Alert archive / Oklahoma / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2001

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 338, NWS Tulsa, OK

August 15, 2001Craig County, Delaware County, Ottawa County, Oklahoma

NWS Tulsa, OK issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Aug 15, 2001, 5:49 PM CDT for Craig County, Delaware County, Ottawa County, Oklahoma. It was in force for 41 min. 3 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 15, 2001, 5:49 PM CDT (22:49 UTC)
Expired
Aug 15, 2001, 6:30 PM CDT
In force
41 min
Issued by
NWS Tulsa, OK
Area
Whole counties; the outline is the Mesonet’s reconstruction

Counties Craig County, OK, Delaware County, OK, Ottawa County, OK

The radar

The Tulsa radar (KINX), 86 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 22:49 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 15, 6:15 PM CDTThunderstorm Wind 52 EFairland, OKThunderstorm winds estimated at 60 miles an hour blew down large tree limbs.
Aug 15, 6:24 PM CDTThunderstorm Wind 52 EVinita, OKThunderstorm winds estimated at 60 miles an hour blew down large tree limbs.
Aug 15, 6:25 PM CDTHail 0.75Grove, OK

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

Springfield, MO (KSGF), launched 12:00Z, 10.8 hours before the alert went out and 106 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, Springfield, MO at 12:00Z on 2001-08-15Temperature 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 km15 km-30°-20°-10°0°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Springfield, MO at 12:00Z on 2001-08-15The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 170 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
1364 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
27 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
170 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
164 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.

265 
WUUS54 KTSA 152250
SVRTUL
OKC035-041-115-152330-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
549 PM CDT WED AUG 15 2001

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN TULSA HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR
  SOUTHEASTERN CRAIG COUNTY IN NORTHEAST OKLAHOMA
  NORTHERN DELAWARE COUNTY IN NORTHEAST OKLAHOMA
  OTTAWA COUNTY IN NORTHEAST OKLAHOMA

* UNTIL 630 PM CDT

* AT 549 PM CDT SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS CAPABLE OF PRODUCING WINDS UP TO
  65 MPH WERE LOCATED ALONG A LINE EXTENDING FROM BLUEJACKET TO      
  BIG CABIN...MOVING EAST AT 30 MPH.

* SOME LOCATIONS AFFECTED INCLUDE... WELCH...BLUEJACKET...WHITE
  OAK...BIG CABIN...KETCHUM...VINITA...QUAPAW...WYANDOTTE...
  NARCISSA...FAIRLAND...AFTON...COMMERCE...MIAMI...BERNICE...GROVE
  AND CLEORA.

DAMAGING WINDS MAY OCCUR UP TO 5 MILES AHEAD OF THE HEAVY RAIN AND 
HAIL. MOVE TO A SAFE PLACE NOW.

LAT...LON 3698 9514 3651 9543 3649 9461 3699 9462

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 Tulsa, OK wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at Aug 15, 2:45 PM CDT, 3 hours 4 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Aug 15, 2:45 PM CDT, 3 hours 4 minutes before
EASTERN OKLAHOMA/NORTHWEST ARKANSAS FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
245 PM CDT WED AUG 15 2001

COLD FRONT CONTINUES TO MOVE SOUTHEAST THIS AFTERNOON INTO
NORTH-CENTRAL OKLAHOMA.  ENHANCED CU HAS DEVELOPED AHEAD OF BOUNDARY
WITH A FEW RADAR ECHOES STARTING TO SHOW UP SW OF PNC FROM KINX. SFC
MOISTURE CONVERGENCE HAS BEEN ONGOING IN THIS AREA...AND EXPECT SCT
TSTMS TO DEVELOP IN THE NEXT COUPLE OF HOURS...PUSHING EASTWARD INTO
NE OK ZONES BY LATE AFTERNOON.  ATMOSPHERE HAS BECOME MODERATELY
UNSTABLE ACROSS THIS AREA WITH LIS RANGING FROM -5 TO -7 DEG C.
ISOLATED SVR STORMS WILL BE POSSIBLE...MAINLY THROUGH THE EVENING
HOURS AS STORMS PUSH EAST ALONG FRONT.

