Alert archive / Kansas / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2002

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 24, NWS Topeka, KS

April 17, 2002Ottawa County, Kansas

NWS Topeka, KS issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Apr 17, 2002, 11:27 PM CDT for Ottawa County, Kansas. It was in force for 48 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, 11:27 PM CDT (04:27 UTC)
Expired
Apr 18, 2002, 12:15 AM CDT
In force
48 min
Issued by
NWS Topeka, KS
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

County Ottawa County, KS

The radar

The Topeka radar (KTWX), 123 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 04:27 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, 11:45 PM CDTHail 0.75Culver, KS
Apr 18, 12:04 AM CDTHail 0.75Minneapolis, 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.

Did it verify

Not verified. The Iowa Environmental Mesonet's Cow found no qualifying storm report inside this severe thunderstorm warning while it was in force. That is not proof nothing happened: reports are thin where few people live.

Cow counts a report within 15 km of the polygon while the warning was in force: a tornado for a tornado warning; hail of 1 inch or more, a gust of 58 mph or more or wind damage for a severe thunderstorm warning; a flash flood report for a flash flood warning.

The nearest sounding before it

Topeka, KS (KTOP), launched 00:00Z, 4.5 hours before the alert went out and 173 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 2002-04-18Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 2478 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, Topeka, KS at 00:00Z on 2002-04-18The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 190 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
2478 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-54 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1480 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
38 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
190 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
361 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
1.5
Supercell composite
16.4

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WUUS53 KTOP 180427
SVRTOP
KSC143-180515-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TOPEKA KS
1127 PM CDT WED APR 17 2002

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN TOPEKA HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  OTTAWA COUNTY IN NORTH CENTRAL KANSAS

* UNTIL 1215 AM CDT

* AT 1125 PM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM 7 MILES SOUTHWEST OF TESCOTT...OR ABOUT 23
  MILES NORTHWEST OF SALINA...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 45 MPH.

* SOME LOCATIONS AFFECTED...
  TESCOTT
  ADA
  MINNEAPOLIS
  BENNINGTON
  DELPHOS

LARGE HAIL...VERY HEAVY RAIN AND DAMAGING WINDS ARE LIKELY WITH THIS
STORM. TAKE COVER INSIDE A BUILDING.

STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO OR LOCAL MEDIA OUTLETS FOR THE
LATEST SEVERE WEATHER INFORMATION.

LAT...LON 3930 9746 3900 9738 3897 9773 3897 9791
          3925 9791

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before this severe thunderstorm warning went out, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Topeka, KS wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at Apr 17, 3:00 PM CDT, 8 hours 27 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Apr 17, 3:00 PM CDT, 8 hours 27 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TOPEKA KS
3 PM CDT WED APR 17 2002

MAIN PROBLEMS ARE CONSIDERATIONS OF STG CONVECTION TONIGHT AND
THURSDAY...THEN AMT OF COOLING AND PCPN CHCS INTO THE WEEKEND.

VERY WARM ON THURSDAY WITH SOME READINGS NEAR RECORD HIGH LVLS...AM
USING MESO-ETA SFC TEMPERATURES FOR MAX TEMP GUIDANCE ON THURSDAY.

