Alert archive / Iowa / Tornado Warnings in 2011

Tornado Warning 3, NWS Des Moines, IA

March 22, 2011Audubon County, Cass County, Guthrie County, Iowa

NWS Des Moines, IA issued this tornado warning at Mar 22, 2011, 5:18 PM CDT for Audubon County, Cass County, Guthrie County, Iowa. It was in force for 27 min. No storm report in the archive falls inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
Mar 22, 2011, 5:18 PM CDT (22:18 UTC)
Expired
Mar 22, 2011, 5:45 PM CDT
In force
27 min
Issued by
NWS Des Moines, IA
Area
Storm-based polygon

Counties Audubon County, IA, Cass County, IA, Guthrie County, IA

The radar

The Des Moines radar (KDMX), 105 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 22:17 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.

The watch it was issued in

The SPC watch in force over the same counties when this warning went out.

IssuedProductOfficeLasted
Mar 22, 2:03 PM CDTTornado WatchSPC7 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Omaha, NE (KOAX), launched 12:00Z, 10.3 hours before the alert went out and 121 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, Omaha, NE at 12:00Z on 2011-03-22Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 486 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 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, Omaha, NE at 12:00Z on 2011-03-22The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 477 square meters per square second.1939587897Sfc1 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
486 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-475 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
777 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
50 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
477 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
501 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.

242 
WFUS53 KDMX 222218
TORDMX
IAC009-029-077-222245-
/O.NEW.KDMX.TO.W.0003.110322T2218Z-110322T2245Z/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DES MOINES IA
518 PM CDT TUE MAR 22 2011

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN DES MOINES HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  SOUTHEASTERN AUDUBON COUNTY IN WEST CENTRAL IOWA...
  NORTHWESTERN CASS COUNTY IN SOUTHWEST IOWA...
  WESTERN GUTHRIE COUNTY IN WEST CENTRAL IOWA...

* UNTIL 545 PM CDT

* AT 517 PM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A TORNADO. THIS DANGEROUS
  STORM WAS LOCATED NEAR ATLANTIC...AND MOVING NORTHEAST AT 55 MPH.

* LOCATIONS IMPACTED INCLUDE...
  GUTHRIE CENTER...WIOTA...BRAYTON...EXIRA AND AUDUBON AIRPORT.

THIS INCLUDES INTERSTATE 80 BETWEEN MILE MARKERS 49 AND 70.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

THIS IS A DANGEROUS STORM. IMMEDIATELY SEEK SHELTER IN A BASEMENT...
OR IN AN INTERIOR ROOM OF A REINFORCED BUILDING. STAY AWAY FROM
WINDOWS.

IF YOU ARE OUTSIDE...IN A MOBILE HOME...OR IN A VEHICLE...SEEK
SHELTER IN A NEARBY REINFORCED BUILDING. AS A LAST RESORT...FIND THE
LOWEST SPOT AVAILABLE AND COVER YOUR HEAD.

&&

LAT...LON 4151 9514 4152 9506 4159 9506 4186 9475
      4186 9466 4169 9446 4130 9502 4141 9517
      4149 9517
TIME...MOT...LOC 2219Z 222DEG 47KT 4145 9505

$$
1 follow-up statement
607 
WWUS53 KDMX 222231
SVSDMX

SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DES MOINES IA
531 PM CDT TUE MAR 22 2011

IAC009-029-077-222245-
/O.CON.KDMX.TO.W.0003.000000T0000Z-110322T2245Z/
CASS IA-GUTHRIE IA-AUDUBON IA-
531 PM CDT TUE MAR 22 2011

...A TORNADO WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR SOUTHEASTERN AUDUBON...
WESTERN GUTHRIE AND NORTH CENTRAL CASS COUNTIES UNTIL 545 PM CDT...

AT 530 PM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A TORNADO.  THIS DANGEROUS
STORM WAS LOCATED 8 MILES EAST OF ELK HORN...OR 12 MILES NORTHEAST OF
ATLANTIC...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 55 MPH.

LOCATIONS IMPACTED INCLUDE...
  GUTHRIE CENTER...EXIRA AND AUDUBON AIRPORT.

THIS INCLUDES INTERSTATE 80 BETWEEN MILE MARKERS 55 AND 70.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

THIS IS A DANGEROUS STORM. IMMEDIATELY SEEK SHELTER IN A BASEMENT...
OR IN AN INTERIOR ROOM OF A REINFORCED BUILDING. STAY AWAY FROM
WINDOWS.

IF YOU ARE OUTSIDE...IN A MOBILE HOME...OR IN A VEHICLE...SEEK
SHELTER IN A NEARBY REINFORCED BUILDING. AS A LAST RESORT...FIND THE
LOWEST SPOT AVAILABLE AND COVER YOUR HEAD.

&&

LAT...LON 4136 9495 4145 9507 4147 9508 4149 9507
      4152 9506 4159 9506 4186 9475 4186 9466
      4169 9446
TIME...MOT...LOC 2231Z 222DEG 47KT 4157 9491

$$

JOHNSON

The office that day

Everything else NWS Des Moines, IA issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Mar 22, 6:30 AM CDTRiver Flood WarningDMXBlack Hawk, Bremer, Butler4 days
Mar 22, 10:52 AM CDTRiver Flood WarningDMXPalo Alto16 days
Mar 22, 10:52 AM CDTRiver Flood WarningDMXHumboldt25 days
Mar 22, 4:34 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXHancock, Humboldt, Kossuth, Wright13 min
Mar 22, 4:55 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXCarroll, Crawford35 min
Mar 22, 5:02 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXAdair, Adams, Cass43 min
Mar 22, 5:07 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXAudubon, Cass, Guthrie23 min
Mar 22, 5:27 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXAudubon, Carroll, Greene33 min
Mar 22, 5:29 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXCrawford35 min
Mar 22, 5:43 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXAudubon, Cass, Greene, Guthrie15 min
Mar 22, 5:44 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXAdair, Madison46 min
Mar 22, 5:47 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXAdams, Ringgold, Taylor, Union43 min
Mar 22, 6:16 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXDallas, Madison, Polk44 min
Mar 22, 6:26 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXDallas, Madison, Polk, Warren49 min
Mar 22, 6:27 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXAdair, Clarke, Madison, Union, Warren39 min
Mar 22, 6:32 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXCerro Gordo, Hancock, Worth, Wright28 min
Mar 22, 6:45 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXClarke, Decatur, Ringgold30 min
Mar 22, 6:50 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningDMXAdair, Dallas, Madison25 min
Mar 22, 6:57 PM CDTTornado WarningDMXAdair, Madison, Union33 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Iowa, 2011Every tornado warning in 2011Tornadoes in 2011

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.