Alert archive / Minnesota / Tornado Warnings in 2011

Tornado Warning 53, NWS Grand Forks, ND

July 30, 2011Otter Tail County, Minnesota

NWS Grand Forks, ND issued this tornado warning at Jul 30, 2011, 5:58 PM CDT for Otter Tail County, Minnesota. It was in force for 32 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: Jul 30, 2011, 5:58 PM CDT (22:58 UTC)
Expired: Jul 30, 2011, 6:30 PM CDT
In force: 32 min
Issued by: NWS Grand Forks, ND
Area: Storm-based polygon

County Otter Tail County, MN

The radar

The Minneapolis radar (KMPX), 201 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 22:59 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 30, 6:10 PM CDT	HAIL 1.75	1 Se Wrightstown, MN	SPOTTER OBSERVED GOLF BALL HAIL ON THE GROUND BEHIND PASSING STORM. TIME IS ESTIMATED FROM RADAR.

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 30, 5:31 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Watch	SPC	7 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Minneapolis, MN (KMPX), launched 12:00Z, 11.0 hours before the alert went out and 199 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: 2252 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -33 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 813 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 27 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 84 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 131 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.6
Supercell composite: 4.9

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

932 
WFUS53 KFGF 302258
TORFGF
MNC111-302345-
/O.NEW.KFGF.TO.W.0053.110730T2258Z-110730T2345Z/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EASTERN ND/GRAND FORKS ND
558 PM CDT SAT JUL 30 2011

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN GRAND FORKS HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  SOUTHEASTERN OTTER TAIL COUNTY IN WEST CENTRAL MINNESOTA...

* UNTIL 645 PM CDT

* AT 555 PM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A TORNADO. THE STORM WAS
  LOCATED 3 MILES NORTHEAST OF ALMORA...OR 36 MILES EAST OF FERGUS
  FALLS...MOVING TO THE EAST AT 20 MPH.

* THE TORNADIC STORM WILL BE NEAR...
  WRIGHTSTOWN AROUND 610 PM CDT.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

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

&&

LAT...LON 4619 9547 4636 9539 4631 9515 4619 9513
      4611 9514 4610 9515 4610 9534
TIME...MOT...LOC 2258Z 288DEG 19KT 4626 9529

$$
SPEICHER

2 follow-up statements

078 
WWUS53 KFGF 302320
SVSFGF

SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EASTERN ND/GRAND FORKS ND
620 PM CDT SAT JUL 30 2011

MNC111-302345-
/O.CON.KFGF.TO.W.0053.000000T0000Z-110730T2345Z/
OTTER TAIL MN-
620 PM CDT SAT JUL 30 2011

...A TORNADO WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR SOUTHEASTERN OTTER TAIL
COUNTY IN WEST CENTRAL MINNESOTA UNTIL 645 PM CDT...

AT 618 PM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A TORNADO 4 MILES SOUTH OF
WRIGHTSTOWN...OR 42 MILES EAST OF FERGUS FALLS...MOVING TO THE
SOUTHEAST AT 15 MPH.

THE TORNADIC STORM WILL AFFECT MAINLY RURAL AREAS OF SOUTHEASTERN
OTTER TAIL COUNTY.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

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

&&

LAT...LON 4619 9547 4636 9539 4631 9515 4619 9513
      4611 9514 4610 9515 4610 9534
TIME...MOT...LOC 2320Z 302DEG 15KT 4621 9519

$$
PJS

308 
WWUS53 KFGF 302330
SVSFGF

SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EASTERN ND/GRAND FORKS ND
630 PM CDT SAT JUL 30 2011

MNC111-302339-
/O.CAN.KFGF.TO.W.0053.000000T0000Z-110730T2345Z/
OTTER TAIL MN-
630 PM CDT SAT JUL 30 2011

...THE TORNADO WARNING FOR SOUTHEASTERN OTTER TAIL COUNTY IN WEST
CENTRAL MINNESOTA IS CANCELLED...

THE STORM WHICH PROMPTED THE WARNING HAS MOVED OUT OF THE WARNED
AREA.

THERE IS STILL A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM OVER ALMORA...HEADED SOUTHEAST
TOWARD PARKERS PRAIRIE.

LAT...LON 4619 9547 4636 9539 4631 9515 4619 9513
      4611 9514 4610 9515 4610 9534
TIME...MOT...LOC 2329Z 303DEG 19KT 4615 9507

$$
SPEICHER

The office that day

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

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Jul 30, 7:31 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FGF	Clay, Otter Tail, Wilkin	44 min
Jul 30, 10:59 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FGF	Grant, Wilkin	61 min
Jul 30, 11:53 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FGF	Grant	28 min
Jul 30, 5:11 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FGF	Otter Tail, Wadena	64 min
Jul 30, 6:22 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FGF	Otter Tail	53 min

Nearby

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.