Alert archive / Oregon / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2000

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 5, NWS Pendleton, OR

May 15, 2000Umatilla County, Union County, Wallowa County, Oregon

NWS Pendleton, OR issued this severe thunderstorm warning at May 15, 2000, 3:28 PM PDT for Umatilla County, Union County, Wallowa County, Oregon. It was in force for 62 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 15, 2000, 3:28 PM PDT (22:28 UTC)
Expired
May 15, 2000, 4:30 PM PDT
In force
62 min
Issued by
NWS Pendleton, OR
Area
Whole counties

Counties Umatilla County, OR, Union County, OR, Wallowa County, OR

The radar

The Pendleton radar (KPDT), 72 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 22:31 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 15, 3:28 PM PDTHail 0.88Elgin, OR
May 15, 3:45 PM PDTHail 0.88Elgin, OR

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

Boise Airport, ID (KBOI), launched 12:00Z, 10.5 hours before the alert went out and 256 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, Boise Airport, ID at 12:00Z on 2000-05-15Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 2 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, Boise Airport, ID at 12:00Z on 2000-05-15The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity -29 square meters per square second.1939587897117Sfc1 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
2 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-400 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1623 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
32 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
-29 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
45 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.

169 
WUUS56 KPDT 152228
SVRPDT
ORC059-061-063-152330-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PENDLETON OR
328 PM PDT MON MAY 15 2000

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN PENDLETON HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  EXTREME NORTHEASTERN UMATILLA COUNTY IN NORTHEASTERN OREGON
  NORTHERN UNION COUNTY IN NORTHEASTERN OREGON
  EXTREME NORTHWESTERN WALLOWA COUNTY IN NORTHEASTERN OREGON

* UNTIL 430 PM PDT

* AT 326 PM PDT... DOPPLER RADAR AND SPOTTER REPORTS INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM 34 MILES NORTH OF LAGRANDE OR 7 MILES
  NORTHWEST OF PALMER JUNCTION... MOVING SOUTH AT 5 MPH.

LARGE HAIL IS INDICATED WITH THIS STORM.  THIS STORM IS EXPECTED
TO REMAIN IN RURAL AREAS.

THIS IS A DANGEROUS STORM STAY INDOORS AWAY FROM WINDOWS.

DI/MML

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.

NWS Pendleton, OR wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at May 15, 2:30 PM PDT, 58 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, May 15, 2:30 PM PDT, 58 minutes before
NORTHEAST OREGON/SOUTHEAST WASHINGTON FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PENDLETON OR
230 PM PDT MON MAY 15 2000

MAIN CONCERN IS EVENING THUNDERSTORMS.  ATMOSPHERE UNSTABLE WITH
LIFT INDEX NEAR -4...CAPE 800-1000 AND COOLING ALOFT WITH 500 MB
TEMPS NEAR -22C.  HOWEVER...MOISTURE CONVERGENCE CENTERED TO OUR
SOUTH MAY LIMIT AVAILABLE MOISTURE AND UPPER JET HAS MOVED TO OUR
EAST DECREASING UPPER LEVEL DYNAMICS.  WEAK IMPULSES ROTATING AROUND
UPPER LOW CURRENTLY CENTERED 38N/127W WILL HELP TRIGGER THUNDERSTORM
DEVELOPMENT THROUGH THE EVENING.  EXPECTED SLOW MOVEMENT OF STORMS
MAY ALLOW FOR HIGHER PRECIPITATION AMOUNTS THAN WOULD NORMALLY BE
EXPECTED.   THUNDERSTORMS WILL DIE OUT WITH SUNDOWN.  THEN...UPPER
LOW WILL MOVE SLOWLY EASTWARD AND TRACK ACROSS CENTRAL CALIFORNIA
TONIGHT...THEN NORTHEAST OVER NEVADA INTO SOUTHEAST IDAHO FOR
TUEADAY.  WRAP AROUND CLOUDS WILL AFFECT THE EASTERN PART OF THE
FORECAST AREA ON TUESDAY WITH SOME LINGER SHOWERS POSSIBLE EXTREME
EAST.  RIDGING OVER THE WESTERN SECTION WILL PROVIDE DRY
CONDITIONS.  RIDGE TO DOMINATE WEATHER PATTERN ON WEDNESDAY
THROUGHOUT AREA.

EXTENDED...RIDGE WILL MAINTAIN CONTROL OVER REGION THROUGH FRIDAY
WITH FLOW BECOMING MORE ZONAL ON SATURDAY.  MINOR DISTURBANCE MOVING
THROUGH UPPER FLOW WILL GENERATE OCCASIONAL CLOUDS BUT CONDITIONS TO
REMAIN DRY THROUGH PERIOD.  MJB.

PDT 4100  ALW 4100  PSC 4100  YKM 4100

.KPDT...WSR-88D...VCP21/CSR21...OPERATIONAL.

.KPDT...NONE.

The office that day

Everything else NWS Pendleton, OR issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 15, 3:45 PM PDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningPDTWallowa65 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Oregon, 2000Every severe thunderstorm warning in 2000

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.