Alert archive / Oklahoma / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2003

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 296, NWS Tulsa, OK

July 13, 2003Cherokee County, Oklahoma

NWS Tulsa, OK issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Jul 13, 2003, 4:31 AM CDT for Cherokee County, Oklahoma. It was in force for 44 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
Jul 13, 2003, 4:31 AM CDT (09:31 UTC)
Expired
Jul 13, 2003, 5:15 AM CDT
In force
44 min
Issued by
NWS Tulsa, OK
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

County Cherokee County, OK

The radar

The Tulsa radar (KINX), 54 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 09:31 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

Springfield, MO (KSGF), launched 00:00Z, 9.5 hours before the alert went out and 136 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, Springfield, MO at 00:00Z on 2003-07-13Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 2640 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, Springfield, MO at 00:00Z on 2003-07-13The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 16 square meters per square second.193958Sfc1 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
2640 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-6 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
974 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
31 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
16 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
131 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.5
Supercell composite
3.1

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WUUS54 KTSA 130931
SVRTUL
OKC021-131015-

BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
431 AM CDT SUN JUL 13 2003

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN TULSA HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  NORTHERN CHEROKEE COUNTY IN EAST CENTRAL OKLAHOMA

* UNTIL 515 AM CDT

* AT 431 AM CDT...DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM 5
  MILES WEST OF SCRAPER...MOVING EAST AT 10 MPH.

* SOME LOCATIONS NEAR THE PATH OF THIS STORM INCLUDE...OAKS AND
  SCRAPER.

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

LAT...LON 3619 9507 3601 9510 3601 9480 3616 9479

$$

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 Jul 13, 3:12 AM CDT, 1 hour 19 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jul 13, 3:12 AM CDT, 1 hour 19 minutes before
EASTERN OKLAHOMA/NORTHWEST ARKANSAS FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OKLAHOMA
312 AM CDT SUN JUL 13 2003

JUST BEFORE 3 AM...THUNDERSTORMS STARTED DEVELOPING EASTWARD IN THE
WATCH AREA. WILL WAIT TILL THE LAST MINUTE BEFORE SENDING ZONES AND
ADJUSTING TO HOW THINGS LOOK. WITH WEAK BOUNDARY AND UPPER AIR SHORT
WAVE MOVING ACROSS THE AREA IN THE NORTHWEST FLOW...NOT HARD TO
JUSTIFY A WATCH FOR MUCH OF OK. ONLY QUESTION SEEMS TO BE IS HOW
WIDESPREAD ARE THE THUNDERSTORMS GOING TO BE. WILL KEEP 30 TO 40
POPS ACROSS THE AREA TODAY WITH ONLY 20 PERCENT IN THE SOUTHEASTERN
SECTION TONIGHT. THIS SEEMS THE MOST REALISTIC WITH CURRENT
CONDITIONS.

LOOKS LIKE GUIDANCE HAS A FAIRLY GOOD HANDLE ON THE TEMPS AND WILL
STICK PRETTY CLOSE TO THEM. DRY FORECAST AFTER THIS SYSTEM MOVES
OUT.

TUL   91   72   95   74  / 40   10   10   10
FSM   91   72   91   72  / 30   20   10   10
MLC   92   73   95   73  / 30   10   10   10
BVO   89   72   95   74  / 40   10   10   10
FYV   87   70   90   71  / 30   20   10   10
BYV   86   71   90   71  / 30   20   10   10
MKO   92   73   95   74  / 30   10   10   10
MIO   86   72   94   74  / 30   10   10   10
F10   92   73   95   73  / 40   10   10   10
HHW   91   74   96   73  / 30   20   10   10

FORECAST ID= 15

.TSA...
AR...NONE.
OK...NONE.
Hazardous weather outlook, Jul 12, 9:00 PM CDT, 7 hours 31 minutes before
ARZ001-002-010-011-019-020-029-OKZ049-053>076-131100-

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
900 PM CDT SAT JUL 12 2003

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

.DAY ONE...TONIGHT

SEVERE WEATHER OUTLOOK

...SLIGHT CHANCE OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS TONIGHT...

