Alert archive / Nebraska / Tornado Warnings in 2003

Tornado Warning 2, NWS Omaha, NE

May 4, 2003Douglas County, Sarpy County, Nebraska

NWS Omaha, NE issued this tornado warning at May 4, 2003, 3:35 PM CDT for Douglas County, Sarpy County, Nebraska. It was in force for 55 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, 3:35 PM CDT (20:35 UTC)
Expired
May 4, 2003, 4:30 PM CDT
In force
55 min
Issued by
NWS Omaha, NE
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

Counties Douglas County, NE, Sarpy County, NE

The radar

The Omaha radar (KOAX), 14 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 20:37 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.

The watch it was issued in

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

IssuedProductOfficeLasted
May 4, 12:45 PM CDTTornado WatchSPC6 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Omaha, NE (KOAX), launched 12:00Z, 8.6 hours before the alert went out and 15 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, Omaha, NE at 12:00Z on 2003-05-04Temperature 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, Omaha, NE at 12:00Z on 2003-05-04The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 375 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
0 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL
558 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
49 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
375 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
509 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.

715 
WFUS53 KOAX 042035
TOROAX
NEC055-153-042130-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OMAHA NE
335 PM CDT SUN MAY 4 2003

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN OMAHA HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  DOUGLAS COUNTY IN EAST CENTRAL NEBRASKA
  THIS INCLUDES THE CITY OF OMAHA
  SARPY COUNTY IN EAST CENTRAL NEBRASKA

* UNTIL 430 PM CDT

* AT 332 PM CDT...RADAR INDICATED A SEVERE STORM WITH A POSSIBLE
  TORNADO. THE MOST DANGEROUS PART OF THE STORM WAS LOCATED 3 MILES
  NORTHEAST OF MEMPHIS...OR ABOUT 22 MILES SOUTHWEST OF OMAHA...
  MOVING EAST AT 35 MPH.

* THE TORNADO IS EXPECTED TO BE NEAR...
  GRETNA...WATERLOO AROUND 340 PM CDT
  ELKHORN AROUND 345 PM CDT
  CHALCO...SPRINGFIELD AROUND 350 PM CDT
  PAPILLION...LA VISTA AROUND 400 PM CDT

THIS IS A DANGEROUS SITUATION. ACT QUICKLY. IF YOU ARE IN THE PATH OF
THIS TORNADO GO BELOW GROUND LEVEL IF POSSIBLE. OTHERWISE GO TO A
SMALL INTERIOR ROOM ON THE LOWEST FLOOR OF THE BUILDING.

A TORNADO WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 600 PM CDT SUNDAY EVENING FOR
SOUTHEAST NEBRASKA. A TORNADO WATCH ALSO REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 700
PM CDT SUNDAY EVENING FOR SOUTHWEST IOWA AND SOUTHEASTERN NEBRASKA.

LAT...LON 4104 9646 4120 9650 4127 9633 4138 9643
          4139 9595 4109 9595

$$

ERVIN

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 4, 2:04 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOAXJohnson26 min
May 4, 2:14 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOAXOtoe31 min
May 4, 2:43 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOAXBoone, Platte47 min
May 4, 2:46 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOAXButler, Seward44 min
May 4, 3:04 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOAXNemaha41 min
May 4, 3:21 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOAXSaunders29 min
May 4, 4:32 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOAXWashington28 min
May 4, 4:50 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOAXCuming, Thurston40 min
May 4, 12:01 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOAXColfax, Stanton29 min
May 4, 1:00 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOAXPlatte60 min
May 4, 1:45 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOAXColfax, Stanton45 min
May 4, 2:00 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOAXPlatte30 min
May 4, 2:26 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOAXColfax, Platte34 min
May 4, 2:36 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOAXButler54 min
May 4, 2:58 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOAXSaunders47 min
May 4, 2:59 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOAXColfax, Cuming, Dodge, Stanton46 min
May 4, 3:03 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOAXThurston42 min
May 4, 3:17 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOAXPlatte28 min
May 4, 3:18 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningOAXPlatte6 hr
May 4, 3:21 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOAXDouglas, Sarpy54 min
May 4, 3:28 PM CDTTornado WarningOAXSaunders32 min
May 4, 3:42 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOAXBurt, Cuming, Dodge, Washington38 min
May 4, 4:16 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOAXCass44 min
May 4, 4:19 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOAXWashington26 min
May 4, 4:21 PM CDTTornado WarningOAXDouglas, Sarpy54 min
May 4, 4:23 PM CDTTornado WarningOAXCass37 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Nebraska, 2003Every tornado warning in 2003Tornadoes 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.