Alert archive / Minnesota / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2003

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 115, NWS Grand Forks, ND

July 6, 2003Otter Tail County, Minnesota

NWS Grand Forks, ND issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Jul 6, 2003, 6:50 PM CDT for Otter Tail County, Minnesota. It was in force for 40 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: Jul 6, 2003, 6:50 PM CDT (23:50 UTC)
Expired: Jul 6, 2003, 7:30 PM CDT
In force: 40 min
Issued by: NWS Grand Forks, ND
Area: Counties, with a storm outline in the text

County Otter Tail County, MN

The radar

The Fargo/Grand Forks radar (KMVX), 185 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 23:51 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.

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 watch it was issued in

The SPC watch in force over the same counties when this warning went out.

Issued	Product	Office	Lasted
Jul 6, 2:20 PM CDT	Tornado Watch	SPC	8 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Minneapolis, MN (KMPX), launched 12:00Z, 11.8 hours before the alert went out and 232 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-p

Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.

Hodograph

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: 735 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -63 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 1169 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 11 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: -24 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: -10 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.

464 
WUUS53 KFGF 062350
SVRFGF
MNC111-070030-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EASTERN ND/GRAND FORKS
650 PM CDT SUN JUL 6 2003

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN GRAND FORKS HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...

  OTTER TAIL COUNTY IN WEST CENTRAL MINNESOTA.

* UNTIL 730 PM CDT.

* AT 646 PM...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM OVER NEW YORK MILLS...OR ABOUT 29 MILES
  SOUTHEAST OF DETROIT LAKES...MOVEMENT WAS TO THE NORTHEAST AT 20
  MPH.

* THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WILL BE NEAR...

  BLUFFTON AT 700 PM.

REMEMBER SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS CAN AND OCCASIONALLY DO PRODUCE
TORNADOES WITH LITTLE OR NO ADVANCE WARNING.

LAT...LON 4658 9555 4642 9544 4636 9519 4669 9518

$$

08/84

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 Grand Forks, ND wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at Jul 6, 6:35 PM CDT, 15 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jul 6, 6:35 PM CDT, 15 minutes before

FORECAST DISCUSSION FOR EASTERN NORTH DAKOTA AND NORTHWEST MINNESOTA
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EASTERN ND/GRAND FORKS ND
635 PM CDT SUN JUL 6 2003

PER LATEST MESSAGE FROM SPC AND LOCAL RADAR...WILL CANCEL TOR WATCH
FOR MUCH OF CWFA EXCEPT THE FAR SOUTHEASTERN COUNTIES IN ADVANCE OF
THE LINE.  WILL STILL KEEP HUBBARD...WADENA...OTTERTAIL AND GRANT
COUNTIES IN MN IN THE WATCH BUT DROP THE REMAINDER...INCLUDING THE
FARGO AREA.

RIDDLE

Hazardous weather outlook, Jul 6, 7:12 AM CDT, 11 hours 38 minutes before

MNZ001>009-013>017-022>024-027>032-040-NDZ006>008-014>016-024-
026>030-038-039-049-052>054-061400-

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EASTERN ND/GRAND FORKS
712 AM CDT SUN JUL 6 2003

...SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED ACROSS PARTS OF THE REGION THIS
AFTERNOON AND EVENING...

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR EASTERN NORTH DAKOTA...WEST
CENTRAL AND NORTHWEST MINNESOTA.

.DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING

A MODERATE RISK OF SEVERE WEATHER IS EXPECTED THIS AFTERNOON AND
EVENING ACROSS SOUTHEAST NORTH DAKOTA AND WEST CENTRAL MINNESOTA.
THE MODERATE RISK WILL BE SOUTH AND EAST OF A LINE FROM NEAR FORMAN
NORTH DAKOTA TO FARGO TO WADENA MINNESOTA. LARGE HAIL, DAMAGING
WINDS AND SOME TORNADOES CAN BE EXPECTED. THE SEVERE STORMS WILL BE
LIKELY AFTER 3 PM.

ELSEWHERE A SLIGHT RISK OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED EAST OF
A LINE FROM OAKES NORTH DAKOTA TO HALLOCK MINNESOTA. LARGE HAIL AND
DAMAGING WIND WILL BE THE MAIN THREAT. THE THUNDERSTORMS WILL
DEVELOP ANYTIME AFTER 1 PM AND SHIFT EAST THROUGH THE AFTERNOON AND
EVENING.

