Alert archive / Minnesota / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2001

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 85, NWS Grand Forks, ND

June 20, 2001Otter Tail County, Minnesota

NWS Grand Forks, ND issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Jun 20, 2001, 6:47 PM CDT for Otter Tail County, Minnesota. It was in force for 43 min. 1 report 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: Jun 20, 2001, 6:47 PM CDT (23:47 UTC)
Expired: Jun 20, 2001, 7:30 PM CDT
In force: 43 min
Issued by: NWS Grand Forks, ND
Area: Whole counties

County Otter Tail County, MN

The radar

The Fargo/Grand Forks radar (KMVX), 175 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 23:47 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

Time	Report	Where	Remark
Jun 20, 7:20 PM CDT	Thunderstorm Wind 52 E	Perham, 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 nearest sounding before it

Minneapolis, MN (KMPX), launched 12:00Z, 11.8 hours before the alert went out and 239 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-p

Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.

Hodograph

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: 33 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -76 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 1686 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 42 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 85 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 51 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 
WUUS53 KFGF 202348
SVRFAR
MNC111-210030-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EASTERN ND-GRAND FORKS
647 PM CDT WED JUN 20 2001

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN GRAND FORKS HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  OTTER TAIL COUNTY IN WEST CENTRAL MINNESOTA...

* UNTIL 730 PM CDT

* AT 642 PM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM 3 MILES NORTH OF LAKE LIDA...OR ABOUT 15 MILES
  SOUTHWEST OF DETROIT LAKES...MOVEMENT WAS TO THE SOUTHEAST AT 25   
  MPH.  ONE INCH SIZE HAIL WAS REPORTED WITH THIS STORM 6 MILES      
  NORTH OF PELICAN RAPIDS. 

* THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WILL BE NEAR...
  MAPLEWOOD STATE PARK AT 655 PM CDT...
  STAR LAKE AT 705 PM CDT...
  DENT AT 715 PM CDT...
  AMOR AT 725 PM CDT...

REMEMBER SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS CAN AND OCCASIONALLY DO PRODUCE
TORNADOES WITH LITTLE OR NO ADVANCE WARNING.

LAT...LON 46|72 9598 4658 9614 4626 9561 4645 9539


$$

DTR



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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 Jun 20, 2:05 PM CDT, 4 hours 42 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jun 20, 2:05 PM CDT, 4 hours 42 minutes before

FORECAST DISCUSSION FOR EASTERN NORTH DAKOTA AND NORTHWEST MINNESOTA
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EASTERN ND/GRAND FORKS
205 PM CDT WED JUN 20 2001

FORECAST CHALLENGE IS EVENING CONVECTIVE THREAT THEN SHIFTS TO LONG
AWAITED WARMUP. WATER VAPOR LOOP SHOWING ONE WAVE MOVING INTO
WESTERN NORTH DAKOTA AND A SECOND WAVE DROPPING SOUTH OVER WESTERN
ONTARIO. BOTH ETA AND AVN MATCHED THESE FEATURES WELL WITH LITTLE
DIFFERENCE SEEN EITHER AT THE SFC OR H5...SO BASICALLY FOLLOWED A
COMPROMISE FOR THE FORECAST DETAILS. CONVECTION CURRENTLY FIRING
AHEAD OF WAVE DROPPING INTO WESTERN ND ALONG WEAK SFC MOISTURE
CONVERGENCE AREA FROM KMOT TO KGFK TO KBIS. LOWEST LI'S ON MSAS
STILL SHIFTING INTO SOUTHEAST ND ALONG THIS MOISTURE CONVERGENCE
LINE...SO STILL EXPECTING THUNDERSTORMS TO FIRE ACROSS THIS AREA AS
WELL.

