Alert archive / Kansas / Tornado Warnings in 2002

Tornado Warning 8, NWS Wichita, KS

April 18, 2002McPherson County, Kansas

NWS Wichita, KS issued this tornado warning at Apr 18, 2002, 8:19 PM CDT for McPherson County, Kansas. It was in force for 41 min. 2 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
Apr 18, 2002, 8:19 PM CDT (01:19 UTC)
Expired
Apr 18, 2002, 9:00 PM CDT
In force
41 min
Issued by
NWS Wichita, KS
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

County McPherson County, KS

The radar

The Wichita radar (KICT), 85 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 01:21 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
Apr 18, 8:26 PM CDTHail 0.75Mc Pherson, KS
Apr 18, 8:30 PM CDTHail 1.25Conway, KS

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
Apr 18, 4:00 PM CDTTornado WatchSPC5 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Topeka, KS (KTOP), launched 00:00Z, 1.3 hours before the alert went out and 193 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, Topeka, KS at 00:00Z on 2002-04-19Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 159 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, Topeka, KS at 00:00Z on 2002-04-19The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 45 square meters per square second.1939587897Sfc1 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
159 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-124 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
2584 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
34 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
45 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
137 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.6

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WFUS53 KICT 190119
TORICT
KSC113-190200-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WICHITA KS
819 PM CDT THU APR 18 2002

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN WICHITA HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  MCPHERSON COUNTY IN CENTRAL KANSAS

* UNTIL 900 PM CDT

* AT 819 PM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WITH STRONG ROTATION 16 MILES NORTH OF
  HUTCHINSON...OR 6 MILES SOUTH OF WINDOM...MOVING EAST AT 15 MPH.
  THIS STORM COULD PRODUCE A TORNADO AT ANY TIME.

THIS IS A DANGEROUS STORM. MOVE INTO YOUR TORNADO SHELTER NOW STAY
AWAY FROM WINDOWS. LEAVE AUTOMOBILES AND MOBILE HOMES...WHICH OFFER
LITTLE PROTECTION FROM A TORNADO.

REPEATING...A TORNADO WARNING HAS BEEN ISSUED FOR MCPHERSON COUNTY
UNTIL 900 PM CDT.

LAT...LON 3851 9762 3835 9754 3821 9789 3838 9792

/LAWSON

NNNN

The office that day

Everything else NWS Wichita, KS issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Apr 18, 7:02 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningICTRice43 min
Apr 18, 7:26 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningICTMcPherson64 min
Apr 18, 7:43 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningICTRice62 min
Apr 18, 8:23 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningICTMarion67 min
Apr 18, 9:06 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningICTChase39 min
Apr 18, 9:56 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningICTMcPherson, Marion49 min
Apr 18, 10:44 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningICTMarion61 min
Apr 18, 11:10 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningICTChase65 min
Apr 18, 11:17 PM CDTTornado WarningICTChase28 min
Apr 18, 11:30 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningICTRussell60 min
Apr 18, 11:36 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningICTSaline39 min
Apr 18, 11:45 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningICTChase60 min
Apr 19, 12:01 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningICTLincoln59 min
Apr 19, 1:02 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningICTLincoln43 min
Apr 19, 1:17 AM CDTTornado WarningICTLincoln28 min
Apr 19, 3:25 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningICTWilson35 min
Apr 19, 3:32 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningICTAllen, Neosho43 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Kansas, 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.