Alert archive / Oklahoma / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2003

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 242, NWS Tulsa, OK

May 24, 2003Osage County, Pawnee County, Oklahoma

NWS Tulsa, OK issued this severe thunderstorm warning at May 24, 2003, 8:45 AM CDT for Osage County, Pawnee County, Oklahoma. It was in force for 60 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 24, 2003, 8:45 AM CDT (13:45 UTC)
Expired
May 24, 2003, 9:45 AM CDT
In force
60 min
Issued by
NWS Tulsa, OK
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

Counties Osage County, OK, Pawnee County, OK

The radar

The Tulsa radar (KINX), 101 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 13:48 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 nearest sounding before it

Norman, OK (KOUN), launched 12:00Z, 1.8 hours before the alert went out and 169 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, Norman, OK at 12:00Z on 2003-05-24Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1150 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, Norman, OK at 12:00Z on 2003-05-24The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 23 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
1150 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-93 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
839 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
39 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
23 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
89 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.1
Supercell composite
1.1

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WUUS54 KTSA 241345
SVRTUL
OKC113-117-241445-

BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
844 AM CDT SAT MAY 24 2003

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN TULSA HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR
  OSAGE COUNTY IN NORTHEAST OKLAHOMA
  PAWNEE COUNTY IN NORTHEAST OKLAHOMA

* UNTIL 945 AM CDT

* AT 844 AM CDT SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS CAPABLE OF PRODUCING WINDS UP TO
  60 MPH AND PENNY SIZE HAIL WERE LOCATED ALONG A LINE EXTENDING 
    FROM 6 MILES WEST OF GRAINOLA TO 15 MILES NORTHWEST OF PAWNEE TO 
    47 MILES SOUTHWEST OF PAWNEE...MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 50 MPH.

* SOME LOCATIONS AFFECTED INCLUDE... PAWHUSKA...SHIDLER...OSAGE...
  HOMINY...WYNONA...FAIRFAX...BARNSDALL...BURBANK...OKESA...
  PEARSONIA...BIGHEART...FORAKER...GRAINOLA...PAWNEE...JENNINGS...
  TERLTON...HALLETT...MARAMEC...BLACKBURN...SKEDEE...CLEVELAND...
  RALSTON AND WESTPORT.

LAT...LON 3700 9675 3651 9713 3624 9696 3611 9663
          3617 9624 3664 9598 3697 9611

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 24, 6:00 AM CDT, 2 hours 45 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, May 24, 6:00 AM CDT, 2 hours 45 minutes before
MESOSCALE FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OKLAHOMA
600 AM CDT SAT MAY 24 2003

LARGE MCS BECOMING MORE ORGANIZED ACROSS CENTRAL KANSAS EARLY THIS
MORNING...WITH CURRENT LINE MOTION TO THE SOUTHEAST AT 30KT.  EXPECT
MAIN CONVECTIVE LINE TO PUSH INTO NORTHEAST OKLAHOMA BETWEEN 800 AND
900 AM CDT.  NORTHWEST FLOW ALOFT COUPLED WITH UPPER JET STREAK
DIVING SOUTHEAST OVER THE CENTRAL PLAINS WILL LIKELY SUSTAIN
THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY AS MCS PUSHES INTO SOUTHEAST OKLAHOMA AND
NORTHWEST ARKANSAS BY EARLY AFTERNOON.  LATEST MODEL GUIDANCE /
TRENDS INDICATES THAT INSTABILITIES WILL REMAIN SOMEWHAT MARGINAL
WITH CAPE VALUES AROUND 1500 J/KG.  COULD STILL SEE ISOLATED SEVERE
ALONG LINE WITH WIND GUSTS TO 60 MPH AND NICKEL SIZE HAIL.  GIVEN
TIMING OF OVERALL SYSTEM...IT APPEARS UNLIKELY THAT ATMOSPHERE CAN
RECOVER / DESTABILIZE SIGNIFICANTLY FOR AN ADDITIONAL ROUND OF
SEVERE STORMS THIS AFTERNOON.

