Alert archive / Colorado / Tornado Warnings in 2008

Tornado Warning 55, NWS Denver/Boulder, CO

August 23, 2008Douglas County, Colorado

NWS Denver/Boulder, CO issued this tornado warning at Aug 23, 2008, 3:00 PM MDT for Douglas County, Colorado. It was in force for 30 min. 2 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: Aug 23, 2008, 3:00 PM MDT (21:00 UTC)
Expired: Aug 23, 2008, 3:30 PM MDT
In force: 30 min
Issued by: NWS Denver/Boulder, CO
Area: Storm-based polygon

County Douglas County, CO

The radar

The Denver radar (KFTG), 82 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 21:00 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

Time	Report	Where	Remark
Aug 23, 3:02 PM MDT	TORNADO	3 Ese Westcreek, CO	EXTENSIVE TREE DAMAGE. ONE MINOR INJURY.
Aug 23, 3:05 PM MDT	TSTM WND DMG	5 E Westcreek, CO	TREE DAMAGE NEAR COUNTY ROAD 348 AND RAMPART ROAD AND HWY 67 AND RAINBOW FALLS ROAD.

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

The nearest sounding before it

Denver, CO (KDNR), launched 12:00Z, 9.0 hours before the alert went out and 176 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-p

Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.

Hodograph

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: 5 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -484 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 1604 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 21 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 34 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 71 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 
WFUS55 KBOU 232100
TORBOU
COC035-232130-
/O.NEW.KBOU.TO.W.0055.080823T2100Z-080823T2130Z/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DENVER CO
300 PM MDT SAT AUG 23 2008

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN DENVER HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  SOUTHWESTERN DOUGLAS COUNTY IN NORTHEAST COLORADO

* UNTIL 330 PM MDT

* AT 258 PM MDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A TORNADO 2 MILES EAST OF
  WESTCREEK...OR 27 MILES NORTHWEST OF COLORADO SPRINGS. THIS STORM
  WAS MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 20 MPH.

* LOCATIONS IN THE WARNING INCLUDE BUT ARE NOT LIMITED TO WESTCREEK.

THESE THUNDERSTORMS HAVE PRODUCED SOME BRIEF TORNADOES AND FUNNEL 
CLOUDS AS THEY MOVED OVER EAST-CENTRAL PARK COUNTY. ADDITIONAL BRIEF 
TORNADOES WILL BE POSSIBLE AS THE STORM MOVES OVER SOUTHERN DOUGLAS 
COUNTY. 

THE SAFEST PLACE TO BE DURING A TORNADO IS IN A BASEMENT. GET UNDER A
WORKBENCH OR OTHER PIECE OF STURDY FURNITURE. IF NO BASEMENT IS
AVAILABLE...SEEK SHELTER ON THE LOWEST FLOOR OF THE BUILDING IN AN
INTERIOR HALLWAY OR ROOM SUCH AS A CLOSET. USE BLANKETS OR PILLOWS TO
COVER YOUR BODY AND ALWAYS STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS.

IF IN MOBILE HOMES OR VEHICLES...EVACUATE THEM AND GET INSIDE A
SUBSTANTIAL SHELTER. IF NO SAFE SHELTER IS AVAILABLE...LIE FLAT IN
THE NEAREST DITCH OR OTHER LOW SPOT AND COVER YOUR HEAD WITH YOUR
HANDS.

LAT...LON 3920 10500 3913 10494 3913 10521 3923 10525
TIME...MOT...LOC 2058Z 295DEG 18KT 3915 10511

$$

DANKERS

1 follow-up statement

000 
WWUS55 KBOU 232129
SVSBOU

SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DENVER CO
329 PM MDT SAT AUG 23 2008

COC035-232137-
/O.EXP.KBOU.TO.W.0055.000000T0000Z-080823T2130Z/
DOUGLAS CO-
327 PM MDT SAT AUG 23 2008

...THE TORNADO WARNING FOR SOUTHWESTERN DOUGLAS COUNTY WILL EXPIRE AT
330 PM MDT...

THE THUNDERSTORM THAT PROMPTED THE WARNING HAS EXITED THE AREA. 

BETWEEN ONE-HALF AND ONE INCH OF HEAVY RAINFALL OCCURRED WITH THIS 
STORM OVER THE HAYMAN BURN AREA.  RAPID RISES ON WEST CREEK AND 
TURKEY CREEK WILL BE POSSIBLE OVER THE NEXT FEW HOURS.   

LAT...LON 3920 10500 3913 10494 3913 10521 3923 10525
TIME...MOT...LOC 2127Z 295DEG 18KT 3909 10494

$$

DANKERS

The office that day

Everything else NWS Denver/Boulder, CO issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Aug 23, 1:23 AM MDT	Areal Flood Advisory	BOU	Lincoln	82 min
Aug 23, 3:04 PM MDT	Areal Flood Advisory	BOU	Douglas	86 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Colorado, 2008 Every tornado warning in 2008 Tornadoes in 2008

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.