Alert archive / Kansas / Tornado Watches in 2004
Tornado Watch 196
The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at May 12, 2004, 9:25 PM CDT for 28 counties in Kansas; 5 counties in Oklahoma. It was in force for 7 hr.
The area
The outline as issued.
The facts
- Issued
- May 12, 2004, 9:25 PM CDT (02:25 UTC)
- Expired
- May 13, 2004, 4:00 AM CDT
- In force
- 7 hr
- Issued by
- the Storm Prediction Center
All 33 counties
Allen County, KS, Anderson County, KS, Butler County, KS, Chase County, KS, Chautauqua County, KS, Coffey County, KS, Cowley County, KS, Douglas County, KS, Elk County, KS, Franklin County, KS, Greenwood County, KS, Harper County, KS, Harvey County, KS, Kingman County, KS, Labette County, KS, Lyon County, KS, Marion County, KS, McPherson County, KS, Montgomery County, KS, Morris County, KS, Neosho County, KS, Osage County, KS, Reno County, KS, Rice County, KS, Sedgwick County, KS, Sumner County, KS, Wilson County, KS, Woodson County, KS, Alfalfa County, OK, Garfield County, OK, Grant County, OK, Kay County, OK, Nowata County, OK
Warnings issued inside it
13 tornado, severe thunderstorm and flash flood warnings for its counties while it was in force.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 12, 9:48 PM CDT | Flash Flood Warning | ICT | Harper | 6 hr |
| May 12, 10:08 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | ICT | Kingman | 52 min |
| May 12, 10:15 PM CDT | Flash Flood Warning | ICT | Kingman | 6 hr |
| May 12, 10:16 PM CDT | Tornado Warning | ICT | Sumner | 59 min |
| May 12, 10:21 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | ICT | Sedgwick | 54 min |
| May 12, 11:10 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | ICT | Sedgwick | 65 min |
| May 12, 11:33 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | ICT | Kingman | 57 min |
| May 12, 11:48 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | ICT | Butler | 57 min |
| May 12, 11:59 PM CDT | Flash Flood Warning | ICT | Sedgwick, Sumner | 6 hr |
| May 13, 12:57 AM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | ICT | Reno | 63 min |
| May 13, 1:35 AM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | ICT | Kingman | 55 min |
| May 13, 1:59 AM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | ICT | Reno | 61 min |
| May 13, 3:45 AM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | ICT | Sedgwick | 60 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
Lamont, OK (KLMN), launched 00:00Z, 2.4 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.
- Mixed-layer CAPE
- 4023 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -5 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 1092 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 39 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 99 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 227 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 3.5
- Supercell composite
- 18.3
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
439
WWUS20 KWNS 130227
SEL6
SPC WW 130225
KSZ000-OKZ000-130900-
URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 196
NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
925 PM CDT WED MAY 12 2004
THE NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF
SOUTHERN AND EASTERN KANSAS
EXTREME NORTHERN AND NORTHEASTERN OKLAHOMA
EFFECTIVE THIS WEDNESDAY NIGHT AND THURSDAY MORNING FROM 925 PM
UNTIL 400 AM CDT.
TORNADOES...HAIL TO 2.5 INCHES IN DIAMETER...THUNDERSTORM WIND
GUSTS TO 70 MPH...AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE IN THESE
AREAS.
THE TORNADO WATCH AREA IS ALONG AND 75 STATUTE MILES NORTH AND
SOUTH OF A LINE FROM 30 MILES NORTHEAST OF CHANUTE KANSAS TO 60
MILES WEST SOUTHWEST OF WICHITA KANSAS.
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...THIS TORNADO WATCH REPLACES TORNADO
WATCH NUMBER 193. WATCH NUMBER 193 WILL NOT BE IN EFFECT AFTER 925
PM CDT. CONTINUE...WW 194...WW 195...
DISCUSSION...INTENSE SUPERCELL CLUSTER OVER S CENTRAL KS WILL
PERSIST FOR THE NEXT COUPLE OF HOURS AS THE LLJ INCREASES TO 30-40
KT AND FEEDS 70 DEWPOINTS INTO THIS AREA FROM NRN OK...WITH THE
POSSIBILITY OF TORNADOES AND VERY LARGE HAIL. EXPECT THE SEVERE
THREAT TO TRANSITION TO DAMAGING WINDS AND LARGE HAIL LATER TONIGHT
AS STORMS GRADUALLY MERGE AND GROW UPSCALE INTO A LARGER MCS WITH
THE THREAT FOR DAMAGING WINDS AND LARGE HAIL.
AVIATION...TORNADOES AND A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH HAIL
SURFACE AND ALOFT TO 2.5 INCHES. EXTREME TURBULENCE AND SURFACE
WIND GUSTS TO 60 KNOTS. A FEW CUMULONIMBI WITH MAXIMUM TOPS TO
550. MEAN STORM MOTION VECTOR 27020.
...THOMPSON
365,0950 361,0982 382,0982 390,0950SPC that day
Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 12, 7:08 PM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Cheyenne, Finney, Gove, Grant, Gray, Greeley and 11 more | 67 min |
| May 12, 9:08 PM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Allen, Anderson, Barber, Barton, Butler, Chase and 41 more | 37 min |
| May 12, 9:37 PM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Finney, Greeley, Hamilton, Kearny, Logan, Scott and 4 more | 53 min |
| May 12, 11:55 PM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Allen, Anderson, Barber, Butler, Chautauqua, Coffey and 15 more | 2 hr |
| May 13, 3:12 AM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Allen, Bourbon, Butler, Chase, Chautauqua, Cherokee and 19 more | 63 min |
| May 13, 5:01 PM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Allen, Anderson, Butler, Chase, Chautauqua, Coffey and 12 more | 89 min |
| May 12, 8:04 PM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Blaine, Caddo, Canadian, Comanche, Cotton, Custer and 7 more | 86 min |
| May 13, 10:20 AM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Atoka, Blaine, Caddo, Canadian, Carter, Cleveland and 35 more | 115 min |
| May 13, 10:45 AM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Watch | SPC | Adair, Caddo, Canadian, Carter, Cherokee, Cleveland and 35 more | 6 hr |
| May 13, 12:48 PM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Adair, Atoka, Caddo, Canadian, Carter, Cherokee and 41 more | 117 min |
| May 13, 2:48 PM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Adair, Carter, Cherokee, Cleveland, Coal, Cotton and 29 more | 87 min |
Nearby
Tornado Watches in Kansas, 2004Tornado Watches in Oklahoma, 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.