Alert archive / Oklahoma / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2003

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 152, NWS Tulsa, OK

May 9, 2003Tulsa County, Oklahoma

NWS Tulsa, OK issued this severe thunderstorm warning at May 9, 2003, 11:54 PM CDT for Tulsa County, Oklahoma. It was in force for 51 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 9, 2003, 11:54 PM CDT (04:54 UTC)
Expired: May 10, 2003, 12:45 AM CDT
In force: 51 min
Issued by: NWS Tulsa, OK
Area: Counties, with a storm outline in the text

County Tulsa County, OK

The radar

The Tulsa radar (KINX), 37 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 04:57 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.

Did it verify

Not verified. The Iowa Environmental Mesonet's Cow found no qualifying storm report inside this severe thunderstorm warning while it was in force. That is not proof nothing happened: reports are thin where few people live.

Cow counts a report within 15 km of the polygon while the warning was in force: a tornado for a tornado warning; hail of 1 inch or more, a gust of 58 mph or more or wind damage for a severe thunderstorm warning; a flash flood report for a flash flood warning.

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 9, 11:10 PM CDT	Tornado Watch	SPC	6 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Norman, OK (KOUN), launched 00:00Z, 4.9 hours before the alert went out and 181 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: 2823 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -37 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 1182 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 52 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 38 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 151 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.5
Supercell composite: 2.1

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

106 
WUUS54 KTSA 100454
SVRTUL
OKC143-100545-

BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
1153 PM CDT FRI MAY 9 2003

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN TULSA HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  NORTHERN TULSA COUNTY IN NORTHEAST OKLAHOMA

* UNTIL 1245 AM CDT

* AT 1153 PM CDT...DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM 6
  MILES WEST OF SAND SPRINGS...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 40 MPH.

* SOME LOCATIONS NEAR THE PATH OF THIS STORM INCLUDE...SAND
  SPRINGS...OWASSO AND SPERRY.

HAIL TO THE SIZE OF GOLF BALLS CAN BE EXPECTED IN THE WARNED AREA. 
STAY INDOORS AND AWAY FROM WINDOWS UNTIL THE STORM HAS PASSED.

LAT...LON 3627 9600 3643 9600 3643 9593 3633 9582
          3627 9583

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 Tulsa, OK wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at May 9, 11:54 PM CDT, 0 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, May 9, 11:54 PM CDT, 0 minutes before

MESOSCALE FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OKLAHOMA
1154 PM CDT FRI MAY 9 2003

...ALL INTERESTS IN TULSA AND OKMULGEE COUNTIES SHOULD MOVE TO A
HIGH STATE OF READINESS...

TULSA RADAR APPEARANCE OF THE SUPERCELL HAS IMPROVED DURING THE LAST
SCAN.  THE NORMAN OFFICE RELAYED A REPORT OF A TORNADO IN CHANDLER.

A LEFT SPLIT STORM IN NORTHERN CREEK COUNTY IS DEVELOPING CYCLONIC
SHEAR AND AN INTENSE UPDRAFT AND IS SEVERE.

S-R HELICITY VALUES AHEAD OF THE STORM ARE NOW NEAR 400 M2/S2.  THIS
STORM IS EXPECTED TO CONTINUE DANGEROUS FOR AT LEAST THE NEXT 1 TO 2
HOURS.

THE STORM HAS JOGGED BY TO THE LEFT AS IT HAS DONE SEVERAL TIMES
TONIGHT.  LONG-TERM EXTRAPOLATION BRINGS THE CIRCULATION TO THE NEAR
THE NORTHWEST CORNER OF OKMULGEE COUNTY NEAR 100 AM.

FORECAST ID= 08

.TSA...
AR...NONE.
OK...NONE.

Hazardous weather outlook, May 9, 11:15 PM CDT, 39 minutes before

ARZ001-002-010-011-019-020-029-OKZ049-053>076-101100-

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
1115 PM CDT FRI MAY 9 2003

THIS OUTLOOK IS FOR NORTHWEST AND WEST CENTRAL ARKANSAS AS WELL AS
MUCH OF EASTERN OKLAHOMA.

