Alert archive / Missouri / Tornado Warnings in 2003

Tornado Warning 16, NWS Springfield, MO

May 4, 2003Lawrence County, Missouri

NWS Springfield, MO issued this tornado warning at May 4, 2003, 6:46 PM CDT for Lawrence County, Missouri. 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, 6:46 PM CDT (23:46 UTC)
Expired: May 4, 2003, 7:45 PM CDT
In force: 59 min
Issued by: NWS Springfield, MO
Area: Counties, with a storm outline in the text

County Lawrence County, MO

The radar

The Springfield radar (KSGF), 46 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 23:47 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.

Issued	Product	Office	Lasted
May 4, 12:35 PM CDT	Tornado Watch	SPC	6 hr
May 4, 6:05 PM CDT	Tornado Watch	SPC	7 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Springfield, MO (KSGF), launched 12:00Z, 11.8 hours before the alert went out and 25 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: 50 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -362 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 735 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 62 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 282 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 474 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.0
Supercell composite: 4.7

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WFUS53 KSGF 042346
TORSGF
MOC109-050045-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SPRINGFIELD MO
646 PM CDT SUN MAY 4 2003

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN SPRINGFIELD HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  LAWRENCE COUNTY IN MISSOURI

* UNTIL 745 PM CDT.

* AT 642 PM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR WAS TRACKING
  A TORNADO NEAR GRANBY...OR 8 MILES NORTHEAST OF NEOSHO...AND MOVING
  NORTHEAST AT 45 MPH.

* THIS TORNADIC STORM IS EXPECTED TO BE NEAR...
   VERONA BY 710 PM CDT.
   MOUNT VERNON...MILLER...AURORA BY 715 PM CDT.

THE TOWNS OF STOTTS CITY...FREISTATT...HOBERG AND CHESAPEAKE ARE ALSO
IN THE PATH OF THIS TORNADIC STORM.

DO NOT USE HIGHWAY OVERPASSES FOR SHELTER. OVERPASSES DO NOT PROVIDE
PROTECTION FROM TORNADIC WINDS. VEHICLES STOPPED UNDER BRIDGES BLOCK
TRAFFIC AND PREVENT PEOPLE FROM GETTING OUT OF THE STORMS PATH AND
TO SHELTER. IF YOU CANNOT DRIVE AWAY FROM THE TORNADO...GET OUT OF
YOUR VEHICLE AND LIE FLAT IN A DITCH AS A LAST RESORT.

DO NOT USE YOUR CAR TO TRY TO OUTRUN A TORNADO. CARS ARE EASILY
TOSSED AROUND BY TORNADO WINDS. IF YOU ARE CAUGHT IN THE PATH OF A
TORNADO...LEAVE THE CAR AND GO TO A STRONG BUILDING. IF NO SAFE
STRUCTURE IS NEARBY...SEEK SHELTER IN A DITCH OR LOW SPOT AND COVER
YOUR HEAD.

IF IN MOBILE HOMES OR VEHICLES...EVACUATE THEM AND GET INSIDE A
STURDY SHELTER. IF NO SHELTER IS AVAILABLE...LIE FLAT IN THE NEAREST
DITCH OR OTHER LOW SPOT AND COVER YOUR HEAD WITH YOUR HANDS.

LAT...LON 3719 9405 3694 9408 3696 9365 3727 9363

$$

IZZI

The office that day

Everything else NWS Springfield, MO issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
May 4, 4:27 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	SGF	St. Clair	33 min
May 4, 4:46 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	SGF	Hickory, St. Clair	29 min
May 4, 7:24 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	SGF	Maries, Miller	51 min
May 4, 5:00 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	SGF	Barton	60 min
May 4, 5:23 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	SGF	Vernon	52 min
May 4, 5:49 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	SGF	Cedar, Vernon	56 min
May 4, 5:55 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	SGF	McDonald	50 min
May 4, 5:59 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	SGF	Jasper	56 min
May 4, 5:59 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	SGF	Newton	61 min
May 4, 6:28 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	SGF	Barton	62 min
May 4, 6:28 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	SGF	Polk	62 min
May 4, 6:42 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	SGF	Barton, Dade	63 min
May 4, 6:45 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	SGF	Hickory	60 min
May 4, 6:50 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	SGF	Oregon	40 min

Nearby

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