Alert archive / Indiana / Tornado Warnings in 2002

Tornado Warning 18, NWS Indianapolis, IN

September 20, 2002Delaware County, Indiana

NWS Indianapolis, IN issued this tornado warning at Sep 20, 2002, 2:44 PM EST for Delaware County, Indiana. It was in force for 46 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
Sep 20, 2002, 2:44 PM EST (19:44 UTC)
Expired
Sep 20, 2002, 3:30 PM EST
In force
46 min
Issued by
NWS Indianapolis, IN
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

County Delaware County, IN

The radar

The Indianapolis radar (KIND), 94 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 19:47 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
Sep 20, 2:54 PM ESTTornado F2Muncie, IN

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
Sep 20, 12:35 PM ESTTornado WatchSPC5 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Cncnati-Daytn, OH (KILN), launched 12:00Z, 7.7 hours before the alert went out and 167 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, Cncnati-Daytn, OH at 12:00Z on 2002-09-20Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 339 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, Cncnati-Daytn, OH at 12:00Z on 2002-09-20The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 153 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
339 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-46 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
850 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
39 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
153 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
179 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.3
Supercell composite
1.5

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

734 
WFUS53 KIND 201944
TORIND
INC035-202030-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE INDIANAPOLIS IN
243 PM EST FRI SEP 20 2002

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN INDIANAPOLIS HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  DELAWARE COUNTY IN EAST CENTRAL INDIANA
  THIS INCLUDES THE CITY OF MUNCIE

* UNTIL 330 PM EST

* AT 241 PM EST...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A 
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A TORNADO NEAR 
ANDERSON...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 45 MPH.

* THE MOST DANGEROUS PART OF THE STORM IS EXPECTED TO BE NEAR...
  YORKTOWN AT 250 PM EST
  MUNCIE AT 255 PM EST
  EATON AT 300 PM EST
  ALBANY AT 305 PM EST

THE SAFEST PLACE TO BE DURING A TORNADO IS IN A BASEMENT. IF NO
BASEMENT IS AVAILABLE...GO TO THE LOWEST FLOOR OF THE BUILDING IN AN
INTERIOR HALLWAY OR ROOM. GET UNDER STURDY FURNITURE OR USE BLANKETS
OR PILLOWS TO COVER YOUR BODY.

IF IN MOBILE HOMES OR VEHICLES...EVACUATE THEM AND GET INSIDE A
SUBSTANTIAL SHELTER. IF NO SHELTER IS AVAILABLE...LIE FLAT IN THE
NEAREST DITCH OR OTHER LOW SPOT.

LAT...LON 4023 8558 4009 8557 4020 8523 4039 8523
          4039 8545

DRT

The office that day

Everything else NWS Indianapolis, IN issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Sep 19, 7:35 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningINDClay, Sullivan, Vigo25 min
Sep 20, 11:28 AM ESTTornado WarningINDKnox32 min
Sep 20, 11:39 AM ESTTornado WarningINDDaviess51 min
Sep 20, 11:50 AM ESTTornado WarningINDDaviess, Greene, Knox25 min
Sep 20, 12:14 PM ESTTornado WarningINDGreene, Owen46 min
Sep 20, 12:15 PM ESTTornado WarningINDDaviess, Greene30 min
Sep 20, 12:39 PM ESTTornado WarningINDGreene, Monroe, Owen36 min
Sep 20, 12:42 PM ESTTornado WarningINDMorgan, Owen33 min
Sep 20, 1:04 PM ESTTornado WarningINDMorgan41 min
Sep 20, 1:08 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningINDHendricks37 min
Sep 20, 1:22 PM ESTTornado WarningINDJohnson, Marion38 min
Sep 20, 1:46 PM ESTTornado Warning EmergencyINDHancock44 min
Sep 20, 1:53 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningINDJackson, Lawrence37 min
Sep 20, 1:58 PM ESTTornado WarningINDMarion17 min
Sep 20, 2:06 PM ESTTornado WarningINDMadison54 min
Sep 20, 2:07 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningINDHamilton23 min
Sep 20, 2:09 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningINDBartholomew, Brown66 min
Sep 20, 3:02 PM ESTTornado WarningINDRush28 min
Sep 20, 3:03 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningINDDecatur, Jennings42 min
Sep 20, 3:19 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningINDRandolph41 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Indiana, 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.