FORECAST ID= 12

.TSA...
AR...NONE.
OK...NONE.
Hazardous weather outlook, May 24, 6:00 AM CDT, 2 hours 45 minutes before
ARZ001-002-010-011-019-020-029-OKZ049-053>076-251100-

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
600 AM CDT SAT MAY 24 2003

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

.DAY ONE...TODAY

SEVERE WEATHER OUTLOOK

...A SLIGHT CHANCE OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS TODAY ACROSS EASTERN
   OKLAHOMA AND NORTHWEST ARKANSAS...

STRONG TO SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS HAVE DEVELOPED ACROSS CENTRAL KANSAS
EARLY THIS MORNING.  THESE STORMS WILL FORM INTO A LARGE
THUNDERSTORM COMPLEX...MOVING INTO NORTHEAST OKLAHOMA THIS MORNING
AND INTO SOUTHEAST OKLAHOMA AND NORTHWEST ARKANSAS BY EARLY
AFTERNOON. THE STRONGER STORMS WILL BE CAPABLE OF PRODUCING HAIL UP
TO THE SIZE OF NICKELS AND WIND GUSTS TO 60 MPH. THE BEST CHANCE FOR
SEVERE STORMS WILL BE OVER FAR NORTHEAST OKLAHOMA AND NORTHWEST
ARKANSAS. IN ADDITION TO THE SEVERE THREAT...VERY HEAVY RAIN WILL BE
LIKELY WITH THE THREAT FOR LOCALIZED FLASH FLOODING.  THE
THUNDERSTORM COMPLEX IS EXPECTED TO SWEEP EAST OF THE AREA BY LATE
AFTERNOON WITH ONLY A FEW LINGERING SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS
FAR SOUTHEAST OKLAHOMA AND NORTHWEST ARKANSAS OVERNIGHT.

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...SUNDAY THROUGH FRIDAY
THERE WILL BE CONTINUED CHANCE FOR SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS SUNDAY
INTO SUNDAY NIGHT...MAINLY ACROSS SOUTHEAST OKLAHOMA AND NORTHWEST
ARKANSAS...HOWEVER SEVERE WEATHER IS NOT EXPECTED.

.SPOTTER / EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT ACTION STATEMENT...
SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE REQUIRED LATER TODAY. EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT
PERSONNEL SHOULD CONTINUE TO MONITOR THE LATEST WEATHER CONDITIONS.

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

In the hours before

Special weather statement, May 24, 8:22 AM CDT, 23 minutes before
OKZ054-059-241415-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
822 AM CDT SAT MAY 24 2003

...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ALERT IN EFFECT FOR OSAGE AND PAWNEE COUNTIES
   UNTIL 915 AM CDT...

AT 822 AM CDT...DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED STRONG THUNDERSTORMS ALONG A
LINE EXTENDING FROM 20 MILES NORTHWEST OF GRAINOLA TO 30 MILES WEST
OF APPERSON TO 70 MILES WEST OF PAWNEE...MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 45 MPH.

THESE STORMS WILL BE CAPABLE OF PRODUCING SMALL HAIL AND WIND GUSTS
TO 40 MPH. THE COMMUNITIES OF PAWHUSKA...SHIDLER...HOMINY...AVANT..
BARNSDALL...FORAKER...GRAINOLA...PAWNEE...CLEVELAND AND RALSTON WILL
BE AFFECTED BY THESE STORMS THROUGH 915 AM CDT.

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 24, 9:20 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTSACreek, Tulsa60 min
May 24, 9:54 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTSAOkfuskee, Okmulgee51 min
May 24, 10:20 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTSAMcIntosh40 min
May 24, 10:33 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTSAPittsburg42 min
May 24, 10:56 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTSAHaskell49 min
May 24, 11:48 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTSALeFlore42 min
May 24, 6:38 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTSAChoctaw52 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Oklahoma, 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.