Alert archive / Minnesota / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2001

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 263, NWS Grand Forks, ND

August 8, 20014 counties in Minnesota

NWS Grand Forks, ND issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Aug 8, 2001, 1:53 AM CDT for 4 counties in Minnesota. It was in force for 67 min. 9 reports came from inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The outline the Iowa Environmental Mesonet reconstructed for it; the warning itself named whole counties, with what was reported inside it.

The facts

Issued
Aug 8, 2001, 1:53 AM CDT (06:53 UTC)
Expired
Aug 8, 2001, 3:00 AM CDT
In force
67 min
Issued by
NWS Grand Forks, ND
Area
Whole counties; the outline is the Mesonet’s reconstruction

Counties Becker County, MN, Mahnomen County, MN, Norman County, MN, Polk County, MN

The radar

The Fargo/Grand Forks radar (KMVX), 100 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 06:53 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 8, 2:07 AM CDTThunderstorm Wind 55 MMahnomen, MNA 63 mph wind gust was measured by a Minnesota DOT RWIS site.
Aug 8, 2:15 AM CDTThunderstorm WindMaple Bay, MNNumerous trees were blown down and one tree fell on a cabin. Boats, docks, pontoons, and boat lifts were flipped and sunk.
Aug 8, 2:20 AM CDTThunderstorm WindMahnomen, MNLarge trees were blown down.
Aug 8, 2:27 AM CDTThunderstorm Wind 75 MErskine, MNAn 86 mph wind gust was measured by a Minnesota DOT RWIS site.
Aug 8, 2:28 AM CDTThunderstorm Wind 52 EMc Intosh, MN60 mph winds were estimated in McIntosh.
Aug 8, 2:30 AM CDTThunderstorm WindErskine, MNA mobile home and storage shed were destroyed and a metal shop was blown apart. Many trees were blown down.
Aug 8, 2:30 AM CDTThunderstorm WindBrooks, MNNumerous trees were blown down.
Aug 8, 2:38 AM CDTThunderstorm Wind 64 MFosston Muni Arpt, MNA 74 mph wind gust was measured at the Fosston airport. One airport building was damaged.
Aug 8, 2:45 AM CDTThunderstorm WindOgema, MNTree branches were blown down.

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
Aug 8, 1:00 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPC5 hr

The nearest sounding before it

International Fa, MN (KINL), launched 00:00Z, 6.9 hours before the alert went out and 236 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, International Fa, MN at 00:00Z on 2001-08-08Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1009 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, International Fa, MN at 00:00Z on 2001-08-08The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 2 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
1009 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-146 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1873 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
38 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
2 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
137 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.

607 
WUUS53 KFGF 080654
SVRFAR
MNC005-087-107-119-080800-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EASTERN ND-GRAND FORKS
153 AM CDT WED AUG 8 2001

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN GRAND FORKS HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...

  NORTHWESTERN BECKER COUNTY IN NORTHWEST MINNESOTA...
  MAHNOMEN COUNTY IN NORTHWEST MINNESOTA...
  EASTERN NORMAN COUNTY IN NORTHWEST MINNESOTA AND
  SOUTHERN POLK COUNTY IN NORTHWEST MINNESOTA.

* UNTIL 300 AM CDT.

* AT 148 AM...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED THE
  LEADING EDGE OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS ALONG A LINE EXTENDING FROM 29
  MILES SOUTHWEST OF THIEF RIVER FALLS TO 24 MILES NORTHWEST OF
  DETROIT LAKES...MOVEMENT WAS TO THE EAST AT 50 MPH.

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE NEAR...

  FAITH AT 155 AM...
  MENTOR AT 205 AM...
  MAHNOMEN AT 220 AM...
  ERSKINE AT 220 AM AND
  OGEMA AT 220 AM CDT.
 
REMEMBER SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS CAN AND OCCASIONALLY DO PRODUCE
TORNADOES WITH LITTLE OR NO ADVANCE WARNING.

