Alert archive / Oklahoma / Tornado Warnings in 2002

Tornado Warning 36, NWS Norman, OK

May 17, 2002Custer County, Dewey County, Oklahoma

NWS Norman, OK issued this tornado warning at May 17, 2002, 12:11 AM CDT for Custer County, Dewey County, Oklahoma. It was in force for 34 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
May 17, 2002, 12:11 AM CDT (05:11 UTC)
Expired
May 17, 2002, 12:45 AM CDT
In force
34 min
Issued by
NWS Norman, OK
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

Counties Custer County, OK, Dewey County, OK

The radar

The Vance AFB radar (KVNX), 122 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 05:15 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
May 16, 10:00 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPC6 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Norman, OK (KOUN), launched 00:00Z, 5.2 hours before the alert went out and 146 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 2002-05-17Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 3039 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 2002-05-17The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 49 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
3039 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-18 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1088 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
33 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
49 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
159 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
1.0
Supercell composite
5.4

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WFUS54 KOUN 170511
TOROKC
OKC039-043-170545-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NORMAN OK
1211 AM CDT FRI MAY 17 2002

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN NORMAN HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  SOUTHERN DEWEY COUNTY IN NORTHWEST OKLAHOMA
  NORTHERN CUSTER COUNTY IN WESTERN OKLAHOMA

* UNTIL 1245 AM CDT

* AT 1211 AM CDT...DOPPLER RADAR DETECTED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM
  CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A TORNADO 4 MILES WEST OF THOMAS...MOVING EAST
  AT 15 MPH.

* LOCATIONS IN THE WARNING INCLUDE THOMAS

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 3586 9895 3568 9899 3571 9864 3593 9869

WR

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 16, 7:55 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNRoger Mills50 min
May 16, 8:01 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNAtoka44 min
May 16, 9:51 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNKingfisher39 min
May 16, 9:56 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNLogan, Payne49 min
May 16, 10:19 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNDewey41 min
May 16, 10:28 PM CDTTornado WarningOUNKingfisher32 min
May 16, 10:43 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNLogan, Roger Mills47 min
May 16, 10:58 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNBlaine, Kingfisher47 min
May 16, 11:23 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningOUNLogan3 hr
May 16, 11:28 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNCuster, Dewey, Roger Mills47 min
May 16, 11:31 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNLogan44 min
May 16, 11:37 PM CDTTornado WarningOUNCuster, Roger Mills38 min
May 16, 11:39 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNEllis36 min
May 16, 11:44 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNBlaine, Canadian, Kingfisher46 min
May 16, 11:45 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNBeckham45 min
May 17, 12:14 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNMajor46 min
May 17, 12:28 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNBlaine, Caddo, Canadian47 min
May 17, 12:30 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNBeckham45 min
May 17, 12:31 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNCanadian, Kingfisher, Logan, Oklahoma44 min
May 17, 12:37 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNAlfalfa38 min
May 17, 12:44 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNGrant46 min
May 17, 1:11 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNBlaine, Caddo, Canadian, Kingfisher, Logan, Oklahoma49 min
May 17, 1:16 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNBeckham, Washita44 min
May 17, 1:20 AM CDTFlash Flood WarningOUNKingfisher3 hr
May 17, 1:26 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNGrady34 min
May 17, 1:49 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNCanadian, Cleveland, Grady, McClain, Oklahoma71 min
May 17, 1:55 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNLogan65 min
May 17, 2:10 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNBeckham35 min
May 17, 2:25 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNLincoln, Pottawatomie65 min
May 17, 2:41 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNGarvin49 min
May 17, 3:06 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNSeminole39 min
May 17, 3:17 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNGarvin, Stephens43 min
May 17, 3:29 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNPontotoc46 min
May 17, 3:52 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNCarter38 min
May 17, 4:17 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNCoal43 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; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.