Alert archive / Nevada / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2003

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 12, NWS Reno, NV

July 31, 2003Douglas County, Washoe County, Nevada; El Dorado County, Placer County, California

NWS Reno, NV issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Jul 31, 2003, 1:53 PM PDT for Douglas County, Washoe County, Nevada; El Dorado County, Placer County, California. It was in force for 22 min. No storm report in the archive falls inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
Jul 31, 2003, 1:53 PM PDT (20:53 UTC)
Expired
Jul 31, 2003, 2:15 PM PDT
In force
22 min
Issued by
NWS Reno, NV
Area
Whole counties

Counties El Dorado County, CA, Placer County, CA, Douglas County, NV, Washoe County, NV

The radar

The Reno radar (KRGX), 73 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 20:56 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.

The nearest sounding before it

Reno, NV (KREV), launched 12:00Z, 8.9 hours before the alert went out and 167 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, Reno, NV at 12:00Z on 2003-07-31Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 3 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 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, Reno, NV at 12:00Z on 2003-07-31The 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
3 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-379 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
2514 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
14 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
12 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
153 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.

143 
WUUS55 KREV 312053
SVRREV
CAC017-061-NVC005-031-510-312115-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RENO NV
151 PM PDT THU JUL 31 2003

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  EXTREME NORTHEASTERN EL DORADO COUNTY IN CENTRAL CALIFORNIA
  NORTHEASTERN PLACER COUNTY IN CENTRAL CALIFORNIA
  THIS INCLUDES THE CITY OF KINGS BEACH
  WESTERN CARSON CITY IN WESTERN NEVADA
  THIS INCLUDES THE CITY OF CARSON CITY
  NORTHWESTERN DOUGLAS COUNTY IN WESTERN NEVADA
  EXTREME SOUTHWESTERN WASHOE COUNTY IN WESTERN NEVADA

* UNTIL 215 PM PDT

* AT 146 PM PDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED
  A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM OVER INDIAN HILLS...OR ABOUT 5 MILES SOUTH
  OF CARSON CITY...MOVING WEST AT 15 MPH.

* THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WILL BE...
  OVER SPOONER SUMMIT AT 205 PM PDT
  2 MILES NORTH OF GLENBROOK...7 MILES SOUTH OF CRYSTAL BAY AT 215 PM
  PDT

HAIL...INTENSE RAIN AND STRONG DAMAGING WINDS ARE LIKELY WITH THIS
STORM. TAKE COVER IN A SUBSTANTIAL SHELTER UNTIL THE STORM PASSES.

HEAVY RAIN...STRONG WINDS... AND HAIL UP TO 1/2 INCH IN DIAMETER WAS 
REPORTED BY A SKYWARN SPOTTER IN CARSON CITY WITH THIS STORM. IF YOU 
ARE IN THE PATH OF THE STORM...PUT YOUR CAR IN A GARAGE AND MOVE TO 
A SUBSTANTIAL SHELTER.

REPORT DAMAGING WEATHER TO THE NEAREST LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY. THEY
WILL RELAY YOUR REPORT TO THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FORECAST
OFFICE.

$$

LAT...LON 3897 11974 3914 11966 3927 12006 3906 12016

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 Reno, NV wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at Jul 31, 9:00 AM PDT, 4 hours 53 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jul 31, 9:00 AM PDT, 4 hours 53 minutes before
WESTERN NEVADA AND EASTERN CALIFORNIA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RENO NV
900 AM PDT THU JUL 31 2003

VERY STRONG HIGH PRESSURE CENTER CONTINUES OVER NORTHERN CALIFORNIA
AND NORTHERN NEVADA THIS MORNING. WEAK INVERTED SHORT WAVE TROUGH
MOVING NORTHWEST FROM OUT OF SOUTHERN NEVADA FORECAST TO BRING GOOD
VERTICAL MOTION TO MOIST AND UNSTABLE AIR RESIDING OVER THE AREA.
DYNAMICS FROM THIS WEAK TROUGH WILL AFFECT MAINLY REGION SOUTH OF
RENO-TAHOE THROUGH THE AFTERNOON. SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS LIKELY
TO THEN INCREASE FROM RENO-TAHOE NORTHWARD DURING THE EVENING AND
RIDGE BREAKS DOWN AND ALLOWS SHORT WAVE TO CONTINUE MOVING
NORTHWARD. PRECIPITATABLE WATER ON DESERT ROCK SOUNDING THIS MORNING
IS NEARLY 1.4 INCHES AND SOME OF THIS DEEP MOISTURE WILL MOVE INTO
AT LEAST THE SOUTHERN PORTION OF THE FORECAST AREA. CURRENT FORECAST
IN GOOD SHAPE AND NO UPDATES THIS MORNING. LAMONI

.REV...FLASH FLOOD WATCH THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING
       CAZ073-NVZ001...SOUTHERN CAZ072-NVZ002 AND SOUTHERN NVZ003.
Hazardous weather outlook, Jul 31, 6:45 AM PDT, 7 hours 8 minutes before
CAZ070>073-NVZ001>005-311400-

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RENO NV
645 AM PDT THU JUL 31 2003

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR WESTERN NEVADA...THE EASTERN
SIERRA AND NORTHEASTERN CALIFORNIA.

...FLASH FLOOD WATCH IN EFFECT UNTIL 9PM THIS EVENING FOR DOUGLAS...
MINERAL...SOUTHERN LYON...MONO AND ALPINE COUNTIES...

.DAY ONE...TODAY

MOIST AND UNSTABLE CONDITIONS OVER WESTERN NEVADA AND EASTERN
CALIFORNIA WILL PRODUCE SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS THIS AFTERNOON AND
EVENING.  FLASH FLOODING WILL BE A THREAT SOUTH OF HIGHWAY 50...WITH
LOCALLY HEAVY RAINFALL TO THE NORTH OF HIGHWAY 50.  ADDITIONAL
DETAILS CAN BE FOUND IN THE LATEST FLOOD WATCH STATEMENT (WGUS65
KREV).

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...FRIDAY THROUGH THURSDAY

THE MOIST AND UNSTABLE CONDITIONS WILL CONTINUE THROUGH SUNDAY WITH
DRIER CONDITION FOR EARLY NEXT WEEK.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SKYWARN ACTIVATION MAY BE REQUIRED FOR THE FLASH FLOOD THREAT THIS
AFTERNOON.  WEATHER SPOTTERS ARE ASKED TO REPORT SIGNIFICANT WEATHER
CONDITIONS TO THEIR LOCAL NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OFFICE.

BRONG

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jul 31, 1:38 PM PDTFlash Flood WarningREVDouglas37 min
Jul 31, 2:59 PM PDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningREVNevada, Placer, Sierra16 min
Jul 31, 3:12 PM PDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningREVNevada, Sierra18 min
Jul 31, 3:27 PM PDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningREVNevada, Sierra33 min
Jul 31, 3:28 PM PDTFlash Flood WarningREVNevada, Sierra92 min
Jul 31, 3:39 PM PDTTornado WarningREVSierra21 min
Jul 31, 4:00 PM PDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningREVPlumas, Sierra25 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Nevada, 2003Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in California, 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.