PREVIOUSLY MENTIONED H5 SHORT WAVE DROPS THROUGH THE AREA ON THE
NORTHWEST FLOW OVERNIGHT. H85-7 Q VECTOR CONVERGENCE AND H7 OMEGA
WHICH PEAKS ACROSS SOUTHERN AREAS BETWEEN 18Z AND 00Z DIMINISHES
QUICKLY AFTER 00Z. LI AND SHOWALTER INDICES ALSO PEAK DURING THE
AFTERNOON AND QUICKLY TAPER OFF WITH LOSS OF DAYTIME HEATING. SO AS
WAS THE CASE TUESDAY...CONVECTION SHOULD TAPER OFF BY SUNSET. H85-5
Q VECTOR DIVERGENCE AND SFC HIGH NOSING INTO WESTERN ND BY 12Z THU
WILL BRING A DECREASE IN CLOUD COVER FROM NW TO SE. WILL KEEP CLOUD
COVER IN LONGEST ACROSS WEST CENTRAL MN...WHICH WILL HELP TO KEEP
TEMPS WARMEST ACROSS THESE AREAS. WITH WIND SPEEDS FALLING OFF AND
CLEARING WORKING IN...MAY BE SOME PATCHY FOG. KTVF AND KCKN DIPPED
TO A QUARTER MILE THIS MORNING...BUT WERE THE ONLY SITES THAT
REPORTED FOG. AGAIN WOULD EXPECT ANY FOG TO BE MORE ISOLATED AND
WILL NOT MENTION AT THIS TIME.

BUILDING RIDGE ON THURSDAY WITH H5 COLD POOL FINALLY SHIFTING TO THE
EAST. EXPECT PLENTY OF SUNSHINE FOR MOST AREAS...WITH SOME AFTERNOON
CU DEVELOPMENT AGAIN OVER FAR EASTERN ZONES. MODEL SOUNDINGS GIVE
THIS AREA A CONVECTIVE TEMP IN THE MIDDLE 60S...WHICH WILL EASILY BE
REACHED. THICKNESSES AND H85 TEMPS BEGIN TO RISE SLIGHTLY DURING THE
DAY THU...SO RISING TREND ON TEMPS STILL LOOKS GOOD. BETTER H85 WAA
TAKES PLACE THU NIGHT INTO FRI. SFC HIGH SHIFTS INTO THE CENTRAL
PLAINS ON FRI...SETTING UP WEAK RETURN FLOW AND ANOTHER WARM DAY.

MODEL TRENDS CONTINUE TO BE VERY CONSISTENT IN THE EXTENDED PERIODS.
THE FINER DETAILS ARE ALSO BECOMING MORE CLEAR WITH POSSIBILITY OF
SEVERE WEATHER SUNDAY NIGHT AND MONDAY. UNTIL SATURDAY...REGION WILL
BE IN FINE SHAPE UNDER 50H RIDGING WITH A CONTINUED BREAK IN THE
PRECIPITATION AND WARMER TEMPERATURES. FIRST RIDGE RIDER WILL MOVE
INTO SOUTHERN CANADA ON SATURDAY. THIS WILL INITIATE CYCLOGENESIS
IN MONTANA DYNAMICS IN PLACE FOR A SLIGHT CHANCE OF A THUNDERSTORM
IN THE DVL AREA SATURDAY. WITH THE 850MB FLOW...WEAKENING COMPLEX
WILL ROLL INTO THE RED RIVER VALLEY SATURDAY NIGHT AND SUNDAY
MORNING. DURING THE AFTERNOON ON SUNDAY IS WHEN THINGS WILL REALLY
GET GOING OUT WEST. A PEEK AT THE 850MB TEMPS SHOW DECENT CAP WILL
BUILD INTO THE SOUTHERN RED RIVER VALLEY LEAVING THE AREA
PRECIPITATION FREE DURING THE DAY...WITH THE ONLY CHANCE OF
PRECIPITATION ON THE FRINGE OF THE CAP ACROSS THE DVL AREA AND
EXTREME NORTHERN RED RIVER VALLEY. THE MAIN SHOW WILL HOLD OFF UNTIL
LATE SUNDAY NIGHT INTO MONDAY...WHEN CAP FINALLY WEAKENS AND 60KT
MID-LEVEL FLOW WORKS INTO THE AREA. STIL2L COULD BE SOME SHOWERS LEFT
OVER ON TUESDAY...BUT WILL BE OPTIMISTIC FOR NOW.

