Alert archive / Nebraska / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2002

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 216, NWS Hastings, NE

August 17, 2002Valley County, Nebraska

NWS Hastings, NE issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Aug 17, 2002, 12:01 AM CDT for Valley County, Nebraska. It was in force for 59 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
Aug 17, 2002, 12:01 AM CDT (05:01 UTC)
Expired
Aug 17, 2002, 1:00 AM CDT
In force
59 min
Issued by
NWS Hastings, NE
Area
Whole counties

County Valley County, NE

The radar

The North Platte radar (KLNX), 139 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 05:03 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 17, 12:47 AM CDTHail 0.75North Loup, 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.

The watch it was issued in

The SPC watch in force over the same counties when this warning went out.

IssuedProductOfficeLasted
Aug 16, 11:20 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPC6 hr

The nearest sounding before it

N. Platte/Lee Bi, NE (KLBF), launched 00:00Z, 5.0 hours before the alert went out and 144 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, N. Platte/Lee Bi, NE at 00:00Z on 2002-08-17Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 2049 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, N. Platte/Lee Bi, NE at 00:00Z on 2002-08-17The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 69 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
2049 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-29 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
3249 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
43 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
69 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
137 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
6.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

451 
WUUS53 KGID 170501
SVRGRI
NEC175-170600-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HASTINGS NE
1201 AM CDT SAT AUG 17 2002

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN HASTINGS HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  VALLEY COUNTY IN CENTRAL NEBRASKA

* UNTIL 100 AM CDT

* AT 1156 PM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  LINE OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS FROM 6 MILES NORTHEAST OF FORT
  HARTSUFF STATE PARK TO 28 MILES WEST OF ARCADIA...OR FROM 45 MILES
  NORTHEAST OF BROKEN BOW TO 7 MILES NORTH OF BROKEN BOW...MOVING
  SOUTHEAST AT 35 MPH.

SOME LOCATIONS IN THE PATH OF THIS LINE OF SEVERE STORMS INCLUDE
ORD...ARCADIA AND NORTH LOUP.

PEOPLE IN VALLEY COUNTY SHOULD SEEK SHELTER IN A STURDY STRUCTURE AND
STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS.

THE PRIMARY SEVERE WEATHER THREAT IS STRONG AND DAMAGING WINDS IN 
EXCESS OF 60 MPH...AND HAIL TO THE SIZE OF QUARTERS.

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 Hastings, NE wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at Aug 16, 9:57 PM CDT, 2 hours 4 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Aug 16, 9:57 PM CDT, 2 hours 4 minutes before
SOUTH CENTRAL NEBRASKA/NORTH CENTRAL KANSAS FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HASTINGS NE
957 PM CDT FRI AUG 16 2002

JUST A SHORT UPDATE TO THROW OUT A WIND ADVISORY AS BUFFER ZONE FOR
NORTHWEST CWFA. FRONT IS DRIVING ITS WAY TOWARD THE CWFA AND SHOULD
ARRIVE NEAR MIDNIGHT NORTHWEST SECTIONS. STRONG ISALLOBARIC COMPONENT
WITH PRESSURE RISES WILL AID IN HIGHER WIND SPEEDS. ADVISORY
CRITERIA APPEARS AT LEAST A CERTAINTY IN THOSE AREAS FOR 2 TO 5
HOURS MAYBE ACROSS AREAS FURTHER SOUTHEAST.

NO MAJOR CHANGES OTHERWISE. PROVIDED SOME TIMING OF STORMS AS FRONT
IS STILL EXPECT TO OVERCOME STRONG CAP...BUT POSSIBLY JUST A BIT
FURTHER SOUTHEAST.

.GID...WIND ADVISORY FOR THE OVERNIGHT HOURS NORTH OF A HOLDREGE TO
GRAND ISLAND TO POLK LINE.

MORITZ

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Aug 16, 11:42 PM CDT, 19 minutes before
KSZ005>007-017>019-NEZ039>041-046>049-060>064-072>077-082>087-171200-

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HASTINGS NE
1142 PM CDT FRI AUG 16 2002

...SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL BE REQUIRED TONIGHT OVER SOUTH CENTRAL
NEBRASKA AND NORTH CENTRAL KANSAS...

AS EXPECTED...AN ERUPTION OF THUNDERSTORMS IN CENTRAL NEBRASKA WILL
LEAD TO A LINE OF STRONG TO SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS SOUTH CENTRAL
NEBRASKA AND NORTH CENTRAL KANSAS OVERNIGHT.

A COLD FRONT PLOWING INTO A VERY UNSTABLE AIRMASS ACROSS THE REGION
WILL MOVE RAPIDLY SOUTHEAST OVERNIGHT. A LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS
CAPABLE OF PRODUCING WIND GUSTS IN EXCESS OF 60 MPH...AND HAIL TO
THE SIZE OF GOLF BALLS...WILL MOVE ACROSS THE AREA. BETWEEN MIDNIGHT
AND 2 AM...AREAS NORTH OF INTERSTATE 80 IN SOUTH CENTRAL NEBRASKA
WILL HAVE THE BEST SHOT AT SEVERE WEATHER. BETWEEN 2 AND 5 AM...THE
RISK FOR SEVERE STORMS WILL SPREAD SOUTH TO THE KANSAS BORDER...AND
EVENTUALLY INTO NORTH CENTRAL KANSAS BY DAWN. A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM
WATCH IS IN EFFECT FOR ALL OF SOUTH CENTRAL NEBRASKA UNTIL 5 AM.

IT IS LIKELY SOME SPOTTER GROUPS WILL NEED TO BE DEPLOYED TONIGHT.
ALL RESIDENTS OF SOUTH CENTRAL NEBRASKA AND NORTH CENTRAL KANSAS...
SHOULD CONTINUE TO REMAIN VIGILANT TO THE POSSIBILITY OF SEVERE
WEATHER DURING THE NIGHT.

THIS FAST MOVING COLD FRONT WILL EXIT THE REGION EARLY SATURDAY
MORNING...LEAVING A MUCH COOLER AND DRYER AIRMASS IN PLACE.

MORITZ

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Aug 17, 12:25 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGIDGreeley65 min
Aug 17, 12:35 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGIDHoward, Sherman55 min
Aug 17, 12:42 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGIDDawson63 min
Aug 17, 1:07 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGIDNance53 min
Aug 17, 1:30 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGIDBuffalo60 min
Aug 17, 1:32 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGIDGosper58 min
Aug 17, 2:16 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGIDFurnas59 min
Aug 17, 2:40 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGIDHarlan50 min

Nearby

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