Alert archive / North Dakota / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2002

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 120, NWS Grand Forks, ND

July 17, 2002Barnes County, North Dakota

NWS Grand Forks, ND issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Jul 17, 2002, 10:45 AM CDT for Barnes County, North Dakota. It was in force for 45 min. 3 reports 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 17, 2002, 10:45 AM CDT (15:45 UTC)
Expired
Jul 17, 2002, 11:30 AM CDT
In force
45 min
Issued by
NWS Grand Forks, ND
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

County Barnes County, ND

What was reported inside it

TimeReportWhereRemark
Jul 17, 11:00 AM CDTHail 1Sibley, ND
Jul 17, 11:25 AM CDTHail 2Oriska, ND
Jul 17, 11:30 AM CDTThunderstorm WindOriska, NDA semi truck was blown off Interstate 94. The truck was not carrying any cargo.

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.

Did it verify

Not verified. The Iowa Environmental Mesonet's Cow found no qualifying storm report inside this severe thunderstorm warning while it was in force. That is not proof nothing happened: reports are thin where few people live.

Cow counts a report within 15 km of the polygon while the warning was in force: a tornado for a tornado warning; hail of 1 inch or more, a gust of 58 mph or more or wind damage for a severe thunderstorm warning; a flash flood report for a flash flood warning.

The nearest sounding before it

Bismarck Municip, ND (KBIS), launched 12:00Z, 3.8 hours before the alert went out and 206 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, Bismarck Municip, ND at 12:00Z on 2002-07-17Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1514 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, Bismarck Municip, ND at 12:00Z on 2002-07-17The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 55 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
1514 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-95 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
605 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
41 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
55 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
88 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.4
Supercell composite
2.2

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

506 
WUUS53 KFGF 171545
SVRFAR
NDC003-171630-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EASTERN ND/GRAND FORKS
1045 AM CDT WED JUL 17 2002

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN GRAND FORKS HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...

  NORTHERN BARNES COUNTY IN SOUTHEAST NORTH DAKOTA.

* UNTIL 1130 AM CDT.

* AT 1040 AM...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM 5 MILES SOUTHEAST OF DAZEY...OR ABOUT 16 MILES
  NORTHWEST OF VALLEY CITY...MOVEMENT WAS TO THE EAST AT 25 MPH.

* THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WILL BE NEAR...

  SIBLEY AT 1055 AM AND
  PILLSBURY AT 1115 AM.

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

LAT...LON 4724 9823 4706 9824 4689 9774 4722 9775


04

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 Jul 17, 10:10 AM CDT, 35 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jul 17, 10:10 AM CDT, 35 minutes before
FORECAST DISCUSSION FOR EASTERN NORTH DAKOTA AND NORTHWEST MINNESOTA
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EASTERN ND/GRAND FORKS ND
1010 AM CDT WED JUL 17 2002

...MAIN CHALLENGE FOR THIS AFTERNOON WILL BE THUNDERSTORM CHANCES
AND SKY COVER...

.CURRENT OBSERVATIONS...
MCS CURRENTLY MOVING INTO NORTHEAST NORTH DAKOTA ALONG TIGHT 850MB
DEWPOINT GRADIENT. DO NOT EXPECT ANY FLOODING PROBLEMS WITH THIS
FIRST ROUND OF PRECIPITATION. HOWEVER...AREAS THAT HAVE
PRECIPITATION THIS MORNING WILL HAVE TO BE WATCHED IF ANOTHER ROUND
MOVES INTO THE AREA. TEMPERATURES AHEAD OF THE SYSTEM ARE NEAR 80
DEGREES FROM THE RED RIVER VALLEY AND POINTS EAST. MAY NEED TO BUMP
TEMPERATURES UP FOR THE BEMIDJI AND FARGO ZONES AND BRING THUNDER IN
A LITTLE EARLIER. WILL ADJUST CLOUD WORDING FOR DEVILS LAKE AREA TO
BECOMING PARTLY CLOUDY.

.FGF...FLOOD WARNING CONTINUES FOR PORTIONS OF THE RED RIVER NEAR
OSLO.
FLOOD WATCH THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT FOR THE ENTIRE CWA.

DONAVON

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Jul 17, 6:50 AM CDT, 3 hours 55 minutes before
MNZ001>009-013>017-022>024-027>032-040-NDZ006>008-014>016-024-
026>030-038-039-049-052>054-171300-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EASTERN ND/GRAND FORKS
650 AM CDT WED JUL 17 2002

...SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS ARE POSSIBLE THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING...

.SYNOPSIS...SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS...SOME POSSIBLE SEVERE...ARE
EXPECTED TO DEVELOP ALONG AND NORTH OF AN OLD FRONTAL BOUNDRY AS A
LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM MOVES EAST ALONG THE BOUNDRY.  THE OLD FRONTAL
SYSTEM REMAINS STATIONARY FROM NORTHERN SOUTH DAKOTA TO THE
MINNESOTA ARROWHEAD.

.AREA OF CONCERN...EASTERN NORTH DAKOTA AND NORTHWEST MINNESOTA
SOUTH OF US HIGHWAY 2.

.TIME...BEGINNING AFTER 2 PM IN THE DEVILS LAKE REGION AND
SPREADING EAST THROUGH THE AFTERNOON AND EVENING

.TYPE OF HAZARD...LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS WITH ISOLATED
TORNADOS POSSIBLE.

KENNEDY

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jul 17, 11:26 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGFCass49 min
Jul 17, 12:15 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGFCass30 min
Jul 17, 12:31 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGFRansom, Richland59 min
Jul 17, 12:36 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGFRansom, Richland54 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in North Dakota, 2002Every severe thunderstorm warning 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.