.DAY ONE...THROUGH TONIGHT

SEVERE WEATHER OUTLOOK

...TORNADIC SUPERCELL THUNDERSTORM WILL LIKELY MOVE INTO NORTHEAST
   OKLAHOMA AFTER MIDNIGHT...

...DANGEROUS WEATHER SITUATION DEVELOPING ACROSS NORTHEAST OKLAHOMA...

A TORNADIC THUNDERSTORM HAS MOVED THROUGH THE WESTERN AND NORTHERN
PARTS OF THE OKLAHOMA CITY METROPOLITAN AREA. STORM SPOTTERS HAVE
REPORTED A LARGE AND DESTRUCTIVE TORNADO WITH THIS STORM AS IT MOVED
THROUGH THE OKLAHOMA CITY AREA.

ENVIRONMENTAL PARAMETERS REMAIN VERY FAVORABLE FOR THIS SUPERCELL
THUNDERSTORM TO CONTINUE MOVING EAST NORTHEAST INTO NORTHEAST
OKLAHOMA. THE POTENTIAL FOR TORNADIC DEVELOPMENT IS VERY HIGH IN
CREEK...OKMULGEE AND TULSA COUNTIES. PRESENT INDICATIONS SUGGEST
THAT THE TORNADIC STORM WILL BEGIN AFFECTING CREEK COUNTY BY SHORTLY
AFTER MIDNIGHT AND TORNADO WARNINGS WILL LIKELY BE ISSUED PRIOR TO
THIS TIME.

INSTABILITY IS SLIGHTLY LESS EAST OF TULSA AND THE CAP IS A BIT
STRONGER TO THE EAST AS WELL SO THE THUNDERSTORM MAY BEGIN TO WEAKEN
AFTER IT MOVES EAST OF TULSA AND OKMULGEE COUNTIES. THERE IS SOME
UNCERTAINTY IN THIS FORECAST SO PEOPLE LIVING IN
WAGONER...ROGERS...CHEROKEE...MAYES...ADAIR AND DELAWARE COUNTIES
SHOULD ALSO CLOSELY MONITOR THIS THUNDERSTORM.

ADDITIONAL THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT WILL BE POSSIBLE OVERNIGHT WITH
LARGE HAIL BEING THE MAIN THREAT WITH ANY NEW STORMS.

WARNING PROBABILITIES FOR SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS AND TORNADOES CAN BE
FOUND IN THE OUTLOOK SECTION AT: WWW.SRH.NOAA.GOV/TULSA. GIVEN
PROBABILITIES REPRESENT THE POTENTIAL FOR A WARNING TO BE ISSUED AT
YOUR LOCATION.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SATURDAY THROUGH THURSDAY THE UPPER LEVEL
SYSTEM MOVING OUT INTO THE PLAINS TONIGHT AND SATURDAY WILL PUSH A
COLD FRONT ACROSS THE AREA.  A CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS WILL CONTINUE
INTO SATURDAY ALONG AND AHEAD OF THE FRONT UNTIL THE FRONT CLEARS
THE AREA DURING THE AFTERNOON.  DRY WEATHER WILL THEN PREVAIL FOR A
FEW DAYS TILL THE NEXT CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS DEVELOPS BY TUESDAY.
THERE WILL ALSO BE A CONTINUED CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS THROUGH
WEDNESDAY AND THURSDAY OF NEXT WEEK.

.SPOTTER / EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT ACTION STATEMENT...
SPOTTER  ACTIVATION WILL BE REQUIRED TONIGHT IN NORTHEAST OKLAHOMA.
SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE REQUIRED ACROSS SOUTHEAST OKLAHOMA AND
NORTHWEST ARKANSAS. SPOTTERS AND EMERGENCY OFFICIALS SHOULD CLOSELY
MONITOR THE LATEST WARNINGS AND STATEMENT FOR CRITICAL WEATHER
INFORMATION.

