Alert archive / North Dakota / Red Flag Warnings in 2011

Red Flag Warning 1, NWS Grand Forks, ND

May 17, 20118 counties in North Dakota

NWS Grand Forks, ND issued this red flag warning at May 17, 2011, 3:46 AM CDT for 8 counties in North Dakota. It took effect at May 17, 2011, 12:00 PM CDT. It was in force for 8 hr. No storm report in the archive falls inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
May 17, 2011, 3:46 AM CDT (08:46 UTC)
In effect from
May 17, 2011, 12:00 PM CDT
Expired
May 17, 2011, 8:00 PM CDT
In force
8 hr
Issued by
NWS Grand Forks, ND

Counties Benson County, ND, Cavalier County, ND, Eddy County, ND, Griggs County, ND, Nelson County, ND, Ramsey County, ND, Towner County, ND, Walsh County, ND

The radar

The Fargo/Grand Forks radar (KMVX), 119 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 08:44 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 nearest sounding before it

Bismarck Municip, ND (KBIS), launched 00:00Z, 8.8 hours before the alert went out and 220 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, Bismarck Municip, ND at 00:00Z on 2011-05-17Temperature 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°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Bismarck Municip, ND at 00:00Z on 2011-05-17The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity -8 square meters per square second.193958Sfc1 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
2834 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
9 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
-8 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
47 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.

988 
WWUS83 KFGF 170846
RFWFGF

URGENT - FIRE WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GRAND FORKS ND
346 AM CDT TUE MAY 17 2011

...WINDY AND DRY ACROSS THE DEVILS LAKE BASIN TODAY...

.STRONG SOUTHEAST WIND WILL COMBINE WITH LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY... 
RESULTING IN CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS ACROSS THE DEVILS
LAKE BASIN THIS AFTERNOON AND EARLY EVENING.

NDZ006-007-014-015-024-026-028-054-180100-
/O.NEW.KFGF.FW.W.0001.110517T1700Z-110518T0100Z/
TOWNER-CAVALIER-BENSON-RAMSEY-EDDY-NELSON-GRIGGS-WESTERN WALSH-
346 AM CDT TUE MAY 17 2011

...RED FLAG WARNING IN EFFECT FROM NOON TODAY TO 8 PM CDT THIS
EVENING FOR STRONG SOUTHEAST WIND AND LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY ACROSS 
THE DEVILS LAKE BASIN...

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN GRAND FORKS HAS ISSUED A RED FLAG
WARNING FOR STRONG SOUTHEAST WIND AND LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY ACROSS
THE DEVILS LAKE BASIN...WHICH IS IN EFFECT FROM NOON TODAY TO 8 PM 
CDT THIS EVENING.

A STRONG PRESSURE GRADIENT AND MIXING WINDS UP TO 40 MPH WILL RESULT
IN SOUTHEASTERLY SURFACE WIND FROM 20 TO 25 MPH WITH GUSTS UP TO 35
MPH THIS AFTERNOON AND EARLY EVENING ACROSS THE DEVILS LAKE BASIN.
THESE WINDS...COMBINED WITH MINIMUM RELATIVE HUMIDITY APPROACHING
20 PERCENT AND DRY FUELS WILL RESULT IN CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER
CONDITIONS.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A RED FLAG WARNING MEANS THAT CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS
ARE EITHER OCCURRING NOW...OR WILL SHORTLY. A COMBINATION OF
STRONG WINDS...LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY...AND WARM TEMPERATURES WILL
CREATE EXPLOSIVE FIRE GROWTH POTENTIAL.

&&

$$

ROGERS
2 follow-up statements
631 
WWUS83 KFGF 171651
RFWFGF

URGENT - FIRE WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GRAND FORKS ND
1151 AM CDT TUE MAY 17 2011

...WINDY AND DRY ACROSS THE DEVILS LAKE BASIN TODAY...

.STRONG SOUTHEAST WIND WILL COMBINE WITH LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY...
RESULTING IN CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS ACROSS THE DEVILS
LAKE BASIN THIS AFTERNOON AND EARLY EVENING.

NDZ006-007-014-015-024-026-028-054-180100-
/O.CON.KFGF.FW.W.0001.110517T1700Z-110518T0100Z/
TOWNER-CAVALIER-BENSON-RAMSEY-EDDY-NELSON-GRIGGS-WESTERN WALSH-
1151 AM CDT TUE MAY 17 2011

...RED FLAG WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 8 PM CDT THIS EVENING
FOR STRONG SOUTHEAST WIND AND LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY ACROSS THE 
DEVILS LAKE BASIN...

A STRONG PRESSURE GRADIENT AND MIXING WINDS UP TO 40 MPH WILL
RESULT IN SOUTHEASTERLY SURFACE WIND FROM 20 TO 25 MPH WITH GUSTS
UP TO 35 MPH THIS AFTERNOON AND EARLY EVENING ACROSS THE DEVILS
LAKE BASIN. THESE WINDS...COMBINED WITH MINIMUM RELATIVE HUMIDITY
APPROACHING 20 PERCENT AND DRY FUELS WILL RESULT IN CRITICAL FIRE
WEATHER CONDITIONS.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A RED FLAG WARNING MEANS THAT CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS
ARE EITHER OCCURRING NOW...OR WILL SHORTLY. A COMBINATION OF
STRONG WINDS...LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY...AND WARM TEMPERATURES WILL
CREATE EXPLOSIVE FIRE GROWTH POTENTIAL.

&&

$$
858 
WWUS83 KFGF 180119
RFWFGF

URGENT - FIRE WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GRAND FORKS ND
819 PM CDT TUE MAY 17 2011

...CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS EASING AS WINDS DIMINISH...

.WINDS HAVE DIMINISHED ENOUGH TO ALLOW THE RED FLAG WARNING TO EXPIRE.

NDZ006-007-014-015-024-026-028-054-180230-
/O.EXP.KFGF.FW.W.0001.000000T0000Z-110518T0100Z/
TOWNER-CAVALIER-BENSON-RAMSEY-EDDY-NELSON-GRIGGS-WESTERN WALSH-
819 PM CDT TUE MAY 17 2011

...RED FLAG WARNING HAS EXPIRED FOR STRONG WINDS AND LOW HUMIDITY ACROSS 
THE DEVILS LAKE BASIN AND ADJACENT AREAS. 

THE RED FLAG WARNING IS NO LONGER IN EFFECT. 



$$

Nearby

Red Flag Warnings in North Dakota, 2011Every red flag warning 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.