Alert archive / Michigan / Tornado Warnings in 2002

Tornado Warning 9, NWS Grand Rapids, MI

August 1, 2002Mecosta County, Michigan

NWS Grand Rapids, MI issued this tornado warning at Aug 1, 2002, 10:00 PM EDT for Mecosta County, Michigan. It was in force for 30 min. No storm report in the archive falls inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
Aug 1, 2002, 10:00 PM EDT (02:00 UTC)
Expired
Aug 1, 2002, 10:30 PM EDT
In force
30 min
Issued by
NWS Grand Rapids, MI
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

County Mecosta County, MI

The radar

The Grand Rapids radar (KGRR), 86 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 02:00 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.

The watch it was issued in

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

IssuedProductOfficeLasted
Aug 1, 6:30 PM EDTTornado WatchSPC6 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Detroit, MI (KDTX), launched 00:00Z, 2.0 hours before the alert went out and 182 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, Detroit, MI at 00:00Z on 2002-08-02Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1550 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, Detroit, MI at 00:00Z on 2002-08-02The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 25 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
1550 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-120 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1496 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
28 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
25 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
128 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.5

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

588 
WFUS53 KGRR 020200
TORGRR
MIC107-020230-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GRAND RAPIDS MI
959 PM EDT THU AUG 1 2002

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN GRAND RAPIDS HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  MECOSTA COUNTY IN CENTRAL MICHIGAN

* UNTIL 1030 PM EDT

* AT 955 PM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM PRODUCING A TORNADO OVER MECOSTA...OR ABOUT 14
  MILES SOUTHEAST OF BIG RAPIDS...MOVING EAST AT 35 MPH.

* THE TORNADO IS EXPECTED TO BE NEAR...
   BARRYTON AROUND 1005 PM EDT

THE SAFEST PLACE TO BE DURING A TORNADO IS IN A BASEMENT. GET UNDER A
WORKBENCH OR OTHER PIECE OF STURDY FURNITURE. IF NO BASEMENT IS
AVAILABLE...SEEK SHELTER ON THE LOWEST FLOOR OF THE BUILDING IN AN
INTERIOR HALLWAY OR ROOM SUCH AS A CLOSET. USE BLANKETS OR PILLOWS TO
COVER YOUR BODY AND ALWAYS STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS.

DO NOT USE YOUR CAR TO TRY TO OUTRUN A TORNADO. CARS ARE EASILY
TOSSED AROUND BY TORNADO WINDS. IF YOU ARE CAUGHT IN THE PATH OF A
TORNADO...LEAVE THE CAR AND GO TO A STRONG BUILDING. IF NO STRUCTURE
IS NEARBY...SEEK SHELTER IN A DITCH OR LOW SPOT.

A TORNADO WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL MIDNIGHT.

LAT...LON 4369 8541 4351 8536 4355 8510 4376 8513

MWH

The office that day

Everything else NWS Grand Rapids, MI issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Aug 1, 8:38 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGRRLake22 min
Aug 1, 8:39 PM EDTSpecial Marine WarningGRR36 min
Aug 1, 8:39 PM EDTSpecial Marine WarningGRR36 min
Aug 1, 8:57 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGRRNewaygo63 min
Aug 1, 9:02 PM EDTTornado WarningGRROsceola28 min
Aug 1, 9:09 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGRROceana41 min
Aug 1, 9:10 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGRRMecosta65 min
Aug 1, 9:22 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGRRMuskegon83 min
Aug 1, 9:29 PM EDTTornado WarningGRRClare31 min
Aug 1, 9:34 PM EDTSpecial Marine WarningGRR116 min
Aug 1, 9:34 PM EDTSpecial Marine WarningGRR116 min
Aug 1, 9:37 PM EDTTornado WarningGRRMecosta23 min
Aug 1, 9:56 PM EDTTornado WarningGRRNewaygo34 min
Aug 1, 10:04 PM EDTTornado WarningGRRMontcalm56 min
Aug 1, 10:10 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGRRKent65 min
Aug 1, 10:20 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGRROttawa85 min
Aug 1, 10:47 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGRRGratiot58 min
Aug 1, 10:58 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGRRMontcalm17 min
Aug 1, 11:00 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGRRIonia60 min
Aug 1, 11:13 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGRRKent32 min
Aug 1, 11:16 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGRRAllegan59 min
Aug 1, 11:20 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGRRBarry55 min
Aug 1, 11:37 PM EDTSpecial Marine WarningGRR113 min
Aug 1, 11:37 PM EDTSpecial Marine WarningGRR113 min
Aug 2, 12:06 AM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGRRIngham54 min
Aug 2, 12:33 AM EDTSpecial Marine WarningGRR87 min
Aug 2, 1:11 AM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGRRCalhoun, Kalamazoo, Van Buren34 min
Aug 2, 1:21 AM EDTTornado WarningGRRKalamazoo24 min
Aug 2, 1:43 AM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGRRJackson62 min
Aug 2, 1:49 AM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGRRJackson56 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Michigan, 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; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.