Alert archive / Iowa / Tornado Warnings in 2002

Tornado Warning 16, NWS La Crosse, WI

July 27, 2002Winneshiek County, Iowa

NWS La Crosse, WI issued this tornado warning at Jul 27, 2002, 8:28 PM CDT for Winneshiek County, Iowa. It was in force for 47 min. 1 report came from inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The outline as issued, with what was reported inside it.

The facts

Issued
Jul 27, 2002, 8:28 PM CDT (01:28 UTC)
Expired
Jul 27, 2002, 9:15 PM CDT
In force
47 min
Issued by
NWS La Crosse, WI
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

County Winneshiek County, IA

The radar

The La Crosse radar (KARX), 79 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 01:27 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
Jul 27, 8:42 PM CDTThunderstorm Wind 55 EDecorah, IA

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
Jul 27, 6:45 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPC5 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Minneapolis, MN (KMPX), launched 00:00Z, 1.5 hours before the alert went out and 216 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, Minneapolis, MN at 00:00Z on 2002-07-28Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1293 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, Minneapolis, MN at 00:00Z on 2002-07-28The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 95 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
1293 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-73 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1102 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
38 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
95 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
119 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.4
Supercell composite
4.3

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.

127 
WFUS53 KARX 280128
TORLSE
IAC191-280215-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LA CROSSE WI
826 PM CDT SAT JUL 27 2002

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN LA CROSSE HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  WINNESHIEK COUNTY IN NORTHEAST IOWA

* UNTIL 915 PM CDT

* AT 826 PM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  DEVELOPING TORNADO 4 MILES NORTHWEST OF RIDGEWAY...OR ABOUT 4 MILES
  SOUTHEAST OF CRESCO...MOVING EAST AT 30 MPH.

* THE DEVELOPING TORNADO IS EXPECTED TO BE...
  NEAR SPILLVILLE AT 835 PM CDT...
  NEAR DECORAH AT 845 PM CDT...

TAKE COVER IN A BASEMENT OR IN AN INTERIOR ROOM ON THE LOWEST FLOOR

LAT...LON 4343 9205 4320 9209 4319 9167 4343 9166

RIECK

The office that day

Everything else NWS La Crosse, WI issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jul 27, 7:19 PM CDTTornado WarningARXMitchell41 min
Jul 27, 7:52 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningARXHoward53 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Iowa, 2002Every tornado warning in 2002Tornadoes in 2002

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.