A COLD FRONT IN WESTERN NORTH DAKOTA WILL EXTEND FROM NORTHEAST
MINNESOTA TO SOUTH DAKOTA BY LATE SUNDAY EVENING. WARM MOIST AIR WILL
TRANSPORT NORTHWARD IN ADVANCE OF THE FRONT. THUNDERSTORMS WILL
OCCUR NEAR THE FRONT.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY

NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE NEEDED.

HOPPES

In the hours before

Local storm report, Jul 6, 2:21 PM CDT, 4 hours 29 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GRAND FORKS, ND
221 PM CDT SUN JUL 6 2003

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

0208 PM    11 S BAUDETTE             MN   .75 INCH HAIL
07/06/03   LAKE OF THE WOODS              REPORTED BY LAW
                                          ENFORCEMENT.

DPORTER

Local storm report, Jul 6, 2:41 PM CDT, 4 hours 9 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GRAND FORKS, ND
241 PM CDT SUN JUL 6 2003

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

0215 PM    10 SE BAUDETTE            MN   .75 INCH HAIL
07/06/03   LAKE OF THE WOODS              REPORTED BY TRAINED
                                          SPOTTER.

DPORTER

Local storm report, Jul 6, 5:29 PM CDT, 1 hour 21 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GRAND FORKS, ND
529 PM CDT SUN JUL 6 2003

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

0511 PM    REDBY                     MN   1.00 INCH HAIL
07/06/03   BELTRAMI

Local storm report, Jul 6, 5:48 PM CDT, 1 hour 2 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GRAND FORKS, ND
548 PM CDT SUN JUL 6 2003

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

0535 PM    BAGLEY                    MN   1.75 INCH HAIL
07/06/03   CLEARWATER

0537 PM    6 S SAUM                  MN   1.00 INCH HAIL
07/06/03   BELTRAMI

Local storm report, Jul 6, 6:22 PM CDT, 28 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GRAND FORKS, ND
622 PM CDT SUN JUL 6 2003

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

0621 PM    4 N PENNINGTON            MN   1.75 INCH HAIL
07/06/03   BELTRAMI

Special weather statement, Jul 6, 6:43 PM CDT, 7 minutes before

MNZ001>003-006-009-015>017-022>024-027>032-040-NDZ039-049-052-053-
070045-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EASTERN ND/GRAND FORKS
643 PM CDT SUN JUL 6 2003

...TORNADO WATCH FOR MUCH OF NORTHWEST MINNESOTA AND SOUTHEAST NORTH
DAKOTA HAS BEEN CANCELLED...

THE TORNADO WATCH THAT WAS IN EFFECT UNTIL 10 PM HAS BEEN CANCELLED
FOR THE FOLLOWING COUNITES...

IN NORTH DAKOTA...
RANSON...SARGENT...RICHLAND...CASS

IN MINNESOTA...
WILKIN...CLAY...BECKER...POLK...MAHNOMEN...CLEARWATER...BELTRAMI...
LAKE OF THE WOODS.

REPEATING THE TORNADO WATCH HAS BEEN CANCELLED FOR THE ABOVE
COUNTIES.

THE TORNADO WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR PARTS OF WEST CENTRAL
MINNESOTA...INCLUDING THE COUNTIES OF OTTER TAIL...GRANT...WADENA
AND HUBBARD.

THE LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS HAS WEAKENED SLIGHTLY IN THE PAST HOUR AND
MOVING EAST OUT OF THE AREA.  THUS THE THREAT FOR SEVERE WEATHER HAS
ENDED FOR MUCH OF THE AREA.

RIDDLE

The office that day

Everything else NWS Grand Forks, ND issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Jul 6, 3:45 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FGF	Polk	45 min
Jul 6, 4:20 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FGF	Red Lake	40 min
Jul 6, 1:29 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FGF	Lake of the Woods, Roseau	46 min
Jul 6, 2:15 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FGF	Lake of the Woods	30 min
Jul 6, 3:14 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FGF	Lake of the Woods	31 min
Jul 6, 4:55 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FGF	Beltrami	65 min
Jul 6, 5:09 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FGF	Clearwater	66 min
Jul 6, 5:15 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	FGF	Beltrami	45 min
Jul 6, 5:58 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FGF	Beltrami, Hubbard	62 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Minnesota, 2003 Every severe thunderstorm warning in 2003

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.