.FGF...NONE.

GODON/BRAZZELL

In the hours before

Local storm report, Jun 20, 5:57 PM CDT, 50 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EASTERN NORTH DAKOTA/GRAND FORKS
557 PM CDT WED JUN 20 2001

TIME(CDT)  .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE  ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

1253 PM    3 N MINNEWAUKAN           ND   .88 INCH HAIL
06/20/01   BENSON

0104 PM    4 S MINNEWAUKAN           ND   TORNADO
06/20/01   BENSON                         BRIEF TOUCHDOWN

0105 PM    5 W DEVILS LAKE           ND   TORNADO
06/20/01   RAMSEY                         BRIEF TOUCHDOWN

0106 PM    5 SE MINNEWAUKAN          ND   TORNADO
06/20/01   BENSON                         BRIEF TOUCHDOWNS ON AND
                                          NEAR DEVILS LAKE

0125 PM    4 SW DEVILS LAKE          ND   1.75 INCH HAIL
06/20/01   RAMSEY

0125 PM    OBERON                    ND   TORNADO
06/20/01   BENSON                         BRIEF TOUCHDOWN

0138 PM    10 S MICHIGAN             ND   .75 INCH HAIL
06/20/01   NELSON

0138 PM    10 S MICHIGAN             ND   WIND DAMAGE
06/20/01   NELSON                         70 MPH WINDS

0252 PM    3 SE NORTHWOOD            ND   1 INCH HAIL
06/20/01   GRAND FORKS

0305 PM    6 NW JESSIE               ND   .88 INCH HAIL
06/20/01   GRIGGS

0309 PM    10 W REYNOLDS             ND   .75 INCH HAIL
06/20/01   GRAND FORKS

0325 PM    SHARON                    ND   .75 INCH HAIL
06/20/01   STEELE

0341 PM    11 E MAYVILLE             ND   TORNADO
06/20/01   TRAILL                         TOUCHDOWN NEAR INTERSTATE
                                          29

0343 PM    CUMMINGS                  ND   .88 INCH HAIL
06/20/01   TRAILL

0345 PM    2 E CUMMINGS              ND   1 INCH HAIL
06/20/01   TRAILL

0410 PM    2 W LITCHVILLE            ND   .75 INCH HAIL
06/20/01   BARNES

0415 PM    4 S SHELLY                MN   .75 INCH HAIL
06/20/01   NORMAN

0418 PM    2 N ECKELSON              ND   .75 INCH HAIL
06/20/01   BARNES

0422 PM    3 W MANTADOR              ND   .75 INCH HAIL
06/20/01   RICHLAND

0440 PM    4 N LISBON                ND   .75 INCH HAIL
06/20/01   RANSOM

0444 PM    2 W ADA                   MN   .75 INCH HAIL
06/20/01   NORMAN

0445 PM    ADA                       MN   .75 INCH HAIL
06/20/01   NORMAN

0445 PM    VALLEY CITY               ND   1 INCH HAIL
06/20/01   BARNES                         HAIL 2-3 INCHES DEEP

0500 PM    6 SE VALLEY CITY          ND   .75 INCH HAIL
06/20/01   BARNES

NNNN

The office that day

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

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Jun 20, 3:45 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	FGF	Norman	30 min
Jun 20, 4:15 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FGF	Norman	45 min
Jun 20, 6:08 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FGF	Becker, Clay, Otter Tail	37 min
Jun 20, 6:44 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FGF	Wilkin	31 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Minnesota, 2001 Every 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.