THUNDERSTORMS MAY BECOME MORE WIDESPREAD ALONG FRONT AFTER MIDNIGHT
AS LOW LEVEL MOISTURE/JET INCREASES OVER SE OK/NW ARK. THIS AREA
WILL ALSO BE IN RIGHT REAR QUAD OF 70KT 300 MB JET.  COULD SEE A FEW
LINGERING TSTMS OVER FAR SE OK TOWARD THE RED RIVER THU MORNING...
HOWEVER PRECIP SHOULD PUSH SOUTH BY EARLY AFTERNOON AS COLD FRONT
MOVES INTO NE TX/SOUTHERN ARK.  EXPECT SOME CLEARING BEHIND FRONT
OVER NORTHERN ZONES AND WITH LITTLE CAA FORECAST BEHIND FRONT...
TEMPS SHOULD BE BACK INTO THE LOW TO MID 90S WITH THE LIMITED CLOUD
COVER.

WEAK 50H SHORTWAVE PROGGED TO MOVE INTO AREA ON FRI UNDER NW FLOW.
MAY JUST GIVE FA MID/HIGH LEVEL CLOUDS ON FRI AND WILL GO WITH DRY
FORECAST FOR NOW. STRONGER SHORTWAVE TROUGH DIGS INTO KANSAS/OK FRI
NIGHT WITH THE POTENTIAL FOR MCS DEVELOPMENT OVER KANSAS...MOVING
SE INTO NE OK/NW ARK LATE FRIDAY NIGHT INTO SATURDAY.  WILL BUMP
POPS TO CHANCE CATEGORY (30%) ON SAT.  NO OTHER SIG CHANGES TO
EXTENDED.  WILL LIKELY TWEAK 1ST PERIOD POPS AT ISSUANCE TIME...
DEPENDING ON LATEST RADAR TRENDS.

FCSTID = 12

PRELIM NUMBERS BELOW
TUL   68  95  66  95 /  50   0  10  10
FSM   70  92  65  94 /  60  30   0   0
MLC   70  93  67  96 /  50  20   0   0
BVO   66  95  64  94 /  50   0  10  10
FYV   64  85  59  90 /  60  20   0  10
BYV   64  85  59  90 /  60  20   0  10
MIO   66  92  63  92 /  60  10  10  10
MKO   68  94  65  95 /  50  10   0  10
F10   68  95  66  95 /  50   0  10  10
HHW   72  91  69  95 /  60  50   0   0

.TSA...
AR...NONE.
OK...NONE.

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Aug 15, 2:09 PM CDT, 3 hours 40 minutes before
ARZ001-002-010-011-019-020-029-OKZ049-053>076-161100-

EASTERN OKLAHOMA/NORTHWEST ARKANSAS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
209 PM CDT WED AUG 15 2001

...ISOLATED SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS EXPECTED LATE THIS AFTERNOON AND
TONIGHT ACROSS EASTERN OKLAHOMA AND NORTHWEST ARKANSAS...

A COLD FRONT...WHICH WAS MOVING INTO SOUTHEAST KANSAS AND NORTHWEST
OKLAHOMA THIS AFTERNOON...IS EXPECTED TO MOVE INTO NORTHEAST
OKLAHOMA BY EARLY EVENING AND ACROSS THE AREA OVERNIGHT.  SCATTERED
THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED TO DEVELOP NEAR THE FRONT IN CENTRAL
OKLAHOMA WITH OTHER STORMS POSSIBLY DEVELOPING IN SOUTHEAST KANSAS
AND SOUTHERN MISSOURI. ISOLATED SEVERE STORMS MAY MOVE EASTWARD INTO
EASTERN OKLAHOMA AFTER 5PM WITH MORE WIDESPREAD DEVELOPMENT POSSIBLE
DURING THE EVENING. THE STORMS MAY DEVELOP INTO A LINE ALONG THE
FRONT AS IT PUSHES INTO NORTHWEST ARKANSAS AND SOUTHEAST OKLAHOMA
TOWARDS MIDNIGHT...WITH THE STORMS EXPECTED TO MOVE SOUTH OF THE
AREA BY THURSDAY MORNING.