A WEAK SURFACE FRONT REMAINS ACROSS NORTHERN OKLAHOMA WHILE THE
AIRMASS OVER ALL OF EASTERN OKLAHOMA AND WESTERN ARKANSAS REMAINS
UNSTABLE.  A LAYER OF WARM AIR ALOFT HAS CONTINUED TO PROVIDE A CAP
AGAINST THUNDERSTORM FORMATION...HOWEVER A WEAK DISTURBANCE MOVING
ACROSS WESTERN KANSAS MAY HELP OVERCOME THIS CAPPING LAYER LATER
TONIGHT.

HIGH INSTABILITY AND FAVORABLE WINDS ALOFT WILL PROVIDE A SEVERE
WEATHER THREAT WITH ANY THUNDERSTORMS THAT DO DEVELOP OVERNIGHT.
THE FAVORED AREA FOR DEVELOP WILL BE ALONG THE FRONTAL BOUNDARY
POSITION WHICH WILL LIKELY REMAIN NORTH OF INTERSTATE 40. HAIL TO
THE SIZE OF QUARTERS AND WIND GUSTS TO 70 MPH WILL BE POSSIBLE
SHOULD SEVERE WEATHER DEVELOP TONIGHT.

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
ANY THUNDERSTORMS THAT DEVELOP SATURDAY NIGHT ARE EXPECTED TO WEAKEN
SUNDAY MORNING...ALTHOUGH THUNDERSTORM REDEVELOPMENT WILL BE
POSSIBLE OVER THE AREA BY SUNDAY AFTERNOON. A FEW SEVERE
THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE POSSIBLE.

CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED TO BE DRY MONDAY THROUGH FRIDAY AS HIGH
PRESSURE PREVAILS AT THE SURFACE AND ALOFT.

.SPOTTER / EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT ACTION STATEMENT...
SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE NEEDED OVERNIGHT...PRIMARILY NORTH OF
INTERSTATE 40.

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

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Jul 12, 11:22 PM CDT, 5 hours 9 minutes before
OKZ054>055-059>060-064>066-073-131000-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
1122 PM CDT SAT JUL 12 2003

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH
#735 UNTIL 500 AM CDT SUNDAY MORNING FOR THE FOLLOWING AREAS:

IN OKLAHOMA THIS WATCH INCLUDES 8 COUNTIES...
IN EAST CENTRAL OKLAHOMA:

OKFUSKEE

IN NORTHEAST OKLAHOMA:

CREEK                 OKMULGEE              OSAGE
PAWNEE                TULSA                 WASHINGTON

IN SOUTHEAST OKLAHOMA:

PITTSBURG

THIS INCLUDES THE CITIES OF BARTLESVILLE...BRISTOW...BROKEN ARROW...
MCALESTER...OKEMAH...OKMULGEE...PAWHUSKA...PAWNEE...SAND SPRINGS AND
TULSA.
Special weather statement, Jul 13, 4:05 AM CDT, 26 minutes before
OKZ069-130930-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TULSA OK
405 AM CDT SUN JUL 13 2003

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN TULSA HAS ISSUED A SIGNIFICANT
WEATHER ADVISORY EFFECTIVE UNTIL 430 AM CDT FOR THE FOLLOWING COUNTY:

IN NORTHEAST OKLAHOMA
     SOUTHERN ADAIR

AT 405 AM CDT...DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A STRONG THUNDERSTORM 7 MILES
NORTHWEST OF BUNCH...MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 15 MPH. SOME LOCATIONS THAT
WILL BE AFFECTED BY THIS STORM INCLUDE...STILWELL AND BUNCH.

THIS STORM WILL BE CAPABLE OF PRODUCING SMALL HAIL AND WIND GUSTS TO
40 MPH.

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jul 13, 4:21 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTSADelaware, Mayes39 min
Jul 13, 5:00 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTSAAdair60 min
Jul 13, 5:10 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTSADelaware65 min
Jul 13, 5:54 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTSAAdair66 min
Jul 13, 8:15 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTSASequoyah60 min
Jul 13, 8:25 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTSALeFlore50 min
Jul 13, 8:27 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTSACherokee33 min
Jul 13, 8:42 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTSAAdair33 min
Jul 13, 9:10 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTSALeFlore50 min
Jul 13, 9:11 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTSAHaskell, Sequoyah49 min
Jul 13, 9:57 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTSALeFlore, Sequoyah63 min
Jul 13, 10:18 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTSAHaskell42 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.