Alert archive / Nebraska / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2002

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 215, NWS Hastings, NE

August 16, 2002Polk County, York County, Nebraska

NWS Hastings, NE issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Aug 16, 2002, 10:01 AM CDT for Polk County, York County, Nebraska. It was in force for 59 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: Aug 16, 2002, 10:01 AM CDT (15:01 UTC)
Expired: Aug 16, 2002, 11:00 AM CDT
In force: 59 min
Issued by: NWS Hastings, NE
Area: Counties, with a storm outline in the text

Counties Polk County, NE, York County, NE

The radar

The Omaha radar (KOAX), 109 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 15:04 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
Aug 16, 10:20 AM CDT	Hail 1	Gresham, NE

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

Omaha, NE (KOAX), launched 12:00Z, 3.0 hours before the alert went out and 109 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: 0 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL: 2380 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 41 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: -16 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 189 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.

717 
WUUS53 KGID 161501
SVRGRI
NEC143-185-161600-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HASTINGS NE
959 AM CDT FRI AUG 16 2002

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN HASTINGS HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  POLK COUNTY IN EAST CENTRAL NEBRASKA
  YORK COUNTY IN EAST CENTRAL NEBRASKA

* UNTIL 1100 AM CDT

* AT 955 AM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM 4 MILES SOUTHWEST OF BENEDICT...OR ABOUT 7
  MILES NORTH OF YORK...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 20 MPH.

* THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WILL BE NEAR...
  BENEDICT AT 1005 AM CDT
  STROMSBURG AT 1020 AM CDT
  GRESHAM AT 1025 AM CDT
  OSCEOLA AT 1030 AM CDT
  SHELBY AT 1045 AM CDT

PEOPLE IN POLK AND NORTHERN YORK COUNTIES SHOULD SEEK SHELTER IN A
STURDY STRUCTURE AND STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS.

THE PRIMARY SEVERE WEATHER THREAT IS LARGE HAIL THE SIZE OF DIMES.

LAT...LON 4117 9781 4085 9782 4085 9738 4138 9739
          4130 9763

NNNN
FAY

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 Hastings, NE wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at Aug 16, 2:28 AM CDT, 7 hours 33 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Aug 16, 2:28 AM CDT, 7 hours 33 minutes before

SOUTH CENTRAL NEBRASKA/NORTH CENTRAL KANSAS FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HASTINGS NE
228 AM CDT FRI AUG 16 2002

CHC OF RA WL BE THE CONCERN OF THE DAY WITH STRONG UPR SYS XG SRN BC
THIS MRNG AS PER WATER VAPOR LOOP.  THIS SYS WL X THE NRN PLNS TDA
AND EXERT A HEALTHY DRAW ON MSTR POOLED OVR KS/SRN PLNS.  04Z-06Z
850 MB PROFILERS IND WND HAS ALREADY TRENDED ARND TO THE S AND ARE
CNVRGG MSTR NR THE KS/NEB LINE AS PER LATEST RADAR RTNS.

WL RUN A RA MENTION THRU THIS MRNG FOR ANY SCT SHRA/TSRA WHICH FORM
WITH THE LIFTING WARM FRONT.  OTHERWISE...STRONG WARM ADVCTN IN THE
MID LVLS SHOULD CAP THE CWA BY THIS AFTN...AND INTO THE EVE.  NOT
THE BEST NEWS FOR A DROUGHT STRICKEN AREA...HOWEVER THE HODOGRAPH
EXHIBIT FOR THE REGION IS OF GENEROUS SHEAR...SO ANY STORMS THAT
FORM WOULD HAVE DANGEROUSLY SVR POTENTIAL BY THIS EVE.  CURRENTLY
...THE PRIMARY TARGET AREA LKS TO BE WELL NE OF THE GID CWA AS PER
EXPECTED TRACK OF THE SFC LOW AND WEAKER CAP.

