Alert archive / Nebraska / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2003

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 52, NWS Hastings, NE

May 4, 2003Buffalo County, Nebraska

NWS Hastings, NE issued this severe thunderstorm warning at May 4, 2003, 12:31 PM CDT for Buffalo County, Nebraska. It was in force for 59 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 4, 2003, 12:31 PM CDT (17:31 UTC)
Expired: May 4, 2003, 1:30 PM CDT
In force: 59 min
Issued by: NWS Hastings, NE
Area: Counties, with a storm outline in the text

County Buffalo County, NE

The radar

The Grand Island radar (KUEX), 85 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 17:32 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
May 4, 11:40 AM CDT	Tornado Watch	SPC	6 hr

The nearest sounding before it

N. Platte/Lee Bi, NE (KLBF), launched 12:00Z, 5.5 hours before the alert went out and 128 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: 399 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -326 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 1013 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 57 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: -2 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: -32 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.0
Supercell composite: -0.5

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

961 
WUUS53 KGID 041731
SVRGID
NEC019-041830-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HASTINGS NE
1229 PM CDT SUN MAY 4 2003

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN HASTINGS HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  BUFFALO COUNTY IN SOUTH CENTRAL NEBRASKA

* UNTIL 130 PM CDT

* AT 1227 PM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  LINE OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS FROM POOLE TO KEARNEY...
  MOVING EAST AT 35 MPH.

* SOME LOCATIONS IN THE PATH OF THIS SEVERE STORM INCLUDE...
  GIBBON
  SHELTON
  KEARNEY
  RAVENNA
  POOLE

PEOPLE IN BUFFALO COUNTY SHOULD SEEK SHELTER IN A STURDY STRUCTURE
AND STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS.

DAMAGING THUNDERSTORM WINDS IN EXCESS OF 70 MPH AND LARGE HAIL THE
SIZE OF GOLFBALLS ARE LIKELY.

A TORNADO WATCH IS ALSO IN EFFECT UNTIL 6 PM CDT. SEVERE 
THUNDERSTORMS CAN AND OCCASIONALLY DO PRODUCE TORNADOES WITH LITTLE 
OR NO WARNING.

LAT...LON 4104 9938 4068 9930 4070 9873 4104 9874
$$
GUYER

NNNN

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 Hastings, NE wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at May 4, 2:56 AM CDT, 9 hours 35 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, May 4, 2:56 AM CDT, 9 hours 35 minutes before

SOUTH CENTRAL NEBRASKA/NORTH CENTRAL KANSAS FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HASTINGS NE
256 AM CDT SUN MAY 4 2003

THUNDERSTORMS ON GOING IN FORECAST AREA ASSOCIATED WITH UPPER SYSTEM
MOVING THROUGH CENTRAL PLAINS.  THIS WILL KEEP STORMS IN AREA AT
LEAST THROUGH THE MORNING HOURS.  SURFACE SYSTEM STILL TO OUR WEST
AND GOOD MOISTURE CONTINUES TO MOVE NORTHWARD THROUGH CENTRAL
KANSAS.  WOULD EXPECT BEST CHANCES FOR STORMS TO BE ALONG STATE LINE
WHERE BOUNDARY FROM AM STORMS TO SET UP.

SYSTEM TO BE EAST OF THE AREA BY LATE AFTERNOON TAKING PRECIP WITH
IT.  CLOUDS TO REMAIN IN NORTHERN PORTION OF AREA AS THEY WRAP
AROUND UPPER SYSTEM.  SOUTHERN AREAS TO BE PARTLY CLOUDY.

NEXT CHANCES FOR PRECIP COMES TOWARD THE END OF THE WEEK AS ANOTHER
ACTIVE PERIOD SETTING UP.

.GID...NONE.

KISNER

Hazardous weather outlook, May 4, 11:23 AM CDT, 1 hour 8 minutes before

KSZ005>007-017>019-NEZ039>041-046>049-060>064-072>077-082>087-051200-

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HASTINGS NE
1123 AM CDT SUN MAY 4 2003

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR SOUTH CENTRAL NEBRASKA AND
PARTS OF NORTH CENTRAL KANSAS.

.DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT.

SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED TO REDEVELOP ALONG AND EAST OF
THE U S 281 CORRIDOR TOWARD OR SHORTLY AFTER THE NOON HOUR. SOME OF
THESE STORMS COULD BECOME SEVERE WITH VERY LARGE HAIL AND ISOLATED
DAMAGING WINDS POSSIBLE. IN ADDITION...AN ISOLATED TORNADO IS
POSSIBLE ALONG AND SOUTH OF A FRANKLIN TO YORK LINE.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY.

MORE THUNDERSTORMS ARE FORECAST FOR THURSDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH
SATURDAY AS ANOTHER STORM SYSTEM MOVES INTO THE CENTRAL PLAINS.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

STORM SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE NEEDED THIS AFTERNOON EAST
OF U S HIGHWAY 281.

T

In the hours before

Local storm report, May 4, 12:12 PM CDT, 19 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HASTINGS NE
1212 PM CDT SUN MAY 04 2003

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

1210 PM    DANNEBROG                 NE    1 INCH HAIL
05/04/03   HOWARD

Local storm report, May 4, 12:15 PM CDT, 16 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HASTINGS NE
1215 PM CDT SUN MAY 04 2003

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

1215 PM    RIVERDALE                 NE    .75 INCH HAIL
05/04/03   BUFFALO

Local storm report, May 4, 12:19 PM CDT, 12 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HASTINGS NE
1219 PM CDT SUN MAY 04 2003

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

1217 PM    PLEASANTON                NE    .75 INCH HAIL
05/04/03   BUFFALO

Local storm report, May 4, 12:21 PM CDT, 10 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HASTINGS NE
1221 PM CDT SUN MAY 04 2003

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

1115 AM    PROSSER                   NE    .75 INCH HAIL
05/04/03   ADAMS

Local storm report, May 4, 12:23 PM CDT, 8 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HASTINGS NE
1223 PM CDT SUN MAY 04 2003

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

1215 PM    MARQUETTE                 NE    1.75 INCH HAIL
05/04/03   HAMILTON

Local storm report, May 4, 12:27 PM CDT, 4 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HASTINGS NE
1227 PM CDT SUN MAY 04 2003

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

1213 PM    CHAPMAN                   NE    2.75 INCH HAIL
05/04/03   MERRICK                         1.75 TO 2.75 INCH HAIL
                                           REPORTED BY TRAINED
                                           SPOTTERS.

The office that day

Everything else NWS Hastings, NE issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
May 4, 1:16 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	GID	Buffalo, Hall	44 min
May 4, 1:28 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	GID	Sherman	62 min
May 4, 1:30 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	GID	Sherman	30 min
May 4, 1:33 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	GID	Howard	27 min
May 4, 1:42 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	GID	Hamilton, Merrick	48 min
May 4, 1:49 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	GID	Valley	56 min
May 4, 1:57 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	GID	Greeley, Howard, Nance	63 min
May 4, 2:03 AM CDT	Tornado Warning	GID	Howard	42 min
May 4, 2:24 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	GID	Merrick	51 min
May 4, 2:29 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	GID	Polk	61 min
May 4, 5:51 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	GID	Sherman	39 min
May 4, 11:18 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	GID	Hall	42 min
May 4, 11:35 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	GID	Phelps	55 min
May 4, 11:38 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	GID	Buffalo	52 min
May 4, 11:52 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	GID	Hamilton	53 min
May 4, 11:59 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	GID	Howard	61 min
May 4, 12:01 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	GID	Merrick	59 min
May 4, 12:28 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	GID	Kearney	62 min
May 4, 12:58 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	GID	Phelps	62 min
May 4, 1:01 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	GID	Hall, Howard	64 min
May 4, 1:04 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	GID	Merrick	26 min
May 4, 1:11 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	GID	Nance	49 min
May 4, 1:27 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	GID	Adams	48 min
May 4, 1:39 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	GID	Kearney	66 min
May 4, 1:46 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	GID	Clay	59 min
May 4, 1:57 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	GID	Hamilton	63 min
May 4, 2:27 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	GID	Merrick	48 min
May 4, 2:28 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	GID	York	62 min
May 4, 2:31 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	GID	Polk	59 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Nebraska, 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.