Alert archive / Minnesota / Tornado Watches in 2004
Tornado Watch 173
The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at May 9, 2004, 3:55 PM CDT for 30 counties in Minnesota; 6 counties in Wisconsin. It was in force for 5 hr.
The area
The outline as issued.
The facts
- Issued
- May 9, 2004, 3:55 PM CDT (20:55 UTC)
- Expired
- May 9, 2004, 9:00 PM CDT
- In force
- 5 hr
- Issued by
- the Storm Prediction Center
All 36 counties
Anoka County, MN, Blue Earth County, MN, Brown County, MN, Carver County, MN, Dakota County, MN, Dodge County, MN, Faribault County, MN, Fillmore County, MN, Freeborn County, MN, Goodhue County, MN, Hennepin County, MN, Le Sueur County, MN, Martin County, MN, McLeod County, MN, Meeker County, MN, Mower County, MN, Nicollet County, MN, Olmsted County, MN, Ramsey County, MN, Rice County, MN, Scott County, MN, Sherburne County, MN, Sibley County, MN, Steele County, MN, Wabasha County, MN, Waseca County, MN, Washington County, MN, Watonwan County, MN, Winona County, MN, Wright County, MN, Barron County, WI, Buffalo County, WI, Dunn County, WI, Pepin County, WI, Pierce County, WI, Saint Croix County, WI
The radar
The Minneapolis radar (KMPX), 60 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 20:57 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.
Warnings issued inside it
24 tornado, severe thunderstorm and flash flood warnings for its counties while it was in force.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 9, 4:05 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MPX | Meeker, Stearns | 55 min |
| May 9, 4:13 PM CDT | Tornado Warning | MPX | Meeker, Stearns | 47 min |
| May 9, 4:40 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MPX | Carver, Hennepin, Wright | 65 min |
| May 9, 4:49 PM CDT | Tornado Warning | MPX | Anoka, Sherburne, Wright | 26 min |
| May 9, 4:58 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MPX | McLeod | 47 min |
| May 9, 5:11 PM CDT | Tornado Warning | MPX | Carver, Hennepin | 49 min |
| May 9, 5:18 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MPX | Anoka | 42 min |
| May 9, 5:46 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MPX | Sibley | 44 min |
| May 9, 5:47 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MPX | Ramsey, Washington | 58 min |
| May 9, 5:48 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MPX | McLeod | 42 min |
| May 9, 5:56 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MPX | Polk, Saint Croix | 64 min |
| May 9, 6:18 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MPX | Dakota, Scott | 57 min |
| May 9, 6:23 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MPX | Pierce | 67 min |
| May 9, 6:32 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MPX | Sibley | 58 min |
| May 9, 6:34 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MPX | Barron, Dunn, Pepin | 41 min |
| May 9, 7:13 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MPX | Scott | 47 min |
| May 9, 7:26 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MPX | Pierce | 64 min |
| May 9, 7:35 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MPX | Le Sueur, Nicollet, Sibley | 55 min |
| May 9, 7:40 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MPX | Pepin | 50 min |
| May 9, 7:46 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | ARX | Buffalo | 59 min |
| May 9, 7:57 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | ARX | Wabasha | 63 min |
| May 9, 8:22 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MPX | Brown | 53 min |
| May 9, 8:33 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MPX | Le Sueur, Rice | 57 min |
| May 9, 8:48 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | ARX | Buffalo, Trempealeau | 57 min |
Discussions around it
SPC mesoscale discussions over the same counties from four hours before the watch to its end.
The nearest sounding before it
Minneapolis, MN (KMPX), launched 12:00Z, 8.9 hours before the alert went out and 62 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.
- Mixed-layer CAPE
- 8 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -483 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 802 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 26 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 207 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 170 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 0.0
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000
WWUS20 KWNS 092055
SEL3
SPC WW 092055
MNZ000-WIZ000-100200-
URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 173
NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
355 PM CDT SUN MAY 9 2004
THE NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF
SOUTHERN MINNESOTA
WESTERN WISCONSIN
EFFECTIVE THIS SUNDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING FROM 355 PM UNTIL 900
PM CDT.
TORNADOES...HAIL TO 3 INCHES IN DIAMETER...THUNDERSTORM WIND GUSTS
TO 80 MPH...AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE IN THESE AREAS.
THE TORNADO WATCH AREA IS ALONG AND 85 STATUTE MILES EAST AND WEST
OF A LINE FROM 40 MILES NORTH OF MINNEAPOLIS MINNESOTA TO 50 MILES
SOUTHWEST OF ROCHESTER MINNESOTA.
REMEMBER...A TORNADO WATCH MEANS CONDITIONS ARE FAVORABLE FOR
TORNADOES AND SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS IN AND CLOSE TO THE WATCH AREA.
PERSONS IN THESE AREAS SHOULD BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR THREATENING
WEATHER CONDITIONS AND LISTEN FOR LATER STATEMENTS AND POSSIBLE
WARNINGS.
OTHER WATCH INFORMATION...CONTINUE...WW 170...WW 171...WW 172...
DISCUSSION...STRONG SUPERCELL OVER WCENTRAL MN WILL CONTINUE
DEVELOPING E/SE INTO A FAVORABLE SHEAR AND INSTABILITY ENVIRONMENT.
IN ADDITION TO POSSIBLE TORNADOES...VERY DAMAGING WINDS ARE ALSO
LIKELY.
AVIATION...TORNADOES AND A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH HAIL
SURFACE AND ALOFT TO 3 INCHES. EXTREME TURBULENCE AND SURFACE WIND
GUSTS TO 70 KNOTS. A FEW CUMULONIMBI WITH MAXIMUM TOPS TO 550.
MEAN STORM MOTION VECTOR 29035.
...HALES
452,0912 432,0913 432,0945 452,0945SPC that day
Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 9, 2:00 PM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Big Stone, Blue Earth, Brown, Carver, Chippewa, Kandiyohi and 19 more | 3 hr |
| May 9, 2:30 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Watch | SPC | Benton, Brown, Chippewa, Cottonwood, Isanti, Kanabec and 22 more | 6 hr |
| May 9, 3:29 PM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Chisago, Dakota, Goodhue, Hennepin, Le Sueur, Ramsey and 4 more | 91 min |
| May 9, 4:46 PM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Houston | 59 min |
| May 9, 5:38 PM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Anoka, Blue Earth, Brown, Carver, Chisago, Cottonwood and 25 more | 2 hr |
| May 8, 9:55 PM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Columbia, Dane, Dodge, Green, Iowa, Jefferson and 9 more | 2 hr |
| May 9, 11:48 AM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Columbia, Dane, Dodge, Fond du Lac, Green, Green Lake and 10 more | 2 hr |
| May 9, 12:55 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Watch | SPC | Kenosha, Milwaukee, Ozaukee, Racine, Washington | 6 hr |
| May 9, 2:46 PM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Kenosha, Milwaukee, Ozaukee, Racine | 89 min |
| May 9, 6:15 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Watch | SPC | Ashland, Barron, Bayfield, Douglas, Forest, Iron and 6 more | 8 hr |
Nearby
Tornado Watches in Minnesota, 2004Tornado Watches in Wisconsin, 2004Every tornado watch 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.