Alert archive / Iowa / Tornado Warnings in 2004

Tornado Warning 125, NWS Des Moines, IA

September 5, 2004Lucas County, Warren County, Iowa

NWS Des Moines, IA issued this tornado warning at Sep 5, 2004, 8:44 PM CDT for Lucas County, Warren County, Iowa. It was in force for 31 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: Sep 5, 2004, 8:44 PM CDT (01:44 UTC)
Expired: Sep 5, 2004, 9:15 PM CDT
In force: 31 min
Issued by: NWS Des Moines, IA
Area: Counties, with a storm outline in the text

Counties Lucas County, IA, Warren County, IA

The radar

The Des Moines radar (KDMX), 65 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 01:46 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.

The watch it was issued in

The SPC watch in force over the same counties when this warning went out.

Issued	Product	Office	Lasted
Sep 5, 3:00 PM CDT	Tornado Watch	SPC	6 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Omaha, NE (KOAX), launched 00:00Z, 1.7 hours before the alert went out and 243 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: 8 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -124 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 1414 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 55 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 25 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 38 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.0
Supercell composite: -0.1

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WFUS53 KDMX 060144
TORDMX
IAC117-181-060215-
/X.NEW.KDMX.TO.W.0015.040906T0144Z-040906T0215Z/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DES MOINES IA
844 PM CDT SUN SEP 5 2004

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN DES MOINES HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  NORTHWESTERN LUCAS COUNTY IN SOUTH CENTRAL IOWA.
  SOUTHEASTERN WARREN COUNTY IN SOUTH CENTRAL IOWA.

* UNTIL 915 PM CDT.

* AT 842 PM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A TORNADO. THIS DANGEROUS
  STORM WAS LOCATED 13 MILES NORTHEAST OF OSCEOLA...OR 32 MILES SOUTH
  OF DES MOINES...AND MOVING NORTHEAST AT 25 MPH.

* THE TORNADO WILL REMAIN OVER MAINLY RURAL AREAS OF NORTHWESTERN
  LUCAS AND SOUTHEASTERN WARREN COUNTIES...INCLUDING THE TOWN OF
  LACONA.

THE SAFEST PLACE TO BE DURING A TORNADO IS IN A BASEMENT. GET UNDER A
WORKBENCH OR OTHER PIECE OF STURDY FURNITURE. IF NO BASEMENT IS
AVAILABLE...SEEK SHELTER ON THE LOWEST FLOOR OF THE BUILDING IN AN
INTERIOR HALLWAY OR ROOM SUCH AS A CLOSET. USE BLANKETS OR PILLOWS TO
COVER YOUR BODY AND ALWAYS STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS.

IF IN MOBILE HOMES OR VEHICLES...EVACUATE THEM AND GET INSIDE A
SUBSTANTIAL SHELTER. IF NO SHELTER IS AVAILABLE...LIE FLAT IN THE
NEAREST DITCH OR OTHER LOW SPOT AND COVER YOUR HEAD WITH YOUR HANDS.

HEAVY RAINFALL MAY OBSCURE THIS TORNADO. TAKE COVER NOW IF YOU WAIT
TO SEE OR HEAR IT COMING...IT MAY BE TOO LATE TO GET TO A SAFE PLACE.

LAT...LON 4125 9356 4103 9356 4112 9334 4125 9334

$$

SMALL

The office that day

Everything else NWS Des Moines, IA issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Sep 5, 7:15 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	DMX	Hamilton, Wright	30 min
Sep 5, 7:16 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	DMX	Madison	29 min
Sep 5, 7:28 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	DMX	Hardin, Story	47 min
Sep 5, 7:39 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	DMX	Warren	36 min
Sep 5, 7:56 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	DMX	Polk	49 min
Sep 5, 8:17 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	DMX	Story	43 min
Sep 5, 8:48 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	DMX	Jasper, Polk	27 min
Sep 5, 9:03 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	DMX	Marshall, Story	42 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Iowa, 2004 Every tornado warning in 2004 Tornadoes in 2004

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.