPOTTERS ALSO INDICATED TWO TORNADOES SOUTH AND
  WEST OF OSHKOSH.

THE TORNADO IS EXPECTED TO REMAIN IN RURAL AREAS.

GO TO THE BASEMENT OR A SMALL INTERIOR ROOM ON THE LOWEST FLOOR!

DLS

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before this tornado warning went out, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS North Platte, NE wrote its last area forecast discussion before this tornado warning went out at Aug 17, 12:37 PM MDT, 2 hours 14 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Aug 17, 12:37 PM MDT, 2 hours 14 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NORTH PLATTE NE
137 PM CDT TUE AUG 17 1999

...FORECAST CHALLENGE WILL BE COVERAGE OF THUNDERSTORMS TONIGHT...

ETA AND NGM CONTINUE TO AGREE ON VORT CHANNEL TOPPING THE RIDGE BY THIS
EVENING AND MOVING ESE ACROSS SRN NE/NRN KS TONIGHT.  OTHER FACTORS
INCLUDE A SFC FRONT ACROSS NC KS PROGGED TO LIFT NORTHEAST INTO CENTRAL
NEBRASKA THIS EVENING.  DWPTS ABOVE 70 ALSO WILL POOL IN VCNTY OF THIS
FRONT TONIGHT. PREFER ETA WITH MOVEMENT OF VORT CHANNEL AND ASSOC 700
UVV OVER NGM...ALTHOUGH GENERAL AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE TWO INCREASES
CONFIDENCE OF AN MCS DEVELOPMENT TONIGHT.

250 MB DIV WILL SET UP NICELY FROM NW KS INTO EC NEBR BY 06Z WED...AS
RR QUAD OF JET SUPPORTS THIS.  850 CONV ALSO WILL SET UP IN ERN CO BY
00Z TONIGHT AND SPREAD EASTWARD ACROSS NRN KS/SRN NE OVERNIGHT.

A THETA E RIDGE DEVELOPS BY 00Z TONIGHT FROM WRN KS INTO WRN NE AND
ORIENTS INTSELF EAST-WEST ALONG THE NE/KS BORDER OVERNIGHT.  SOME HEAVY
RAINFALL POSSIBLE AS PWS TO NEAR 1.5 INCHES SOUTH AND EAST OF LBF. ALSO
EVENING WILL SUPPORT CHC OF SVR...MAINLY SOUTH OF I-80.  RATHER QUICK
MOVEMENT OF SYSTEM WILL LIMIT ANY SIGNIFICANT RAINFALL AMOUNTS HOWEVER.
WILL INCLUDE LIKELY POPS ACROSS THE SRN HALF OF CWA TONIGHT...AND LOWER
POPS TO THE NORTH.

UPPER RIDGE WILL BUILD WESTWARD THROUGH 48HRS.  ON WEDNESDAY GOOD
SUBSIDENCE BEHIND SYSTEM.  WINDS WILL ONCE AGAIN TURN TO THE NORTH AS
SFC HIGH MOVES SOUTHEAST.  APPROACH OF NRN STREAM SHORTWAVE WILL
PRODUCE AS SFC TROUGH FROM MONTANA INTO ERN WY BY THU MORNING. DRY FCST
WED AND THR.

FAN AND FWC TEMPERATURE GUIDANCE CLOSE WITH LOWER AND MID 80S WED...
WARMING SLIGHTLY INTO THE MID/UPPER 80S THR.

IN THE EXTENDED...CHC OF THUNDERSTORMS FRI.  DRY SAT AND SUN AS UPPER
RIDGE KEEPS MOST OF ENERGY WELL TO THE NORTH OF CWA. HIGHS IN THE MID
AND UPPER 80S IN NE COUNTIES WHILE AROUND 90 ELSEWHERE.  LOWS AROUND
60.

.LBF...NONE.

