Alert archive / Missouri / Tornado Watches in 2003
Tornado Watch 238
The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at May 4, 2003, 6:20 PM CDT for Doniphan County, Wyandotte County, Kansas; 40 counties in Missouri. It was in force for 6 hr.
The area
The outline as issued.
The facts
- Issued
- May 4, 2003, 6:20 PM CDT (23:20 UTC)
- Expired
- May 5, 2003, 12:00 AM CDT
- In force
- 6 hr
- Issued by
- the Storm Prediction Center
All 42 counties
Doniphan County, KS, Wyandotte County, KS, Andrew County, MO, Bates County, MO, Benton County, MO, Boone County, MO, Buchanan County, MO, Caldwell County, MO, Carroll County, MO, Cass County, MO, Chariton County, MO, Clay County, MO, Clinton County, MO, Cole County, MO, Cooper County, MO, Daviess County, MO, DeKalb County, MO, Gentry County, MO, Grundy County, MO, Harrison County, MO, Henry County, MO, Holt County, MO, Howard County, MO, Jackson County, MO, Johnson County, MO, Lafayette County, MO, Linn County, MO, Livingston County, MO, Macon County, MO, Mercer County, MO, Miller County, MO, Moniteau County, MO, Morgan County, MO, Nodaway County, MO, Pettis County, MO, Platte County, MO, Putnam County, MO, Randolph County, MO, Ray County, MO, Saline County, MO, Sullivan County, MO, Worth County, MO
Warnings issued inside it
24 tornado, severe thunderstorm and flash flood warnings for its counties while it was in force.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 4, 6:34 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | EAX | Daviess, DeKalb | 56 min |
| May 4, 7:04 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | EAX | Harrison | 41 min |
| May 4, 7:10 PM CDT | Tornado Warning | EAX | Pettis | 50 min |
| May 4, 7:18 PM CDT | Tornado Warning | EAX | Johnson | 27 min |
| May 4, 7:29 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | EAX | Johnson | 61 min |
| May 4, 7:34 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | EAX | Mercer | 41 min |
| May 4, 7:39 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | EAX | Grundy | 51 min |
| May 4, 7:53 PM CDT | Tornado Warning | SGF | Miller | 52 min |
| May 4, 7:54 PM CDT | Tornado Warning | EAX | Saline | 51 min |
| May 4, 8:01 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | EAX | Pettis | 44 min |
| May 4, 8:21 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | EAX | Clay | 39 min |
| May 4, 8:21 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | EAX | Daviess | 54 min |
| May 4, 8:34 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | EAX | Johnson, Wyandotte | 56 min |
| May 4, 8:47 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | EAX | Ray | 58 min |
| May 4, 9:12 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | EAX | Carroll | 63 min |
| May 4, 9:20 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | EAX | Cass | 40 min |
| May 4, 9:24 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | EAX | Lafayette | 66 min |
| May 4, 9:32 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | EAX | Bates | 43 min |
| May 4, 9:53 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | EAX | Saline | 52 min |
| May 4, 10:00 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | EAX | Johnson | 60 min |
| May 4, 10:01 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | EAX | Chariton | 44 min |
| May 4, 10:05 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | EAX | Henry | 55 min |
| May 4, 10:14 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | EAX | Bates | 31 min |
| May 4, 10:26 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | EAX | Macon | 49 min |
Discussions around it
SPC mesoscale discussions over the same counties from four hours before the watch to its end.
The nearest sounding before it
Topeka, KS (KTOP), launched 12:00Z, 11.3 hours before the alert went out and 195 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.
- Mixed-layer CAPE
- 409 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -194 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 563 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 46 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 582 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 841 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 17.5
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000
WWUS20 KWNS 042317
SEL8
SPC WW 042320
MOZ000-050500-
URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 238
NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
620 PM CDT SUN MAY 4 2003
THE NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF
NORTHWEST MISSOURI
EFFECTIVE THIS SUNDAY NIGHT FROM 620 PM UNTIL MIDNIGHT CDT.
...THIS IS A PARTICULARLY DANGEROUS SITUATION...
DESTRUCTIVE TORNADOES...LARGE HAIL TO 2 INCHES IN DIAMETER...
THUNDERSTORM WIND GUSTS TO 70 MPH...AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE
POSSIBLE IN THESE AREAS.
THE TORNADO WATCH AREA IS ALONG AND 70 STATUTE MILES EAST AND WEST
OF A LINE FROM 30 MILES NORTHWEST OF SPICKARD MISSOURI TO 45 MILES
SOUTH SOUTHEAST OF KNOB NOSTER MISSOURI.
