Alert archive / Oklahoma / Tornado Warnings in 2002

Tornado Warning 15, NWS Norman, OK

April 17, 2002Washita County, Oklahoma

NWS Norman, OK issued this tornado warning at Apr 17, 2002, 9:53 PM CDT for Washita County, Oklahoma. It was in force for 37 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 17, 2002, 9:53 PM CDT (02:53 UTC)
Expired
Apr 17, 2002, 10:30 PM CDT
In force
37 min
Issued by
NWS Norman, OK
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

County Washita County, OK

The radar

The Altus AFB radar (KFDR), 118 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 02:56 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 17, 10:00 PM CDTHail 0.75Canute, OK
Apr 17, 10:15 PM CDTHail 1Canute, OK

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 17, 6:00 PM CDTTornado WatchSPC5 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Norman, OK (KOUN), launched 00:00Z, 2.9 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, Norman, OK at 00:00Z on 2002-04-18Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 2429 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, Norman, OK at 00:00Z on 2002-04-18The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 124 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
2429 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-55 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1310 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
44 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
124 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
117 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.8
Supercell composite
6.8

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WFUS54 KOUN 180253
TOROKC
OKC149-180330-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NORMAN OK
952 PM CDT WED APR 17 2002

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN NORMAN HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  WASHITA COUNTY IN WESTERN OKLAHOMA

* UNTIL 1030 PM CDT

* AT 952 PM CDT...DOPPLER RADAR DETECTED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM
  CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A TORNADO 10 MILES SOUTHWEST OF CANUTE...
  MOVING NORTHEAST AT 25 MPH.

* LOCATIONS IN THE WARNING INCLUDE BURNS FLAT...CANUTE AND FOSS. 
THIS STORM WILL ALSO AFFECT INTERSTATE 40 IN NORTHWEST WASHITA 
COUNTY. 

HAIL LARGER THAN GOLFBALLS ARE LIKELY WITH THIS STORM.

TORNADOES ARE ESPECIALLY DANGEROUS AT NIGHT BECAUSE THEY ARE HARD TO 
SEE. TAKE COVER NOW. IF A BASEMENT IS NOT AVAILABLE...MOVE TO AN 
INTERIOR ROOM OR HALLWAY ON THE LOWEST FLOOR. LEAVE MOBILE HOMES AND 
VEHICLES FOR REINFORCED SHELTER. STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS.

LAT...LON 3545 9937 3525 9936 3531 9915 3542 9898
          3547 9902 3547 9935

CJS

The office that day

Everything else NWS Norman, OK issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Apr 17, 7:01 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNDewey44 min
Apr 17, 7:13 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNBeckham, Roger Mills47 min
Apr 17, 7:48 PM CDTTornado WarningOUNDewey27 min
Apr 17, 7:50 PM CDTTornado WarningOUNBeckham40 min
Apr 17, 7:53 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNWoodward37 min
Apr 17, 7:58 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNRoger Mills47 min
Apr 17, 7:59 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNMajor46 min
Apr 17, 8:03 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNHarmon27 min
Apr 17, 8:18 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNDewey42 min
Apr 17, 8:29 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNWoodward46 min
Apr 17, 8:29 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNBeckham61 min
Apr 17, 8:47 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNMajor, Roger Mills, Woods43 min
Apr 17, 8:55 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNHarmon50 min
Apr 17, 9:10 PM CDTTornado WarningOUNBeckham35 min
Apr 17, 9:26 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNRoger Mills49 min
Apr 17, 9:43 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNDewey47 min
Apr 17, 9:43 PM CDTTornado WarningOUNBeckham32 min
Apr 17, 10:00 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNCuster60 min
Apr 17, 10:19 PM CDTTornado WarningOUNCuster41 min
Apr 17, 11:17 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNDewey28 min
Apr 17, 11:30 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNMajor, Woods, Woodward45 min
Apr 17, 11:53 PM CDTTornado WarningOUNMajor37 min
Apr 18, 12:28 AM CDTTornado WarningOUNMajor, Woods32 min
Apr 18, 12:51 AM CDTTornado WarningOUNAlfalfa, Woods39 min
Apr 18, 1:22 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNGrant38 min
Apr 18, 1:26 AM CDTTornado WarningOUNAlfalfa34 min
Apr 18, 1:57 AM CDTTornado WarningOUNAlfalfa, Grant33 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Oklahoma, 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.