ADDITIONAL WEATHER INFORMATION CAN BE FOUND AT...
WWW.SRH.NOAA.GOV/TULSA

In the hours before

Local storm report, May 9, 10:08 PM CDT, 1 hour 46 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
1008 PM CDT FRI MAY 09 2003

TIME(CDT)  .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

1007 PM    BARTLESVILLE              OK   1.75 IN HAIL
05/09/03   WASHINGTON

SP

Local storm report, May 9, 10:13 PM CDT, 1 hour 41 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
1013 PM CDT FRI MAY 09 2003

TIME(CDT)  .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

1013 PM    BARTLESVILLE              OK   2.50 IN HAIL
05/09/03   WASHINGTON

SP

Special weather statement, May 9, 11:04 PM CDT, 50 minutes before

OKZ054>072-101003-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
1104 PM CDT FRI MAY 9 2003

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED TORNADO WATCH 330 UNTIL 500
AM CDT SATURDAY MORNING FOR THE FOLLOWING AREAS:

IN OKLAHOMA THIS WATCH INCLUDES 19 COUNTIES...
IN EAST CENTRAL OKLAHOMA:

CHEROKEE              MUSKOGEE              OKFUSKEE
SEQUOYAH

IN NORTHEAST OKLAHOMA:

ADAIR                 CRAIG                 CREEK
DELAWARE              MAYES                 NOWATA
OKMULGEE              OSAGE                 OTTAWA
PAWNEE                ROGERS                TULSA
WAGONER               WASHINGTON

IN SOUTHEAST OKLAHOMA:

MCINTOSH

THIS INCLUDES THE CITIES OF BARTLESVILLE...BRISTOW...BROKEN ARROW...
CLAREMORE...EUFAULA...JAY...MIAMI...MUSKOGEE...NOWATA...OKEMAH...
OKMULGEE...PAWHUSKA...PAWNEE...PRYOR...SALLISAW...SAND SPRINGS...
STILWELL...TAHLEQUAH...TULSA...VINITA AND WAGONER.

THE POTENTIAL FOR SEVERE WEATHER WILL CONTINUE ACROSS THE WATCH AREA.
RESIDENTS IN THESE AREAS SHOULD MONITOR THISSITUATION CLOSELY AND BE
PREPARED IN CASE WARNINGS ARE ISSUED.

IF A TORNADO WARNING IS ISSUED FOR YOUR AREA MOVE QUICKLY TO THE
LOWEST FLOOR POSSIBLE. STAY AWAY FROM OUTSIDE WALLS AND WINDOWS.
BASEMENTS AND STORM CELLARS OFFER THE BEST PROTECTION. MOBILE HOMES
SHOULD BE ABANDONED FOR NEARBY...MORE SUBSTANTIAL STRUCTURES.

STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO...COMMERCIAL RADIO OR TELEVISION FOR
THE LATEST ON THIS SEVERE WEATHER EVENT. ADDITIONAL WEATHER
INFORMATION...INCLUDING RELATED GRAPHICS CAN BE FOUND AT:
WWW.SRH.NOAA.GOV/TULSA.

Special weather statement, May 9, 11:08 PM CDT, 46 minutes before

OKZ064-100445-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
1108 PM CDT FRI MAY 9 2003

...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ALERT IN EFFECT FOR CREEK COUNTY UNTIL 1140 PM
   CDT...

AT 1108 PM CDT...DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A TORNADIC THUNDERSTORM 35
MILES WEST OF MILFAY...MOVING EAST-NORHTEAST AT 25 MPH. STORM
SPOTTERS REPORTED HAVE REPORTED A LARGE DAMAGING TORNADO
ACCOMPANYING THIS STORM.

TORNADO WARNINGS WILL BE ISSUED FOR CREEK COUNTY APPROXIMATELY 30
MINUTES PRIOR TO ARRIVAL ASSUMING THE STORM MAINTAINS ITS CURRENT
CHARACTERISTICS.

RESIDENTS...EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT...AND SPOTTERS IN CREEK COUNTY
SHOULD PREPARE THEMSELVES FOR A TORNADIC EVENT AND CLOSELY MONITOR
THE LATEST WEATHER STATEMENTS AND WARNINGS ISSUED BY THE NATIONAL
WEATHER SERVICE IN TULSA.

Special weather statement, May 9, 11:18 PM CDT, 36 minutes before

OKZ065-100445-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
1118 PM CDT FRI MAY 9 2003

...URGENT MESSAGE...