DAMAGING WINDS WILL BE THE MAIN THREAT FROM THE STORMS WITH THE
THREAT HIGHEST IN NORTHEAST OKLAHOMA BETWEEN 5PM AND 9PM AND IN
SOUTHEAST OKLAHOMA AND NORTHWEST ARKANSAS AFTER 8PM.

.SPOTTER ACTIVATION...
SPOTTERS ACTIVATION MAY BE REQUIRED IN EASTERN OKLAHOMA AND
NORTHWEST ARKANSAS LATE THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT.

.DISCUSSION...
LOW LEVEL MOISTURE WAS MOVING NORTHEASTWARD OUT OF WEST TEXAS AND
THE ADDITION OF THE MOISTURE TO THE AIRMASS AHEAD OF THE ONCOMING
FRONT WILL CREATE CAPES FROM 1500 TO 2000 J/KG IN EASTERN OKLAHOMA
BY LATE AFTERNOON. INSTABILITY AND LIFT NEAR THE FRONT WILL BE
GREATER OVER CENTRAL OKLAHOMA AND SOUTHEAST KANSAS THIS AFTERNOON...
WHERE INITIAL DEVELOPMENT IS EXPECTED. IF ANY STORMS DEVELOP OR
ENTER EASTERN OKLAHOMA LATE THIS AFTERNOON...DOWNBURST WINDS WILL BE
THE MAIN THREAT WITH HAIL TO 1 INCH ALSO POSSIBLE. FACTORS THAT MAY
LIMIT THE SEVERE THREAT ARE VEERING SURFACE WINDS AHEAD OF THE FRONT
AND THE LATE ARRIVAL OF LOW LEVEL MOISTURE. BY EVENING...THE
APPROACH OF THE UPPER LEVEL TROUGH AND INCREASING LOW LEVEL JET
WINDS WILL INCREASE THE CHANCE OF THE CONVECTION BECOMING ORGANIZED
ALONG THE FRONT. ELEVATED LIFTED INDICES ARE FORECAST TO REMAIN IN
THE -2 TO -4 RANGE OVERNIGHT WHICH MAY KEEP THE THREAT FOR SEVERE
STORMS GOING UNTIL AFTER MIDNIGHT IN NORTHWEST ARKANSAS AND
SOUTHEAST OKLAHOMA.

THREAT TABLE
VALID THROUGH 1200 UTC THURSDAY
AREA 1...EASTERN OKLAHOMA AND NORTHWEST ARKANSAS
THUNDERSTORM PROBABILITY...100
SEVERE PROBABILITY IF STORMS OCCUR...40
SIGNIFICANT SEVERE PROBABILITY IF STORMS OCCUR...10

THREAT AREAS DEFINE THE GREATEST RISK. PROBABILITIES ARE IN PERCENT.
SIGNIFICANT SEVERE IS DEFINED AS F1 OR GREATER WIND/TORNADO DAMAGE
AND/OR GOLF BALL SIZE HAIL OR LARGER.

RELATED GRAPHICAL INFORMATION CAN BE FOUND AT: WWW.SRH.NOAA.GOV/TULSA
Local storm report, Aug 15, 5:44 PM CDT, 5 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
544 PM CDT WED AUG 15 2001

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

0505 PM    MANNFORD                  OK    59 MPH TSTM GUST
08/15/01   CREEK                           PUBLIC REPORT.

0510 PM    5 W SAND SPGS             OK    60 MPH TSTM GUST
08/15/01   TULSA                           MEDIA REPORT.

The office that day

Everything else NWS Tulsa, OK issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Aug 15, 3:53 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTSAOsage, Pawnee52 min
Aug 15, 4:47 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTSAOsage, Washington43 min
Aug 15, 5:06 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTSACreek, Osage, Tulsa39 min
Aug 15, 5:24 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTSARogers51 min
Aug 15, 5:27 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTSATulsa63 min
Aug 15, 5:36 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTSAWagoner54 min
Aug 15, 5:53 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTSAMayes52 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Oklahoma, 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.