Alert archive / North Dakota / Tornado Warnings in 2011

Tornado Warning 32, NWS Grand Forks, ND

July 15, 2011Richland County, North Dakota; Wilkin County, Minnesota

NWS Grand Forks, ND issued this tornado warning at Jul 15, 2011, 5:12 AM CDT for Richland County, North Dakota; Wilkin County, Minnesota. It was in force for 39 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: Jul 15, 2011, 5:12 AM CDT (10:12 UTC)
Expired: Jul 15, 2011, 5:51 AM CDT
In force: 39 min
Issued by: NWS Grand Forks, ND
Area: Storm-based polygon

Counties Wilkin County, MN, Richland County, ND

The radar

The Fargo/Grand Forks radar (KMVX), 149 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 10:13 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
Jul 15, 5:20 AM CDT	TSTM WND DMG	1 N Wahpeton, ND	NUMEROUS LARGE TREE BRANCHES AND LIMBS WERE BROKEN DOWN BY WINDS. SPORADIC POWER OUTAGES WERE ALSO OBSERVED.
Jul 15, 5:25 AM CDT	FUNNEL CLOUD	2 S Wahpeton, ND	WALL CLOUD WITH FUNNEL REPORTED TO LAW ENFORCEMENT.

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

The watch it was issued in

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

Issued	Product	Office	Lasted
Jul 15, 2:56 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Watch	SPC	7 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Aberdeen, SD (KABR), launched 00:00Z, 10.2 hours before the alert went out and 215 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: 4277 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -5 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 763 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 46 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 180 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 197 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 4.1
Supercell composite: 19.7

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

281 
WFUS53 KFGF 151012
TORFGF
MNC167-NDC077-151100-
/O.NEW.KFGF.TO.W.0032.110715T1012Z-110715T1100Z/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EASTERN ND/GRAND FORKS ND
512 AM CDT FRI JUL 15 2011

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN GRAND FORKS HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  CENTRAL WILKIN COUNTY IN WEST CENTRAL MINNESOTA...
  EAST CENTRAL RICHLAND COUNTY IN SOUTHEAST NORTH DAKOTA...

* UNTIL 600 AM CDT

* AT 509 AM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A TORNADO. THE STORM WAS
  LOCATED 3 MILES SOUTH OF DWIGHT...OR 6 MILES WEST OF WAHPETON...
  MOVING TO THE EAST AT 35 MPH.

* THE TORNADIC STORM WILL BE NEAR...
  WAHPETON AND BRECKENRIDGE AROUND 520 AM CDT.
  DORAN AROUND 530 AM CDT.
  EVERDELL AROUND 535 AM CDT.
  FOXHOME AROUND 540 AM CDT.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

IF YOU ARE IN THE PATH OF A TORNADO THE SAFEST PLACE IS A BASEMENT.
GET UNDER A STAIRWAY OR A PIECE OF STURDY FURNITURE.

&&

LAT...LON 4643 9629 4617 9630 4617 9682 4637 9683
TIME...MOT...LOC 1012Z 267DEG 32KT 4626 9670

$$

GUST

2 follow-up statements

394 
WWUS53 KFGF 151036
SVSFGF

SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EASTERN ND/GRAND FORKS ND
536 AM CDT FRI JUL 15 2011

MNC167-NDC077-151100-
/O.CON.KFGF.TO.W.0032.000000T0000Z-110715T1100Z/
RICHLAND ND-WILKIN MN-
536 AM CDT FRI JUL 15 2011

...A TORNADO WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR CENTRAL WILKIN COUNTY IN
WEST CENTRAL MINNESOTA...AND EAST CENTRAL RICHLAND COUNTY IN
SOUTHEAST NORTH DAKOTA UNTIL 600 AM CDT...

AT 533 AM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A TORNADO 3 MILES WEST OF
EVERDELL...OR 5 MILES EAST OF BRECKENRIDGE...MOVING TO THE EAST AT 35
MPH.

THE TORNADIC STORM WILL BE NEAR...
  FOXHOME AROUND 545 AM CDT.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

IF YOU ARE IN THE PATH OF A TORNADO THE SAFEST PLACE IS A BASEMENT.
GET UNDER A STAIRWAY OR A PIECE OF STURDY FURNITURE.

&&

LAT...LON 4619 9671 4635 9666 4643 9629 4617 9630
TIME...MOT...LOC 1035Z 272DEG 29KT 4626 9644

$$

GUST

787 
WWUS53 KFGF 151051
SVSFGF

SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EASTERN ND/GRAND FORKS ND
551 AM CDT FRI JUL 15 2011

MNC167-NDC077-151100-
/O.CAN.KFGF.TO.W.0032.000000T0000Z-110715T1100Z/
RICHLAND ND-WILKIN MN-
551 AM CDT FRI JUL 15 2011

...THE TORNADO WARNING FOR CENTRAL WILKIN COUNTY IN WEST CENTRAL
MINNESOTA...AND EAST CENTRAL RICHLAND COUNTY IN SOUTHEAST NORTH
DAKOTA IS CANCELLED...

THE TORNADO THREAT HAS DIMINISHED...THEREFORE THE TORNADO WARNING HAS
BEEN CANCELLED. HOWEVER...A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING REMAINS IN
EFFECT FOR THE AREA.

LAT...LON 4619 9671 4635 9666 4643 9629 4617 9630
TIME...MOT...LOC 1050Z 272DEG 29KT 4626 9627

$$

GUST

The office that day

Everything else NWS Grand Forks, ND issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Jul 15, 2:11 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FGF	Griggs	64 min
Jul 15, 2:41 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FGF	Barnes	64 min
Jul 15, 3:25 AM CDT	Tornado Warning	FGF	Barnes	50 min
Jul 15, 3:53 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FGF	Ransom, Richland	52 min
Jul 15, 4:03 AM CDT	Excessive Heat Watch	FGF	Barnes, Benson, Cass, Eddy, Grand Forks, Griggs and 9 more	24 hr
Jul 15, 4:04 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FGF	Barnes, Cass	56 min
Jul 15, 4:18 AM CDT	Tornado Warning	FGF	Ransom, Richland	42 min
Jul 15, 4:50 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FGF	Richland	55 min
Jul 15, 5:00 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FGF	Cass, Traill	43 min
Jul 15, 5:11 AM CDT	Areal Flood Advisory	FGF	Barnes	9 hr
Jul 15, 5:47 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FGF	Richland	58 min
Jul 15, 3:15 PM CDT	Excessive Heat Warning	FGF	Barnes, Cass, Eddy, Grand Forks, Griggs, Nelson and 5 more	5 days
Jul 15, 6:48 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FGF	Grant	42 min
Jul 15, 6:59 AM CDT	Areal Flood Advisory	FGF	Grant, Otter Tail, Wilkin	8 hr

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in North Dakota, 2011 Tornado Warnings in Minnesota, 2011 Every tornado warning in 2011 Tornadoes 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; local storm reports from the same archive; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.