Alert archive / Iowa / Tornado Warnings in 2004

Tornado Warning 28, NWS Des Moines, IA

May 22, 2004Polk County, Story County, Iowa

NWS Des Moines, IA issued this tornado warning at May 22, 2004, 7:06 PM CDT for Polk County, Story County, Iowa. It was in force for 54 min. 9 reports came from inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The outline as issued, with what was reported inside it.

The facts

Issued
May 22, 2004, 7:06 PM CDT (00:06 UTC)
Expired
May 22, 2004, 8:00 PM CDT
In force
54 min
Issued by
NWS Des Moines, IA
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

Counties Polk County, IA, Story County, IA

The radar

The Des Moines radar (KDMX), 23 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 00:06 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.

What was reported inside it

TimeReportWhereRemark
May 22, 7:11 PM CDTHAIL 1Ames, IAHIGHWAY 30 AND ELWOOD.
May 22, 7:15 PM CDTHAIL 0.88Nw Ames, IA
May 22, 7:18 PM CDTHAIL 2.751 W Slater, IA
May 22, 7:20 PM CDTHAIL 0.881 S Ames, IA69 SOUTH, 1 MILE FROM AMES
May 22, 7:25 PM CDTHAIL 1Ames, IA
May 22, 7:26 PM CDTHAIL 1Ames, IAQUARTER SIZE HAIL WEST SIDE OF AMES
May 22, 7:28 PM CDTHAIL 1.75Ames, IA
May 22, 7:45 PM CDTTORNADO1 W Maxwell, IA
May 22, 7:53 PM CDTTORNADO1 S Maxwell, IA

Local storm reports filed while the alert was in force, from inside its polygon or its counties.

The watch it was issued in

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

IssuedProductOfficeLasted
May 22, 6:15 PM CDTTornado WatchSPC6 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Omaha, NE (KOAX), launched 00:00Z, 0.1 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-pSkew-T log-p diagram, Omaha, NE at 00:00Z on 2004-05-23Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 2882 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, Omaha, NE at 00:00Z on 2004-05-23The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 51 square meters per square second.19395878Sfc1 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
2882 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-5 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1091 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
64 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
51 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
260 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
4.2
Supercell composite
16.7

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WFUS53 KDMX 230006
TORDMX
IAC153-169-230100-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DES MOINES IA
706 PM CDT SAT MAY 22 2004

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN DES MOINES HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  NORTHERN POLK COUNTY IN CENTRAL IOWA
  SOUTHERN STORY COUNTY IN CENTRAL IOWA

* UNTIL 800 PM CDT

* AT 701 PM...RADAR INDICATED A THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A
  TORNADO 3 MILES WEST OF SLATER...OR ABOUT 22 MILES NORTH OF DES
  MOINES...MOVING EAST AT 20 MPH.

* THE STORM WILL BE...

  NEAR SLATER AROUND 710 PM...
  5 MILES SOUTH OF KELLEY AROUND 715 PM...
  5 MILES NORTH OF ALLEMAN AROUND 720 PM...
  NEAR HUXLEY AROUND 725 PM...
  NEAR CAMBRIDGE AROUND 735 PM AND
  9 MILES SOUTH OF NEVADA AROUND 750 PM.

THIS REPLACES THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR SOUTHERN STORY 
COUNTY.

THIS IS A HAZARDOUS SITUATION. SEEK SHELTER IN A BASEMENT...OR IN AN
INTERIOR ROOM. STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS. IF YOU ARE OUTSIDE OR IN A
CAR...SEEK SHELTER IN A REINFORCED BUILDING.

A TORNADO WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL MIDNIGHT SUNDAY MORNING FOR
IOWA.

LAT...LON 4202 9370 4185 9370 4185 9382 4177 9381
          4177 9336 4187 9336 4187 9325 4203 9326

$$

SMALL/KULA

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 22, 7:00 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXAdair30 min
May 22, 7:01 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXAdair29 min
May 22, 7:04 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXAudubon26 min
May 22, 7:10 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXDallas, Guthrie50 min
May 22, 7:13 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningDMXBoone, Story92 min
May 22, 7:14 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXAudubon31 min
May 22, 7:14 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXGreene, Guthrie46 min
May 22, 7:23 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXMadison37 min
May 22, 7:31 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXGuthrie44 min
May 22, 7:49 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXJasper, Marshall56 min
May 22, 7:51 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXDallas39 min
May 22, 7:57 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXStory33 min
May 22, 8:18 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXPolk57 min
May 22, 8:21 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningDMXAudubon, Boone, Carroll, Dallas, Greene, Guthrie and 4 more16 hr
May 22, 8:29 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXDallas16 min
May 22, 8:31 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXDallas, Guthrie44 min
May 22, 8:41 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXTama49 min
May 22, 8:43 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXMarshall47 min
May 22, 9:09 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXPolk, Story36 min
May 22, 9:14 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXDallas31 min
May 22, 9:16 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXAudubon44 min
May 22, 9:27 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXMarshall, Tama63 min
May 22, 9:31 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningDMXTama15 hr
May 22, 10:00 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXCass45 min
May 22, 10:14 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXBlack Hawk46 min
May 22, 10:22 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningDMXBlack Hawk16 hr
May 22, 10:23 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXPolk, Story52 min
May 22, 10:24 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXAdair36 min
May 22, 10:46 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXCass29 min
May 22, 10:48 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXAdams, Taylor57 min
May 22, 10:55 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXGuthrie50 min
May 22, 10:57 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXAdair48 min
May 22, 11:09 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXMadison, Ringgold, Union51 min
May 22, 11:20 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXDallas55 min
May 22, 11:31 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXClarke, Decatur44 min
May 22, 11:36 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXPolk, Warren54 min
May 22, 11:54 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXWarren36 min
May 23, 12:07 AM CDTTornado WarningDMXJasper, Marion53 min
May 23, 12:22 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXLucas23 min
May 23, 12:35 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXMahaska, Poweshiek55 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Iowa, 2004Every tornado warning in 2004Tornadoes 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; local storm reports from the same archive; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.