A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 600 AM WEDNESDAY
MORNING FOR NORTHWESTERN MINNESOTA AND SOUTHEAST NORTH DAKOTA. A
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH ALSO REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 400 AM
WEDNESDAY MORNING FOR EASTERN NORTH DAKOTA.

LAT...LON 4772 9625 4704 9620 4708 9565 4776 9566


$$
DTR/06

NNNN

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 Grand Forks, ND wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at Aug 7, 8:25 PM CDT, 5 hours 28 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Aug 7, 8:25 PM CDT, 5 hours 28 minutes before
FORECAST DISCUSSION FOR EASTERN NORTH DAKOTA AND NORTHWEST MINNESOTA
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EASTERN ND/GRAND FORKS ND
825 PM CDT TUE AUG 7 2001

FCST CHALLENGE OVERNIGHT...COVERAGE/INTENSITY AND LOCATION OF CONVECTION.

EARLY EVE SFC MAP SHOWS LOW IN SE SASK WITH WARM FRONT INTO FAR SRN
MB AND TROUGH THROUGH FAR ERN MT.  ACTUAL COLD FRONT FARTHER WEST
DROPPING SOUTH THROUGH SRN ALBERTA.  SATELLITE ALONG WITH 70H TEMPS
WOULD INDICATE NRN EDGE OF CAP EXTENDS JUST NORTH OF A BIS-FAR-BJI
LINE.  SFC MAP ALSO SHOWS WK TROUGH ALONG THIS AXIS AS WELL.

FIRST BATCH OF ELEVATED WEAK CONVECTION THAT WAS NR MINOT LATE
THIS AFTN HAS MOVED EAST AND FALLEN APART AS IT APPROACHED WRN
CWFA.  STRONGER TSRA THAT GOT GOING IN ERN MT NOW MOVING EAST AND
LOCATED BTWN MOT/BIS.  NO SVR YET.  18Z MESO ETA INDICATES 35-40KT
LOW LEVEL JET WILL GET GOING BY 06Z WITH NOSE IN NCNTRL ND AND THEN
IT MOVES OVR THE NE ND/NW MN AND SRN IN THE 09-12Z TIME FRAME.  THUS
EXPECT SOME EVOLUTION OF TSRA IN WRN ND/ERN MT INTO A LARGER COMPLEX
AS THE NIGHT PROGRESSES.

GOING FCST AND BREAKUP LOOK GOOD WITH HIGHEST POPS NRN ZONES (NORTH
OF TROUGH) AND NO POPS IN THE FAR SOUTH WHERE CAP WILL REMAIN.

AS FOR THE HEAT ADVISORY...MUCH OF ERN ND AND A FEW PLACES IN NW MN
REACHED 105F LATE THIS AFTN...AND WITH DEW PTS CLIMBING INTO THE
UPPER 70S OVERNIGHT EXPECT HEAT INDICES TO REMAIN ABV 80F TONIGHT.
THUS WILL MAINTAIN CURRENT HEAT ADVISORY LOCATION FOR TONIGHT.

WILL RE-ISSUE NEW NPWFAR AND ZONES SHORTLY AFTER 9 PM.

.FGF...HEAT ADVISORY ALL CWFA EXCEPT WC MN TONIGHT.

RIDDLE

The office that day

Everything else NWS Grand Forks, ND issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Aug 8, 1:16 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGFNorman, Polk44 min
Aug 8, 1:39 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGFClay21 min
Aug 8, 2:08 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGFRed Lake52 min
Aug 8, 2:28 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGFBecker, Beltrami, Clearwater, Hubbard62 min
Aug 8, 1:59 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGFMahnomen, Norman46 min
Aug 8, 1:59 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGFClay46 min
Aug 8, 3:35 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGFHubbard25 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Minnesota, 2001Every severe thunderstorm warning in 2001

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.