A SLGTLY BETTER RA CHC FOR GID WL COME WITH THE SUPERIOR FORCING
ALNG THE TRAILING CDFNT TNGT.  THE LIMITING FACTOR WL CONT TO BE THE
WARM MID LVLS AS PER MDL SNDINGS...SO POP NMBRS WL NOT BE INCREASED
ABOVE ONGOING SMALL CHC.

OVERALL...MDL SOLNS ARE IN GENL AGRMT WITH PREVIOUS FORECAST...SO
PERSISTENCE WL RULE THIS ISSUANCE.  MINOR ADJUSTMENTS ONLY TO SUN
NGT POPS WHERE PLACEMENT OF FOCUSING BNDRY UNDR ZONAL FLOW RMNS A QN
AS DOES TIMING OF NXT FRONT FOR WED NGT/THU.

GID...NONE.

09

In the hours before

Local storm report, Aug 16, 8:43 AM CDT, 1 hour 18 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HASTINGS NE
843 AM CDT FRI AUG 16 2002

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

0840 AM    GENOA                     NE   1 INCH HAIL
08/16/02   NANCE                          REPORTED BY COOPERATIVE
                                          OBSERVER.

Local storm report, Aug 16, 8:51 AM CDT, 1 hour 10 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HASTINGS NE
851 AM CDT FRI AUG 16 2002

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

0850 AM    GENOA                     NE   1.25 INCH HAIL
08/16/02   NANCE                          REPORTED BY LAW
                                          ENFORCEMENT OFFICIAL.

Local storm report, Aug 16, 8:58 AM CDT, 1 hour 3 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HASTINGS NE
858 AM CDT FRI AUG 16 2002

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

0855 AM    GENOA                     NE   1.75 INCH HAIL
08/16/02   NANCE                          REPORTED BY COOPERATIVE
                                          OBSERVER.

0855 AM    1 W GENOA                 NE   2 INCH HAIL
08/16/02   NANCE

Local storm report, Aug 16, 9:00 AM CDT, 1 hour 1 minute before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HASTINGS NE
900 AM CDT FRI AUG 16 2002

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

0700 AM    CENTRAL CITY              NE   1 INCH HAIL
08/16/02   MERRICK

0817 AM    7 N FULLERTON             NE   1 INCH HAIL
08/16/02   NANCE                          REPORTED BY LAW
                                          ENFORCEMENT OFFICIAL.

0840 AM    GENOA                     NE   1 INCH HAIL
08/16/02   NANCE                          REPORTED BY COOPERATIVE
                                          OBSERVER.

0850 AM    GENOA                     NE   1.25 INCH HAIL
08/16/02   NANCE                          REPORTED BY LAW
                                          ENFORCEMENT OFFICIAL.

0855 AM    GENOA                     NE   1.75 INCH HAIL
08/16/02   NANCE                          REPORTED BY COOPERATIVE
                                          OBSERVER.

0855 AM    1 W GENOA                 NE   2 INCH HAIL
08/16/02   NANCE

Local storm report, Aug 16, 9:23 AM CDT, 38 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HASTINGS NE
923 AM CDT FRI AUG 16 2002

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

0655 AM    6 NW AURORA               NE   .75 INCH HAIL
08/16/02   HAMILTON                       REPORTED BY PUBLIC.

Local storm report, Aug 16, 9:33 AM CDT, 28 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HASTINGS NE
933 AM CDT FRI AUG 16 2002

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

0658 AM    4 NW AURORA               NE   1 INCH HAIL
08/16/02   HAMILTON                       REPORTED BY PUBLIC.

The office that day

Everything else NWS Hastings, NE issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Aug 16, 6:45 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	GID	Hamilton	60 min
Aug 16, 7:02 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	GID	Merrick	58 min
Aug 16, 7:41 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	GID	Nance	64 min
Aug 16, 8:44 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	GID	Nance	16 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Nebraska, 2002 Every 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; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.