REMEMBER...A TORNADO WATCH MEANS CONDITIONS ARE FAVORABLE FOR
TORNADOES AND SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS IN AND CLOSE TO THE WATCH AREA.
PERSONS IN THESE AREAS SHOULD BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR THREATENING
WEATHER CONDITIONS AND LISTEN FOR LATER STATEMENTS AND POSSIBLE
WARNINGS.
OTHER WATCH INFORMATION...THIS TORNADO WATCH REPLACES TORNADO
WATCH NUMBER 233. WATCH NUMBER 233 WILL NOT BE IN EFFECT AFTER 620
PM CDT. CONTINUE...WW 234...WW 235...WW 236...WW 237...
DISCUSSION...SUPERCELLS WILL PERSIST FOR THE NEXT FEW HOURS ALONG
AND E OF THE DRYLINE IN THE WARM SECTOR ACROSS NW MO. THE THREAT
FOR SIGNIFICANT TORNADOES WILL CONTINUE FOR THE NEXT 2-3
HOURS...BEFORE GRADUALLY DIMINISHING LATER THIS EVENING AS
INSTABILITY IS EXHAUSTED BY THE ONGOING STORMS IN THE RELATIVELY
NARROW WARM SECTOR.
AVIATION...TORNADOES AND A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH HAIL
SURFACE AND ALOFT TO 2 INCHES. EXTREME TURBULENCE AND SURFACE WIND
GUSTS TO 60 KNOTS. A FEW CUMULONIMBI WITH MAXIMUM TOPS TO 500.
MEAN STORM MOTION VECTOR 26040.
...THOMPSON
403,0924 380,0915 380,0943 403,0952SPC that day
Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 3, 11:07 PM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Barber, Barton, Butler, Chase, Clark, Clay and 43 more | 83 min |
| May 3, 11:46 PM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Allen, Anderson, Atchison, Bourbon, Brown, Clay and 30 more | 59 min |
| May 4, 12:10 AM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Watch | SPC | Anderson, Atchison, Brown, Chase, Clay, Coffey and 24 more | 6 hr |
| May 4, 2:58 AM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Anderson, Atchison, Brown, Coffey, Doniphan, Douglas and 13 more | 92 min |
| May 4, 4:50 AM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Watch | SPC | Doniphan, Wyandotte | 6 hr |
| May 4, 7:43 AM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Doniphan | 2 hr |
| May 4, 10:19 AM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Atchison, Butler, Chase, Clay, Coffey, Dickinson and 19 more | 116 min |
| May 4, 11:40 AM CDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | Anderson, Chase, Clay, Cloud, Coffey, Dickinson and 19 more | 6 hr |
| May 4, 11:44 AM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Chautauqua, Cherokee, Crawford, Labette, Montgomery, Neosho and 1 more | 3 hr |
| May 4, 12:14 PM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Atchison, Brown, Doniphan, Douglas, Jackson, Jefferson and 7 more | 2 hr |
| May 4, 12:35 PM CDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | Allen, Bourbon, Chautauqua, Cherokee, Crawford, Elk and 6 more | 6 hr |
| May 4, 12:45 PM CDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | Atchison, Brown, Doniphan, Douglas, Jefferson, Johnson and 4 more | 6 hr |
| May 4, 2:22 PM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Anderson, Atchison, Brown, Coffey, Doniphan, Douglas and 13 more | 113 min |
| May 4, 2:58 PM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Ellis, Gove, Jewell, Lane, Lincoln, Mitchell and 9 more | 92 min |
| May 4, 3:05 PM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Allen, Bourbon, Cherokee, Crawford, Labette, Montgomery and 1 more | 115 min |
| May 4, 4:28 PM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Wyandotte | 62 min |
| May 4, 4:43 PM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Bourbon, Cherokee, Crawford, Labette, Linn, Neosho | 2 hr |
| May 4, 6:05 PM CDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | Bourbon, Cherokee, Crawford | 7 hr |
| May 4, 3:56 PM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Adair, Chariton, Grundy, Harrison, Linn, Livingston and 6 more | 2 hr |
| May 4, 5:01 PM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Butler, Dunklin, Mississippi, New Madrid, Pemiscot, Stoddard | 3 hr |
| May 4, 5:20 PM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Barry, Barton, Cedar, Christian, Dade, Dallas and 18 more | 55 min |
| May 4, 5:25 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Watch | SPC | Adair, Audrain, Bollinger, Callaway, Cape Girardeau, Clark and 28 more | 6 hr |
| May 4, 6:55 PM CDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | Butler, Dunklin, Mississippi, New Madrid, Pemiscot, Scott and 2 more | 6 hr |
Nearby
Tornado Watches in Missouri, 2003Tornado Watches in Kansas, 2003Every tornado watch 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.