Alert archive / California / Tornado Warnings in 2002

Tornado Warning 6, NWS Sacramento, CA

May 20, 2002Amador County, Sacramento County, San Joaquin County, California

NWS Sacramento, CA issued this tornado warning at May 20, 2002, 1:26 PM PDT for Amador County, Sacramento County, San Joaquin County, California. 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 20, 2002, 1:26 PM PDT (20:26 UTC)
Expired
May 20, 2002, 2:00 PM PDT
In force
34 min
Issued by
NWS Sacramento, CA
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

Counties Amador County, CA, Sacramento County, CA, San Joaquin County, CA

The nearest sounding before it

Oakland, CA (KOAK), launched 12:00Z, 8.4 hours before the alert went out and 122 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, Oakland, CA at 12:00Z on 2002-05-20Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 4 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, Oakland, CA at 12:00Z on 2002-05-20The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity -46 square meters per square second.19395878Sfc1 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
4 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-206 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
592 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
37 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
-46 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
-31 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WFUS56 KSTO 202026
TORSAC
CAC005-067-077-202100-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SACRAMENTO CA
125 PM PDT MON MAY 20 2002

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  EXTREME NORTHEASTERN SAN JOAQUIN COUNTY IN CALIFORNIA
  SOUTHWESTERN AMADOR COUNTY IN CALIFORNIA
  EAST CENTRAL SACRAMENTO COUNTY IN CALIFORNIA

* VALID UNTIL 200 PM PDT

* AT 121 PM PDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  TORNADO OVER CAMANCHE RESERVOIR...OR ABOUT 11 MILES SOUTHWEST OF
  IONE...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 20 MPH.

* SOME LOCATIONS AFFECTED BY THIS WARNING INCLUDE...
  CAMANCHE RESERVOIR
  IONE

REPORT SIGNIFICANT WEATHER TO THE NEAREST LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY.
THEY WILL RELAY YOUR REPORT TO THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FORECAST
OFFICE.

LAT...LON 3822 12114 3814 12101 3832 12082 3849 12094
          3848 12106

The office that day

Everything else NWS Sacramento, CA issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 20, 11:44 AM PDTTornado WarningSTOSutter, Yolo31 min
May 20, 12:00 PM PDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningSTOGlenn, Tehama30 min
May 20, 12:14 PM PDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningSTOSacramento, Yolo31 min
May 20, 12:19 PM PDTTornado WarningSTOSutter, Yolo26 min
May 20, 12:48 PM PDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningSTOSacramento27 min
May 20, 1:27 PM PDTTornado WarningSTOSutter, Yuba48 min
May 20, 2:03 PM PDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningSTOSacramento, San Joaquin42 min
May 20, 2:09 PM PDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningSTOAmador36 min
May 20, 2:31 PM PDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningSTOCalaveras29 min
May 20, 2:32 PM PDTTornado WarningSTOSacramento, Sutter, Yolo28 min
May 20, 3:00 PM PDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningSTOAmador, Calaveras45 min
May 20, 3:10 PM PDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningSTOPlacer, Sutter35 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in California, 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.