Alert archive / Wisconsin / Tornado Watches in 2003
Tornado Watch 889
The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at Aug 25, 2003, 11:10 PM CDT for 5 counties in Minnesota; 7 counties in Wisconsin. It was in force for 6 hr.
The area
The outline as issued.
The facts
- Issued
- Aug 25, 2003, 11:10 PM CDT (04:10 UTC)
- Expired
- Aug 26, 2003, 5:00 AM CDT
- In force
- 6 hr
- Issued by
- the Storm Prediction Center
Counties Aitkin County, MN, Carlton County, MN, Kanabec County, MN, Mille Lacs County, MN, Pine County, MN, Ashland County, WI, Bayfield County, WI, Burnett County, WI, Douglas County, WI, Iron County, WI, Sawyer County, WI, Washburn County, WI
The radar
The Duluth radar (KDLH), 35 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 04:14 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.
Warnings issued inside it
4 tornado, severe thunderstorm and flash flood warnings for its counties while it was in force.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 25, 11:23 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | DLH | Aitkin | 67 min |
| Aug 25, 11:38 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | DLH | Carlton, Saint Louis | 52 min |
| Aug 26, 12:07 AM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | DLH | Bayfield | 53 min |
| Aug 26, 12:45 AM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | DLH | Ashland, Iron | 60 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
Minneapolis, MN (KMPX), launched 00:00Z, 4.2 hours before the alert went out and 213 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
- 1058 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -288 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 1451 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 38 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 173 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 250 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 0.1
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000
WWUS20 KWNS 260407
SEL9
SPC WW 260410
MNZ000-WIZ000-LSZ000-261000-
URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 889
NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
1110 PM CDT MON AUG 25 2003
THE NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF
EAST CENTRAL MINNESOTA
NORTHERN WISCONSIN
LAKE SUPERIOR
EFFECTIVE THIS MONDAY NIGHT AND TUESDAY MORNING FROM 1110 PM UNTIL
500 AM CDT.
TORNADOES...HAIL TO 3 INCHES IN DIAMETER...THUNDERSTORM WIND GUSTS
TO 70 MPH...AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE IN THESE AREAS.
THE TORNADO WATCH AREA IS ALONG AND 45 STATUTE MILES NORTH AND
SOUTH OF A LINE FROM 80 MILES WEST SOUTHWEST OF DULUTH MINNESOTA
TO 10 MILES SOUTH SOUTHEAST OF IRONWOOD MICHIGAN.
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...CONTINUE...WW 887...WW 888...
DISCUSSION...LINE OF SUPERCELL STORMS OVER NORTHERN MN WILL CONTINUE
TO TRACK SOUTHEASTWARD INTO NORTHERN WI DURING THE NEXT FEW HOURS.
ALTHOUGH AIRMASS IS ONLY MARGINALLY UNSTABLE...FAVORABLE LOW/DEEP
LAYER SHEAR PROFILES AND RICH LOW LEVEL MOISTURE WILL MAINTAIN A
RISK OF LARGE HAIL...DAMAGING WINDS...AND ISOLATED TORNADOES.
AVIATION...TORNADOES AND A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH HAIL
SURFACE AND ALOFT TO 3 INCHES. EXTREME TURBULENCE AND SURFACE WIND
GUSTS TO 60 KNOTS. A FEW CUMULONIMBI WITH MAXIMUM TOPS TO 500.
MEAN STORM MOTION VECTOR 29035.
...HART
470,0934 470,0900 454,0900 454,0934SPC that day
Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 25, 7:04 PM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Beltrami, Clearwater, Itasca, Kittson, Koochiching, Marshall and 4 more | 56 min |
| Aug 25, 7:38 PM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Fillmore, Houston, Mower | 67 min |
| Aug 25, 8:05 PM CDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | Itasca, Koochiching, Saint Louis | 6 hr |
| Aug 25, 10:02 PM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Itasca, Lake, Saint Louis | 58 min |
| Aug 26, 12:21 AM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Dane, Green, Iowa, Jefferson, Lafayette, Rock and 2 more | 84 min |
Nearby
Tornado Watches in Wisconsin, 2003Tornado Watches in Minnesota, 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; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.