WE HAVE RECEIVED REPORTS OF A MAJOR TRAFFIC JAM IN STROUD.

THE MEDIA IN TULSA IS URGED TO IMMEDIATELY PLEA THAT PEOPLE DO NOT
ATTEMPT TO DRIVE TOWARD OKLAHOMA CITY FROM TULSA.

MANY PEOPLE ARE SAID TO BE IN GREAT DANGER IN STOPPED VEHICLES AS
THE TORNADO CONTINUES TO THE NORTHEAST ALONG THE I-44 CORRIDOR.

WWUS84 KTSA 100421 RRA
SPSTUL
OKZ060-064-065-100500-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
1118 PM CDT FRI MAY 9 2003

...URGENT MESSAGE...

WE HAVE RECEIVED REPORTS OF A MAJOR TRAFFIC JAM IN STROUD.

THE MEDIA IN TULSA IS URGED TO IMMEDIATELY PLEA THAT PEOPLE DO NOT
ATTEMPT TO DRIVE TOWARD OKLAHOMA CITY FROM TULSA.

MANY PEOPLE ARE SAID TO BE IN GREAT DANGER IN STOPPED VEHICLES AS
THE TORNADO CONTINUES TO THE NORTHEAST ALONG THE I-44 CORRIDOR.

Special weather statement, May 9, 11:18 PM CDT, 36 minutes before

OKZ060-064-065-100500-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
1118 PM CDT FRI MAY 9 2003

...URGENT MESSAGE...

WE HAVE RECEIVED REPORTS OF A MAJOR TRAFFIC JAM IN STROUD.

THE MEDIA IN TULSA IS URGED TO IMMEDIATELY PLEA THAT PEOPLE DO NOT
ATTEMPT TO DRIVE TOWARD OKLAHOMA CITY FROM TULSA.

MANY PEOPLE ARE SAID TO BE IN GREAT DANGER IN STOPPED VEHICLES AS
THE TORNADO CONTINUES TO THE NORTHEAST ALONG THE I-44 CORRIDOR.

The office that day

Everything else NWS Tulsa, OK issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
May 9, 8:31 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	TSA	Osage, Pawnee	59 min
May 9, 10:02 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	TSA	Washington	43 min
May 9, 10:09 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	TSA	Nowata	66 min
May 9, 11:40 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	TSA	Creek	65 min
May 9, 11:47 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	TSA	Creek, Osage, Pawnee	43 min
May 10, 12:21 AM CDT	Tornado Warning	TSA	Creek	54 min
May 10, 12:34 AM CDT	Tornado Warning	TSA	Okmulgee, Tulsa	56 min
May 10, 1:15 AM CDT	Tornado Warning	TSA	Creek, Okmulgee, Tulsa	45 min
May 10, 1:22 AM CDT	Tornado Warning	TSA	Wagoner	68 min
May 10, 2:29 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	TSA	Wagoner	46 min
May 10, 2:42 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	TSA	Mayes	48 min
May 10, 2:49 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	TSA	Cherokee	56 min
May 10, 12:38 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	TSA	Osage, Pawnee	52 min
May 10, 12:41 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	TSA	Osage, Pawnee	49 min
May 10, 1:18 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	TSA	Okfuskee, Okmulgee	42 min
May 10, 1:25 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	TSA	Nowata, Rogers, Washington	65 min
May 10, 1:35 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	TSA	Nowata, Rogers, Washington	70 min
May 10, 1:52 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	TSA	McIntosh, Pittsburg	53 min
May 10, 2:01 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	TSA	Craig	44 min
May 10, 2:25 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	TSA	Haskell, Muskogee	65 min
May 10, 2:37 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	TSA	Craig	53 min
May 10, 2:45 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	TSA	McIntosh, Pittsburg	75 min
May 10, 2:59 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	TSA	Sequoyah	46 min
May 10, 3:03 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	TSA	Ottawa	57 min
May 10, 3:14 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	TSA	Rogers	31 min
May 10, 3:22 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	TSA	Adair	38 min
May 10, 4:00 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	TSA	Ottawa	60 min
May 10, 4:41 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	TSA	LeFlore	34 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Oklahoma, 2003 Every 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.