Alert archive / California / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2002

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 4, NWS Las Vegas, NV

July 12, 2002San Bernardino County, California; Clark County, Nevada

NWS Las Vegas, NV issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Jul 12, 2002, 5:33 PM PDT for San Bernardino County, California; Clark County, Nevada. It was in force for 87 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
Jul 12, 2002, 5:33 PM PDT (00:33 UTC)
Expired
Jul 12, 2002, 7:00 PM PDT
In force
87 min
Issued by
NWS Las Vegas, NV
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

Counties San Bernardino County, CA, Clark County, NV

The radar

The Las Vegas radar (KESX), 55 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 00:36 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
Jul 12, 6:15 PM PDTThunderstorm Wind 60 MHenderson, NVWinds of 69 mph were measured at the Henderson Executive Airport.

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
Jul 12, 4:30 PM PDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPC5 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Mercury/Desert R, NV (KDRA), launched 00:00Z, 0.6 hours before the alert went out and 91 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, Mercury/Desert R, NV at 00:00Z on 2002-07-13Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 385 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, Mercury/Desert R, NV at 00:00Z on 2002-07-13The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 12 square meters per square second.1939Sfc1 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
385 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-129 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
3732 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
34 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
12 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
78 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
-0.2

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

450 
WUUS55 KVEF 130033
SVRVEF
CAC071-NVC003-130200-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAS VEGAS NV
526 PM PDT FRI JUL 12 2002

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN LAS VEGAS HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  NORTH CENTRAL SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY IN SOUTHEAST CALIFORNIA
  THIS INCLUDES THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS...NIPTON...MOUNTAIN          
  PASS
  CENTRAL CLARK COUNTY IN SOUTHERN NEVADA
  THIS INCLUDES THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS...LAS VEGAS                  
  SLOAN...RED ROCK CANYON...PRIMM...OVERTON BEACH...OVERTON...NORTH  
  LAS VEGAS...JEAN...INDIAN SPRINGS...HENDERSON...BOULDER CITY

* UNTIL 700 PM PDT(700 PM MST)

* AT 530 PM PDT(530 PM MST)...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER       
  RADAR   INDICATED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH STRONG DAMAGING      
  WINDS MOVING NORTHWEST INTO THE WARNING AREA.

THIS IS A DANGEROUS STORM. IF YOU ARE IN ITS PATH YOU SHOULD PREPARE 
FOR DAMAGING WINDS IN EXCESS OF 60 MPH...AND DEADLY LIGHTNING. 
PEOPLE OUTSIDE SHOULD MOVE TO SHELTER...PREFERABLY INSIDE A STRONG 
BUILDING BUT AWAY FROM WINDOWS.

LAT...LON 3627 11574 3580 11560 3511 11582 3501 11516
          3530 11514 3658 11426 3668 11561 3653 11572

PIERCE

The office that day

Everything else NWS Las Vegas, NV issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jul 12, 5:08 PM PDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningVEFClark57 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in California, 2002Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Nevada, 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.