Alert archive / Iowa / Tornado Warnings in 2009

Tornado Warning 26, NWS La Crosse, WI

August 19, 2009Clayton County, Fayette County, Iowa

NWS La Crosse, WI issued this tornado warning at Aug 19, 2009, 4:38 PM CDT for Clayton County, Fayette County, Iowa. It was in force for 52 min. 1 report 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 19, 2009, 4:38 PM CDT (21:38 UTC)
Expired
Aug 19, 2009, 5:30 PM CDT
In force
52 min
Issued by
NWS La Crosse, WI
Area
Storm-based polygon

Counties Clayton County, IA, Fayette County, IA

The radar

The La Crosse radar (KARX), 120 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 21:39 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

TimeReportWhereRemark
Aug 19, 4:50 PM CDTTORNADO2 E Stanley, IATORNADO STILL ON THE GROUND AT 100TH STREET AND QUINN AVENUE.

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

The nearest sounding before it

Davenport, (KDVN), launched 12:00Z, 9.6 hours before the alert went out and 167 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, Davenport, at 12:00Z on 2009-08-19Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 74 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Davenport, at 12:00Z on 2009-08-19The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 126 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
74 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-55 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
943 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
39 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
126 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
141 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 
WFUS53 KARX 192138
TORARX
IAC043-065-192230-
/O.NEW.KARX.TO.W.0026.090819T2138Z-090819T2230Z/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LA CROSSE WI
438 PM CDT WED AUG 19 2009

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN LA CROSSE HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  WESTERN CLAYTON COUNTY IN NORTHEAST IOWA...
  EASTERN FAYETTE COUNTY IN NORTHEAST IOWA...

* UNTIL 530 PM CDT

* AT 436 PM CDT...DOPPLER RADAR AND STORM SPOTTERS INDICATED A
  TORNADO 4 MILES SOUTH OF COUNTY ROADS 3 AND W 33...OR 6 MILES      
  SOUTHEAST OF OELWEIN...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 15 MPH. A TORNADO WAS   
  REPORTED ON THE GROUND SOUTH OF STANLEY. 

* THE TORNADO WILL BE NEAR...
  MAYNARD AROUND 500 PM...
  HIGHWAYS 3 AND 187 AND JOY SPRINGS COUNTY PARK AROUND 515 PM...    
  ARLINGTON AROUND 525 PM...
  WEST UNION AND VOLGA AROUND 530 PM...

IF STORMS APPROACH YOU IN FAYETTE COUNTY...SEEK SHELTER. MANY STORMS 
HAVE PRODUCED TORNADOES TODAY. SEEK SHELTER

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

TAKE COVER IN A BASEMENT OR IN AN INTERIOR ROOM ON THE LOWEST FLOOR
AND STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS

&&

LAT...LON 4264 9191 4308 9181 4308 9136 4264 9161
TIME...MOT...LOC 2137Z 220DEG 11KT 4263 9181

$$

BAUMGARDT
2 follow-up statements
000 
WWUS53 KARX 192210
SVSARX

SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LA CROSSE WI
510 PM CDT WED AUG 19 2009

IAC043-065-192230-
/O.CON.KARX.TO.W.0026.000000T0000Z-090819T2230Z/
FAYETTE IA-CLAYTON IA-
510 PM CDT WED AUG 19 2009

...A TORNADO WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 530 PM CDT FOR WESTERN
CLAYTON AND EASTERN FAYETTE COUNTIES...

AT 455 PM CDT...LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT REPORTED A TORNADO ON THE 
GROUND 3 MILES EAST-SOUTHEAST OF STANLEY...OR 11 MILES EAST OF 
OELWEIN...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 15 MPH. THEY ALSO REPORTED THE TORNADO 
LIFTED AT 510 PM BUT DAMAGE WAS REPORTED. THIS STORM COULD PRODUCE 
ANOTHER TORNADO AT ANY TIME. 

AT 510 PM...THIS STORM WAS LOCATED NEAR JOY SPRINGS COUNTY  
PARK...OR 15 MILES NORTHWEST OF MANCHESTER...MOVING EAST AT 20 MPH.

* THE TORNADO WILL BE NEAR...
  THOMASVILLE AROUND 515 PM...
  ELGIN AND CLERMONT AROUND 520 PM...
  VOLGA AROUND 525 PM...
  MONONA AND HIGHWAY 56 AND COUNTY W 70 AROUND 530 PM...

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

CARS AND MOBILE HOMES SHOULD BE ABANDONED FOR A STURDY BUILDING. AS A
LAST RESORT...LAY FLAT IN A DITCH AND COVER YOUR HEAD.

A TORNADO WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL MIDNIGHT THURSDAY MORNING FOR
NORTHEAST IOWA AND SOUTHEAST MINNESOTA AND WESTERN WISCONSIN.

&&

LAT...LON 4264 9182 4308 9162 4308 9136 4264 9161
TIME...MOT...LOC 2209Z 256DEG 17KT 4267 9161

$$

BAUMGARDT
000 
WWUS53 KARX 192228
SVSARX

SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LA CROSSE WI
528 PM CDT WED AUG 19 2009

IAC065-192237-
/O.CAN.KARX.TO.W.0026.000000T0000Z-090819T2230Z/
FAYETTE IA-
528 PM CDT WED AUG 19 2009

...THE TORNADO WARNING FOR EASTERN FAYETTE COUNTY IS CANCELLED...

THE THUNDERSTORM HAS SHIFTED EAST OF THE COUNTY. A TORNADO WATCH 
REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL MIDNIGHT CDT THURSDAY MORNING FOR NORTHEAST 
IOWA AND SOUTHEAST MINNESOTA AND WESTERN WISCONSIN.

LAT...LON 4308 9161 4308 9136 4289 9152 4290 9161
TIME...MOT...LOC 2227Z 215DEG 19KT 4296 9154

$$

IAC043-192230-
/O.CON.KARX.TO.W.0026.000000T0000Z-090819T2230Z/
CLAYTON IA-
528 PM CDT WED AUG 19 2009

...A TORNADO WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 530 PM CDT FOR
NORTHWESTERN CLAYTON COUNTY...

AT 526 PM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR CONTINUED TO 
INDICATE A THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A TORNADO. THIS STORM 
AND TORNADO WAS LOCATED NEAR GUNDER...OR 10 MILES NORTHWEST OF 
ELKADER...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 20 MPH.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A TORNADO WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL MIDNIGHT THURSDAY MORNING FOR
NORTHEAST IOWA AND SOUTHEAST MINNESOTA AND WESTERN WISCONSIN.

&&

LAT...LON 4308 9161 4308 9136 4289 9152 4290 9161
TIME...MOT...LOC 2227Z 215DEG 19KT 4296 9154

$$

BAUMGARDT

The office that day

Everything else NWS La Crosse, WI issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Aug 19, 3:33 PM CDTTornado WarningARXFayette42 min
Aug 19, 3:43 PM CDTTornado WarningARXWinneshiek62 min
Aug 19, 4:15 PM CDTTornado WarningARXFayette30 min
Aug 19, 4:26 PM CDTTornado WarningARXAllamakee49 min
Aug 19, 5:20 PM CDTTornado WarningARXAllamakee31 min
Aug 19, 5:59 PM CDTAreal Flood AdvisoryARXAllamakee47 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Iowa, 2009Every tornado warning in 2009Tornadoes in 2009

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.