Alert archive / Nebraska / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2003

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 8, NWS Hastings, NE

April 15, 2003Furnas County, Nebraska

NWS Hastings, NE issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Apr 15, 2003, 4:57 PM CDT for Furnas County, Nebraska. It was in force for 33 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
Apr 15, 2003, 4:57 PM CDT (21:57 UTC)
Expired
Apr 15, 2003, 5:30 PM CDT
In force
33 min
Issued by
NWS Hastings, NE
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

County Furnas County, NE

The radar

The Grand Island radar (KUEX), 110 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 21:56 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.

IssuedProductOfficeLasted
Apr 15, 3:45 PM CDTTornado WatchSPC5 hr

The nearest sounding before it

N. Platte/Lee Bi, NE (KLBF), launched 12:00Z, 10.0 hours before the alert went out and 140 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, N. Platte/Lee Bi, NE at 12:00Z on 2003-04-15Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 0 joules per kilogram.LCL10008507005003002001001 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, N. Platte/Lee Bi, NE at 12:00Z on 2003-04-15The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 120 square meters per square second.193958Sfc1 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
0 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL
3632 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
31 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
120 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
131 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.

318 
WUUS53 KGID 152157
SVRGID
NEC065-152230-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HASTINGS NE
456 PM CDT TUE APR 15 2003

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN HASTINGS HAS ISSUED A

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

* UNTIL 530 PM CDT

* AT 451 PM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM 9 MILES SOUTHEAST OF HOLLINGER...OR ABOUT 18
  MILES NORTHEAST OF NORTON...MOVING NORTH AT 35 MPH.

* SOME LOCATIONS IN THE PATH OF THIS SEVERE STORM INCLUDE...
  OXFORD

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

DAMAGING THUNDERSTORM WINDS IN EXCESS OF 60 MPH AND LARGE HAIL THE
SIZE OF GOLFBALLS ARE LIKELY.

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

LAT...LON 4000 9971 4003 9979 4033 9963 4001 9964
$$
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 Apr 15, 2:48 PM CDT, 2 hours 9 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Apr 15, 2:48 PM CDT, 2 hours 9 minutes before
SOUTH CENTRAL NEBRASKA/NORTH CENTRAL KANSAS FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HASTINGS NE
248 PM CDT TUE APR 15 2003

...TIMING OF SEVERE AND WIND MAIN FCST PROBLEMS...

DRYLINE TRYING TO SHARPEN UP OVER WESTERN KANSAS AND FAR SOUTHWEST
NEBRASKA THIS AFTERNOON WITH ISOLATED STORMS STARTING UP ALONG
DRYLINE OVER WESTERN KANSAS. CURRENT FEELING HERE, AND AGREE WITH LATEST
SPC THOUGHTS, IS THAT STORMS WILL PROPAGATE NORTHEAST TONIGHT. ETA
KF AND UPDRAFT MASS FLUX ALSO SUGGESTING SAME. SEE LITTLE REASON THEN
TO CHANGE WHAT WE HAVE GOING IN THE FORECAST FOR THE SHORT TERM. AS
FOR WINDS...WITH SFC LOW CRANKING UP TO OUR SOUTHWEST THIS AFTERNOON
AND WINDS OVER CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN CWA INCREASING ACCORDINGLY, SEE
NO REASON WHY CWA WONT CONTINUE TO REALIZE WIND ADV CONDITIONS
THROUGH THIS EVENING. THUS, WILL PLAN TO EXTEND AND EXPAND WIND ADV
TO COVER THE CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN CWA FOR TONIGHT.

FOR WEDNESDAY...AGAIN CURRENT FORECAST APPEARS REASONABLE, THUS SEE
LITTLE REASON TO CHANGE THE FORECAST SAVE FOR INCREASING POPS DUE TO
THE EXPECTED WRAPAROUND PCPN SHIELD. AGAIN...VERY TIGHT SFC GRADIENT
ALL CWA TOMORROW, SO WILL PLAN TO BLANKET CWA WITH AN ADVISORY. WITH
AMPLE CLOUD AROUND MOST OF THE DAY, WE MAY HAVE A HARD TIME
REALIZING ANY DOWNWARD MOM. TRANSFER...THUS WILL JUST STICK WITH THE
ADVISORY. ONLY OTHER CHANGE MADE FOR WEDNESDAY WAS TO LOWER HIGHS
THANKS TO CAA AND CLOUD COVER.

EXTENDED MODELS CONTINUE TO ADVERTISE ANOTHER SHORTWAVE TROF
AFFECTING THE CENTRAL PLAINS FRIDAY THROUGH SUNDAY. WITH POPS
ALREADY IN FORECAST, WILL PLAN TO LEAVE ALONE THIS CYCLE AS WELL.

.GID...WIND ADVISORY TONIGHT FOR POINTS ALONG AND SOUTH OF I-80.
       WIND ADVISORY ALL CWA FOR WEDNESDAY.

16
Hazardous weather outlook, Apr 15, 11:08 AM CDT, 5 hours 49 minutes before
KSZ005>007-017>019-NEZ039>041-046>049-060>064-072>077-082>087-161200-

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...CORRECTED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HASTINGS NE
1108 AM CDT TUE APR 15 2003

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

.DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT.

SURFACE LOW PRESSURE IS EXPECTED TO RAPIDLY INTENSIFY LATE THIS
AFTERNOON ACROSS THE WESTERN HIGH PLAINS IN RESPONSE TO AN
APPROACHING UPPER LEVEL LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM. MEANWHILE...A DRY LINE
EXTENDING ACROSS WESTERN KANSAS AND SOUTHWEST NEBRASKA WILL MOVE
THROUGH THE AREA LATER TODAY. THIS WILL RESULT IN STRONG
THUNDERSTORMS DEVELOPING ACROSS SOUTH CENTRAL NEBRASKA AND NORTH
CENTRAL KANSAS LATE THIS LATE AFTERNOON AND EVENING...SOME OF WHICH
WILL PROBABLY BECOME SEVERE.

IN ADDITION...THE GRASSLAND FIRE DANGER INDEX WILL BE IN THE EXTREME
CATEGORY ACROSS ALL OF SOUTH CENTRAL NEBRASKA AND NORTH CENTRAL
KANSAS THIS AFTERNOON. HIGH TEMPERATURES WILL BE IN THE LOW TO MID
80S...WITH LOWEST RELATIVE HUMIDITIES AT 15 TO 30 PERCENT. WINDS WILL
GENERALLY BE FROM THE SOUTH AT 20 TO 30 MPH...WITH SOME HIGHER GUSTS
THIS AFTERNOON.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY.

AS LOW PRESSURE SLIDES EASTWARD ON WEDNESDAY...STRONG NORTHWEST WINDS
WILL DEVELOP ON THE BACK SIDE OF THIS SYSTEM BY THE AFTERNOON.
NORTHWEST WINDS ARE EXPECTED TO INCREASE INTO THE 25 TO 35 MPH
RANGE...WITH GUSTS TO 45 MPH POSSIBLE.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL PROBABLY BE REQUIRED LATE THIS AFTERNOON
AND INTO THE EVENING HOURS...PARTICULARLY ACROSS NORTH CENTRAL KANSAS
AND FOR AREAS MAINLY SOUTH OF I-80 IN SOUTH CENTRAL NEBRASKA. THE
MAIN THREAT APPEARS TO BE STRONG DAMAGING WINDS ACCOMPANIED BY LARGE
HAIL.

DEE

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Apr 15, 4:45 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGIDHarlan45 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Nebraska, 2003Every 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.