RATHER SLIM CHCS FOR CONVECTION TONIGHT. NOT QUITE SLIM ENUF TO
PRECLUDE MENTION...BUT WILL HOLD WITH MINIMAL POPS FOR THREE
REASONS...ALL OF WHICH MAY BE RATHER WEAK. FIRST IS WARMFRONTAL
BOUNDARY. LATEST PROFILERS FROM 19Z SHOW BNDRY JUST OFF THE SFC
(FIRST SVRL GATES OF PROFILERS) SHOW IT ALG NRN BORDER. ALL SMALLER
GRID MODELS INCLUDING MESO-ETA AND WORKSTATION ETA SHOW SFC FNT MVG
RAPIDLY NORTH REST OF THIS AFTERNOON. COULD HAVE A STORM OR TWO
ALONG NRN BORDER EARLY BUT MORE LIKELY TO NORTH OF CWA. SECOND
REASON IS CONVECTION TRYING TO GET ITSELF TOGETHER ALG DRY LINE WRN
OK. THIS COULD DVLP FURTHER NORTH NEXT FEW HOURS...THEN MAY TRACK
NORTHEAST INTO CWA LATE EVENING. HOWEVER WOULD NOT EXPECT THIS TO
MAKE MUCH PROGRESS EAST...IF IT EVEN MAKES IT THIS FAR. NOTE AND
AGREE WITH ICT THAT STORMS MAY HAVE A HARD TIME MAKING IT TOO FAR
INTO KS...LET ALONE MY CWA. BUT STILL SOME REMOTE THREAT. PROBABLY
THE BEST THREAT...ALBEIT STILL QUITE SMALL...IS THE THREAT FOR
ELEVATED CONVECTION WITHIN THE LOW LVL JET LATER TONIGHT. BUFKIT
SNDGS IMPLY THIS AFT MIDNIGHT WITHIN AREA. IF THIS HAPPENS, THIS
CONVECTION COULD LINGER INTO TMRW AM. THEREFORE...WILL CONTINUE WITH
SLGT CHC FOR CONVECTION TONIGHT...THEN MENTION CONVECTION CNTRL AND
ERN PTN CWA ON THURSDAY. FOLLOWING MESO-ETA LOW LVL MOISTURE
PROFILE... WRN PTN CWA NOT LIKELY TO SEE ANY CONVECTION TMRW SINCE
DRYER AIR LIKELY WORKING IN BY MIDDAY TMRW. QUESTION THEN BECOMES
WHERE BEST MOISTURE CONVERGENCE SETS UP BY THIS TIME THURSDAY. ALSO
AGREE WITH ICT THAT TMRW COULD BE AN ACTIVE SVR WX DAY. NUMEROUS
SHORT WAVE IMPULSES MOVG OVR AREA LATE IN THE AFTN COULD BE JUST
ENOUGH IMPETUS FOR EXPLOSIVE DVLPMT. GIVEN CURRENT MESO-ETA
FCST...WOULD SUSPECT THAT MAY HAPPEN NEAR OR JUST EAST OF A
SENECA-ABILENE LINE BY MID TO LATE AFTN. CONVECTION WOULD THEN PUSH
EAST OVR REST OF CWA...EXITING SOUTHEASTERN PTN OF CWA AFT MIDNIGHT.

LATER FORECAST PDS PROBLEMATIC TOO. IF HPCS SFC WX DEPICTION IS
RIGHT...CANT SEE MUCH SUPPORT FOR PCPN OVER THE WEEKEND...CERTAINLY
NOT TSTMS. OF COURSE, COULD SEE LOTS OF CLOUDS WITH SOME
OVRRNG...BUT WIDESPREAD PCPN NOT LIKELY. WITH NORTHERLY FLOW AND
CLOUDS...TEMPERATURES BLO CLIMO LIKELY. NICE RECOVERY BY EARLY NEXT
WEEK. IF LESS CLOUDS OCCUR THAN FORECAST...WEEKEND TEMPS WOULD NOT
BE THAT FAR REMOVED FROM CLIMO HIGHS/LOWS...I.E. 60S/40S.

.TOP...NONE

In the hours before

Local storm report, Apr 17, 11:14 PM CDT, 13 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TOPEKA KS
1114 PM CDT WED APR 17 2002

TIME(CDT)  .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

1111 PM    3 SW CARLTON              KS    1.25 INCH HAIL
04/17/02   DICKINSON                       PUBLIC REPORTED HALF
                                           DOLLAR SIZE HAIL
Local storm report, Apr 17, 11:26 PM CDT, 1 minute before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TOPEKA KS
1126 PM CDT WED APR 17 2002

TIME(CDT)  .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

1124 PM    3 S ELMO                  KS    1.75 INCH HAIL
04/17/02   DICKINSON                       PUBLIC REPORTED GOLF
                                           BALL SIZE HAIL

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Apr 17, 8:56 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTOPDickinson34 min
Apr 17, 10:57 PM CDTTornado WarningTOPDickinson43 min
Apr 17, 11:36 PM CDTTornado WarningTOPDickinson, Geary, Morris39 min
Apr 18, 12:17 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTOPClay, Ottawa43 min
Apr 18, 12:22 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTOPRepublic, Washington38 min
Apr 18, 12:46 AM CDTTornado WarningTOPClay44 min
Apr 18, 1:08 AM CDTTornado WarningTOPRiley, Washington37 min
Apr 18, 1:28 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTOPMarshall47 min
Apr 18, 1:47 AM CDTTornado WarningTOPMarshall43 min
Apr 18, 5:37 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTOPDickinson38 min
Apr 18, 6:00 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTOPGeary, Riley45 min
Apr 18, 6:45 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTOPPottawatomie45 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Kansas, 2002Every severe thunderstorm warning 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.