Alert archive / Oklahoma / Tornado Watches in 2005

Tornado Watch 274

May 13, 200526 counties in Oklahoma; 10 counties in Texas

The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at May 13, 2005, 6:45 PM CDT for 26 counties in Oklahoma; 10 counties in Texas. It was in force for 7 hr.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
May 13, 2005, 6:45 PM CDT (23:45 UTC)
Expired
May 14, 2005, 2:00 AM CDT
In force
7 hr
Issued by
the Storm Prediction Center
All 36 counties

Blaine County, OK, Caddo County, OK, Canadian County, OK, Cleveland County, OK, Comanche County, OK, Cotton County, OK, Creek County, OK, Custer County, OK, Dewey County, OK, Garvin County, OK, Grady County, OK, Greer County, OK, Harmon County, OK, Jackson County, OK, Jefferson County, OK, Kingfisher County, OK, Kiowa County, OK, Lincoln County, OK, Logan County, OK, McClain County, OK, Oklahoma County, OK, Payne County, OK, Pottawatomie County, OK, Stephens County, OK, Tillman County, OK, Washita County, OK, Archer County, TX, Baylor County, TX, Clay County, TX, Foard County, TX, Hardeman County, TX, King County, TX, Knox County, TX, Montague County, TX, Wichita County, TX, Wilbarger County, TX

The radar

The Altus AFB radar (KFDR), 21 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 23:46 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.

Warnings issued inside it

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 13, 6:47 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNGarfield, Logan, Noble43 min
May 13, 7:03 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNKiowa42 min
May 13, 7:10 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNJackson50 min
May 13, 7:11 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNCuster, Washita49 min
May 13, 7:13 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNKnox47 min
May 13, 7:15 PM CDTTornado WarningOUNKnox30 min
May 13, 7:17 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNBaylor43 min
May 13, 7:22 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNBlaine, Kingfisher53 min
May 13, 7:33 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNLogan, Noble, Payne57 min
May 13, 7:34 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNComanche, Tillman41 min
May 13, 7:40 PM CDTTornado WarningOUNBaylor, Knox35 min
May 13, 7:45 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNKiowa30 min
May 13, 7:55 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNJackson35 min
May 13, 7:57 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNWashita32 min
May 13, 8:09 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNComanche51 min
May 13, 8:10 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNBaylor65 min
May 13, 8:13 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNKnox62 min
May 13, 8:16 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNBlaine, Kingfisher59 min
May 13, 8:19 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNLincoln56 min
May 13, 8:25 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNLogan, Payne50 min
May 13, 8:28 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNCuster47 min
May 13, 8:31 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNTillman44 min
May 13, 8:38 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNCaddo52 min
May 13, 8:44 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNHarmon46 min
May 13, 9:14 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNLincoln46 min
May 13, 9:25 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTSACreek80 min
May 13, 9:40 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNHardeman50 min
May 13, 10:25 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNHardeman50 min
May 13, 10:57 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningOUNWilbarger48 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

Fort Sill, OK (KFSI), launched 12:00Z, 11.8 hours before the alert went out and 44 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, Fort Sill, OK at 12:00Z on 2005-05-13Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 6 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km-30°-20°-10°0°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Fort Sill, OK at 12:00Z on 2005-05-13The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 221 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
6 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-569 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
745 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
55 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
221 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
526 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
7.8

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WWUS20 KWNS 132341
SEL4  
SPC WW 132341
OKZ000-TXZ000-140700-

URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 274
NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
645 PM CDT FRI MAY 13 2005

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

       WESTERN OKLAHOMA
       NORTHWEST TEXAS

EFFECTIVE THIS FRIDAY NIGHT AND SATURDAY MORNING FROM 645 PM UNTIL
200 AM CDT.

TORNADOES...HAIL TO 4 INCHES IN DIAMETER...THUNDERSTORM WIND GUSTS
TO 80 MPH...AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE IN THESE AREAS.

THE TORNADO WATCH AREA IS APPROXIMATELY ALONG AND 80 STATUTE MILES
EAST AND WEST OF A LINE FROM 60 MILES NORTH OF OKLAHOMA CITY
OKLAHOMA TO 60 MILES SOUTHWEST OF WICHITA FALLS TEXAS. FOR A
COMPLETE DEPICTION OF THE WATCH SEE THE ASSOCIATED WATCH OUTLINE
UPDATE (WOUS64 KWNS WOU4).

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 269. WATCH NUMBER 269 WILL NOT BE IN EFFECT AFTER 645
PM CDT. CONTINUE...WW 267...WW 268...WW 270...WW 271...WW 272...WW
273...

DISCUSSION...LARGE SUPERCELLS ACROSS NWRN AND SWRN OK AS WELL AS
NWRN TX ATTM.  WITH VERY FAVORABLE SHEAR AND INSTABILITY...THESE AND
OTHER STORMS EXPECTED TO PERSIST AND DEVELOP SEWD. ALONG WITH VERY
LARGE HAIL POTENTIAL...TORNADOES WILL ALSO BE LIKELY

AVIATION...TORNADOES AND A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH HAIL
SURFACE AND ALOFT TO 4 INCHES. EXTREME TURBULENCE AND SURFACE WIND
GUSTS TO 70 KNOTS. A FEW CUMULONIMBI WITH MAXIMUM TOPS TO 600.
MEAN STORM MOTION VECTOR 28020.


...HALES

361,0960 332,0975 332,1003 361,0990

SPC that day

Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 12, 7:56 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBeckham, Greer, Harmon, Jackson64 min
May 12, 8:40 PM CDTTornado WatchSPCGreer, Harmon, Jackson5 hr
May 12, 9:35 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAlfalfa, Beckham, Blaine, Custer, Dewey, Ellis and 10 more85 min
May 12, 10:48 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCCaddo, Comanche, Cotton, Garvin, Grady, Jefferson and 3 more57 min
May 12, 11:35 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCAlfalfa, Blaine, Caddo, Canadian, Comanche, Cotton and 17 more5 hr
May 13, 1:04 AM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCCaddo, Canadian, Comanche, Cotton, Garfield, Grady and 5 more86 min
May 13, 4:04 AM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCComanche, Cotton, Stephens, Tillman56 min
May 13, 1:52 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCHarmon, Jackson83 min
May 13, 2:10 PM CDTTornado WatchSPCBeckham, Blaine, Caddo, Comanche, Cotton, Custer and 8 more7 hr
May 13, 3:50 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAlfalfa, Craig, Garfield, Grant, Harper, Kay and 8 more85 min
May 13, 5:05 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCAlfalfa, Blaine, Craig, Custer, Delaware, Dewey and 21 more7 hr
May 13, 5:56 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBeckham, Blaine, Caddo, Comanche, Cotton, Custer and 8 more64 min
May 13, 6:25 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAlfalfa, Blaine, Custer, Dewey, Garfield, Grant and 12 more65 min
May 13, 1:12 AM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCChildress, Cottle, Crosby, Floyd, Hale, Hall and 2 more63 min
May 13, 1:30 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCBaylor, Cottle, Crosby, Dickens, Floyd, Foard and 8 more5 hr
May 13, 2:13 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBrewster, Crockett, Irion, Terrell2 hr
May 13, 6:08 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCCoke, Crane, Fisher, Glasscock, Howard, Irion and 11 more67 min
May 13, 6:25 PM CDTTornado WatchSPCBrown, Callahan, Coke, Coleman, Concho, Eastland and 16 more7 hr

Nearby

Tornado Watches in Oklahoma, 2005Tornado Watches in Texas, 2005Every tornado watch in 2005

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.