Alert archive / Michigan / Tornado Watches in 2004

Tornado Watch 248

May 22, 200424 counties in Michigan

The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at May 22, 2004, 2:30 PM EDT for 24 counties in Michigan. It was in force for 6 hr.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
May 22, 2004, 2:30 PM EDT (18:30 UTC)
Expired
May 22, 2004, 8:00 PM EDT
In force
6 hr
Issued by
the Storm Prediction Center
All 24 counties

Barry County, MI, Calhoun County, MI, Clinton County, MI, Eaton County, MI, Genesee County, MI, Gratiot County, MI, Hillsdale County, MI, Ingham County, MI, Ionia County, MI, Jackson County, MI, Kalamazoo County, MI, Kent County, MI, Lapeer County, MI, Livingston County, MI, Macomb County, MI, Monroe County, MI, Montcalm County, MI, Oakland County, MI, Ottawa County, MI, Saginaw County, MI, Saint Clair County, MI, Shiawassee County, MI, Washtenaw County, MI, Wayne County, MI

Warnings issued inside it

8 tornado, severe thunderstorm and flash flood warnings for its counties while it was in force.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 22, 3:42 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDTXSaginaw78 min
May 22, 3:50 PM EDTTornado WarningDTXSaginaw55 min
May 22, 4:07 PM EDTTornado WarningDTXGenesee53 min
May 22, 4:26 PM EDTTornado WarningDTXShiawassee64 min
May 22, 4:32 PM EDTTornado WarningDTXLapeer58 min
May 22, 4:53 PM EDTTornado WarningDTXGenesee67 min
May 22, 5:26 PM EDTTornado WarningDTXLapeer64 min
May 22, 6:04 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDTXOakland41 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

Detroit, MI (KDTX), launched 12:00Z, 6.5 hours before the alert went out and 112 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, Detroit, MI at 12:00Z on 2004-05-22Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 0 joules per kilogram.LCL10008507005003002001001 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, Detroit, MI at 12:00Z on 2004-05-22The 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
0 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL
955 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
45 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
51 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
162 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WWUS20 KWNS 221830
SEL8  
SPC WW 221830
MIZ000-LMZ000-LEZ000-230000-

URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 248
NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
230 PM EDT SAT MAY 22 2004

THE NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF 

       SOUTHERN LOWER MICHIGAN
       LAKE MICHIGAN
       LAKE ERIE

EFFECTIVE THIS SATURDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING FROM 230 PM UNTIL
800 PM EDT.

TORNADOES...HAIL TO 2 INCHES IN DIAMETER...THUNDERSTORM WIND GUSTS
TO 70 MPH...AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE IN THESE AREAS.

THE TORNADO WATCH AREA IS ALONG AND 50 STATUTE MILES NORTH AND
SOUTH OF A LINE FROM 35 MILES SOUTH OF MUSKEGON MICHIGAN TO 10
MILES EAST NORTHEAST OF MOUNT CLEMENS MICHIGAN.

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 247...

DISCUSSION...SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS ARE FORECAST TO DEVELOP ALONG
SURFACE WARM FRONT OVER LOWER MI THIS AFTERNOON.  18Z DTX SOUNDING
SHOWS 2000 J/KG OF CAPE AND VERY FAVORABLE LOW LEVEL VERTICAL SHEAR
PROFILES FOR THE POSSIBILITY OF SUPERCELLS PRODUCING LARGE
HAIL...DAMAGING WINDS...AND ISOLATED TORNADOES.

AVIATION...TORNADOES AND A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH HAIL
SURFACE AND ALOFT TO 2 INCHES. EXTREME TURBULENCE AND SURFACE WIND
GUSTS TO 60 KNOTS. A FEW CUMULONIMBI WITH MAXIMUM TOPS TO 500.
MEAN STORM MOTION VECTOR 27035.


...HART

432,0861 432,0823 415,0823 415,0861

SPC that day

Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 22, 2:48 AM EDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAllegan, Barry, Berrien, Branch, Calhoun, Cass and 10 more57 min
May 22, 12:35 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCBerrien, Branch, Cass, Hillsdale, Lenawee, Saint Joseph6 hr
May 22, 2:09 PM EDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBarry, Bay, Calhoun, Clinton, Eaton, Genesee and 18 more66 min
May 22, 4:20 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCMonroe8 hr
May 22, 6:29 PM EDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCMonroe91 min

Nearby

Tornado Watches in Michigan, 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.