Alert archive / North Dakota / Tornado Warnings in 2011

Tornado Warning 48, NWS Grand Forks, ND

July 20, 2011Ramsey County, Walsh County, North Dakota

NWS Grand Forks, ND issued this tornado warning at Jul 20, 2011, 5:30 AM CDT for Ramsey County, Walsh County, North Dakota. It was in force for 45 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
Jul 20, 2011, 5:30 AM CDT (10:30 UTC)
Expired
Jul 20, 2011, 6:15 AM CDT
In force
45 min
Issued by
NWS Grand Forks, ND
Area
Storm-based polygon

Counties Ramsey County, ND, Walsh County, ND

The radar

The Fargo/Grand Forks radar (KMVX), 110 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 10:30 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
Jul 20, 5:25 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPC6 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Bismarck Municip, ND (KBIS), launched 00:00Z, 10.5 hours before the alert went out and 257 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 2011-07-20Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 5088 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, Bismarck Municip, ND at 00:00Z on 2011-07-20The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity -4 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
5088 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-73 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1472 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
29 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
-4 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
95 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.4
Supercell composite
5.9

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

097 
WFUS53 KFGF 201030
TORFGF
NDC071-099-201115-
/O.NEW.KFGF.TO.W.0048.110720T1030Z-110720T1115Z/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EASTERN ND/GRAND FORKS ND
530 AM CDT WED JUL 20 2011

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN GRAND FORKS HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  EAST CENTRAL RAMSEY COUNTY IN NORTHEAST NORTH DAKOTA...
  SOUTHWESTERN WALSH COUNTY IN NORTHEAST NORTH DAKOTA...

* UNTIL 615 AM CDT

* AT 525 AM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A TORNADO. THE STORM WAS
  LOCATED 4 MILES WEST OF LAWTON...OR 23 MILES NORTHEAST OF DEVILS
  LAKE...MOVING TO THE EAST AT 25 MPH.

* THE TORNADIC STORM WILL BE NEAR...
  LAWTON AND BROCKET AROUND 535 AM CDT.
  ADAMS AROUND 605 AM CDT.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

IF YOU ARE IN THE PATH OF THIS TORNADO ABANDON CARS AND MOBILE HOMES
FOR A STURDY BUILDING.

&&

LAT...LON 4845 9794 4820 9794 4820 9853 4837 9855
TIME...MOT...LOC 1030Z 266DEG 22KT 4829 9839

$$

GROCHOCINSKI
2 follow-up statements
112 
WWUS53 KFGF 201046
SVSFGF

SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EASTERN ND/GRAND FORKS ND
546 AM CDT WED JUL 20 2011

NDC071-099-201115-
/O.CON.KFGF.TO.W.0048.000000T0000Z-110720T1115Z/
RAMSEY ND-WALSH ND-
546 AM CDT WED JUL 20 2011

...A TORNADO WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR SOUTHWESTERN WALSH AND
EAST CENTRAL RAMSEY COUNTIES IN NORTHEAST NORTH DAKOTA UNTIL 615 AM
CDT...

AT 543 AM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A TORNADO 5 MILES EAST OF
LAWTON...OR 30 MILES NORTHEAST OF DEVILS LAKE...MOVING TO THE EAST AT
25 MPH.

THE TORNADIC STORM WILL BE NEAR...
  ADAMS AROUND 605 AM CDT.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

IF YOU ARE IN THE PATH OF THIS TORNADO ABANDON CARS AND MOBILE HOMES
FOR A STURDY BUILDING.

&&

LAT...LON 4820 9839 4839 9842 4845 9794 4820 9794
TIME...MOT...LOC 1046Z 266DEG 22KT 4829 9824

$$

GROCHOCINSKI
127 
WWUS53 KFGF 201050
SVSFGF

SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EASTERN ND/GRAND FORKS ND
550 AM CDT WED JUL 20 2011

NDC071-099-201115-
/O.CON.KFGF.TO.W.0048.000000T0000Z-110720T1115Z/
RAMSEY ND-WALSH ND-
550 AM CDT WED JUL 20 2011

...A TORNADO WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR SOUTHWESTERN WALSH AND
EXTREME EAST CENTRAL RAMSEY COUNTIES IN NORTHEAST NORTH DAKOTA UNTIL
615 AM CDT...

AT 548 AM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A TORNADO 7 MILES EAST OF
LAWTON...OR 32 MILES EAST OF DEVILS LAKE...MOVING TO THE EAST AT 25
MPH.

THE PARENT SEVERE THUNDERSTORM IS LIKELY PRODUCING LARGE HAIL UP TO
THE SIZE OF PING PONGS.

THE TORNADIC STORM WILL BE NEAR...
  ADAMS AROUND 605 AM CDT.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

IF YOU ARE IN THE PATH OF THIS TORNADO ABANDON CARS AND MOBILE HOMES
FOR A STURDY BUILDING.

&&

LAT...LON 4820 9832 4840 9837 4845 9794 4820 9794
TIME...MOT...LOC 1049Z 266DEG 22KT 4829 9821

$$

GROCHOCINSKI

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jul 19, 9:16 PM CDTRiver Flood WarningFGFCass, Richland9 days
Jul 20, 4:08 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGFWalsh67 min
Jul 20, 4:11 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGFBenson, Ramsey, Towner64 min
Jul 20, 5:00 AM CDTTornado WarningFGFRamsey45 min
Jul 20, 5:41 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGFPembina, Walsh34 min
Jul 20, 5:53 AM CDTAreal Flood AdvisoryFGFBenson, Cavalier, Ramsey, Towner, Walsh9 hr
Jul 20, 6:07 AM CDTTornado WarningFGFGrand Forks, Nelson, Walsh38 min
Jul 20, 6:28 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGFBenson, Eddy, Ramsey, Towner62 min
Jul 20, 6:40 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGFGrand Forks, Walsh50 min
Jul 20, 7:21 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGFBenson, Cavalier, Ramsey, Towner, Walsh54 min
Jul 20, 8:08 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFGFCavalier, Nelson, Pembina, Ramsey, Walsh67 min
Jul 20, 8:59 AM CDTAreal Flood AdvisoryFGFCavalier, Pembina, Walsh6 hr
Jul 20, 10:49 AM CDTRiver Flood WatchFGFGrand Forks47 hr
Jul 20, 10:49 AM CDTRiver Flood WatchFGFGrand Forks, Walsh47 hr

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in North Dakota, 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.