ROBERG

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Aug 17, 10:00 AM MDT, 4 hours 51 minutes before
NEZ004>010-022>029-035>038-056>059-069>071-172045-

SEVERE WEATHER OUTLOOK FOR WESTERN AND NORTH CENTRAL NEBRASKA
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NORTH PLATTE NE
1100 AM CDT TUE AUG 17 1999

...STORM SPOTTERS MAY BE NEEDED LATE THIS AFTERNOON OR TONIGHT ACROSS
SOUTHWEST AND CENTRAL NEBRASKA...

CONDITIONS COULD BECOME FAVORABLE FOR SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS LATE THIS
AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT SOUTH OF A LINE FROM NEAR ALLIANCE...TO HYANNIS
...TO MULLEN...TO BREWSTER.

A STRONG UPPER LEVEL DISTURBANCE WILL MOVE OUT OF THE CENTRAL
ROCKIES THIS EVENING...AND LOW LEVEL MOISTURE WILL BE ON THE INCREASE
DURING THE AFTERNOON HOURS OVER THE OUTLOOK AREA. THE COMBINATION OF
THE UPPER LEVEL FEATURE AND INCREASING INSTABILITY WILL TRIGGER AN
ORGANIZED AREA OF THUNDERSTORMS...SOME OF WHICH MAY BECOME SEVERE.
THE MAIN SEVERE WEATHER THREAT WILL BE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS.

THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT IS ALSO POSSIBLE ACROSS NORTH CENTRAL NEBRASKA
BY THIS EVENING...HOWEVER THESE STORMS ARE NOT EXPECTED TO BECOME
SEVERE.

GEB
Special weather statement, Aug 17, 10:00 AM MDT, 4 hours 51 minutes before
NEZ004>010-022>029-035>038-056>059-069>071-172045-

SEVERE WEATHER OUTLOOK FOR WESTERN AND NORTH CENTRAL NEBRASKA
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NORTH PLATTE NE
1100 AM CDT TUE AUG 17 1999

...STORM SPOTTERS MAY BE NEEDED LATE THIS AFTERNOON OR TONIGHT ACROSS
SOUTHWEST AND CENTRAL NEBRASKA...

CONDITIONS COULD BECOME FAVORABLE FOR SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS LATE THIS
AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT SOUTH OF A LINE FROM NEAR ALLIANCE...TO HYANNIS
...TO MULLEN...TO BREWSTER.

A STRONG UPPER LEVEL DISTURBANCE WILL MOVE OUT OF THE CENTRAL
ROCKIES THIS EVENING...AND LOW LEVEL MOISTURE WILL BE ON THE INCREASE
DURING THE AFTERNOON HOURS OVER THE OUTLOOK AREA. THE COMBINATION OF
THE UPPER LEVEL FEATURE AND INCREASING INSTABILITY WILL TRIGGER AN
ORGANIZED AREA OF THUNDERSTORMS...SOME OF WHICH MAY BECOME SEVERE.
THE MAIN SEVERE WEATHER THREAT WILL BE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS.

THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT IS ALSO POSSIBLE ACROSS NORTH CENTRAL NEBRASKA
BY THIS EVENING...HOWEVER THESE STORMS ARE NOT EXPECTED TO BECOME
SEVERE.

GEB

The office that day

Everything else NWS North Platte, NE issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Aug 17, 2:44 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLBFGarden61 min
Aug 17, 3:06 PM MDTTornado WarningLBFDeuel, Keith59 min
Aug 17, 3:55 PM MDTTornado WarningLBFGarden35 min
Aug 17, 4:00 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLBFHooker60 min
Aug 17, 4:02 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLBFPerkins63 min
Aug 17, 4:05 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLBFKeith65 min
Aug 17, 4:11 PM MDTTornado WarningLBFKeith64 min
Aug 17, 5:04 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLBFPerkins61 min
Aug 17, 5:09 PM MDTFlash Flood WarningLBFPerkins3 hr
Aug 17, 5:17 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLBFChase63 min
Aug 17, 5:32 PM MDTTornado WarningLBFChase, Perkins63 min
Aug 17, 5:42 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLBFLincoln63 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Nebraska, 1999Every tornado warning in 1999Tornadoes in 1999

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.