Alert archive / Colorado / Tornado Warnings in 2011

Tornado Warning 2, NWS Grand Junction, CO

July 18, 2011Montezuma County, Colorado

NWS Grand Junction, CO issued this tornado warning at Jul 18, 2011, 8:43 PM MDT for Montezuma County, Colorado. It was in force for 17 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 18, 2011, 8:43 PM MDT (02:43 UTC)
Expired: Jul 18, 2011, 9:00 PM MDT
In force: 17 min
Issued by: NWS Grand Junction, CO
Area: Storm-based polygon

County Montezuma County, CO

The radar

The Grand Junction radar (KGJX), 209 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 02:47 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 18, 8:56 PM MDT	TSTM WND GST 65	2 N Towaoc, CO	THUNDERSTORM WIND GUST ESTIMATED AT 60-70 MPH CAUSING MOBILE HOME TO SHAKE

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

The nearest sounding before it

Grand Junction, CO (KGJT), launched 00:00Z, 2.7 hours before the alert went out and 213 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: 11 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -245 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 2727 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 8 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: -2 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 44 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.

734 
WFUS55 KGJT 190243
TORGJT
COC083-190300-
/O.NEW.KGJT.TO.W.0002.110719T0243Z-110719T0300Z/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GRAND JUNCTION CO
843 PM MDT MON JUL 18 2011

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN GRAND JUNCTION HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  CENTRAL MONTEZUMA COUNTY IN SOUTHWEST COLORADO...

* UNTIL 900 PM MDT

* AT 842 PM MDT...TRAINED WEATHER SPOTTERS REPORTED A FUNNEL CLOUD 11
  MILES SOUTH OF CORTEZ...OR 37 MILES EAST OF MONTEZUMA CREEK. A
  TORNADO MAY DEVELOP AT ANY TIME. DOPPLER RADAR SHOWED THIS
  DANGEROUS STORM MOVING NORTHWEST AT 15 MPH.

* LOCATIONS IMPACTED INCLUDE...
  TOWAOC.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

TO REPEAT...A TORNADO IS ON THE GROUND. TAKE COVER NOW. MOVE TO AN
INTERIOR ROOM ON THE LOWEST FLOOR OF A STURDY BUILDING. AVOID
WINDOWS. IF IN A MOBILE HOME...A VEHICLE OR OUTDOORS...MOVE TO THE
CLOSEST SUBSTANTIAL SHELTER AND PROTECT YOURSELF FROM FLYING DEBRIS.

&&

LAT...LON 3728 10882 3735 10859 3713 10848 3706 10869
TIME...MOT...LOC 0244Z 157DEG 12KT 3721 10865

$$

PF

2 follow-up statements

097 
WWUS55 KGJT 190252
SVSGJT

SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GRAND JUNCTION CO
852 PM MDT MON JUL 18 2011

COC083-190300-
/O.CON.KGJT.TO.W.0002.000000T0000Z-110719T0300Z/
MONTEZUMA CO-
852 PM MDT MON JUL 18 2011

...A TORNADO WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR CENTRAL MONTEZUMA COUNTY
UNTIL 900 PM MDT...

AT 847 PM MDT...A WEATHER SPOTTER REPORTED A TORNADO 2 MILES NORTH 
OF TOWAOC.  THIS TORNADO HAS SINCE LIFTED BACK INTO THE CLOUD BUT 
ROTATION IS STILL EVIDENT.  

LOCATIONS IMPACTED INCLUDE...
  TOWAOC.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

MOTORISTS SHOULD NOT TAKE SHELTER UNDER HIGHWAY OVERPASSES. AS A LAST
RESORT... EITHER PARK YOUR VEHICLE AND STAY PUT...OR ABANDON YOUR
VEHICLE AND LIE DOWN IN A LOW LYING AREA.

&&

LAT...LON 3728 10882 3735 10859 3713 10848 3706 10869
TIME...MOT...LOC 0250Z 157DEG 12KT 3723 10866

$$

PF

105 
WWUS55 KGJT 190302
SVSGJT

SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GRAND JUNCTION CO
902 PM MDT MON JUL 18 2011

COC083-190311-
/O.EXP.KGJT.TO.W.0002.000000T0000Z-110719T0300Z/
MONTEZUMA CO-
902 PM MDT MON JUL 18 2011

...THE TORNADO WARNING FOR CENTRAL MONTEZUMA COUNTY HAS EXPIRED...

THE STORM WHICH PROMPTED THE WARNING HAS LIFTED BACK INTO THE CLOUD 
AND ROTATION IS NO LONGER EVIDENT.  SEVERE WIND GUSTS OF 60 MPH OR 
GREATER ARE STILL POSSIBLE.  

REMEMBER...A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR 
CENTRAL MONTEZUMA COUNTY IN SOUTHWEST COLORADO UNTIL 915 PM MDT. 

LAT...LON 3728 10882 3735 10859 3713 10848 3706 10869
TIME...MOT...LOC 0252Z 157DEG 12KT 3724 10866

$$

PF

The office that day

Everything else NWS Grand Junction, CO issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Jul 18, 6:03 PM MDT	Flash Flood Warning	GJT	Eagle, Garfield, Pitkin	3 hr
Jul 18, 6:27 PM MDT	Areal Flood Advisory	GJT	Dolores, Hinsdale, Ouray, San Juan, San Miguel	3 hr
Jul 18, 7:20 PM MDT	Areal Flood Advisory	GJT	Eagle, Garfield, Rio Blanco, Routt	3 hr
Jul 18, 8:30 PM MDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	GJT	Montezuma	45 min
Jul 18, 8:34 PM MDT	Tornado Warning	GJT	Montezuma	11 min
Jul 18, 9:12 PM MDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	GJT	Moffat, Rio Blanco	48 min
Jul 18, 9:58 PM MDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	GJT	Moffat, Rio Blanco	47 min
Jul 18, 10:46 PM MDT	Special Weather Statement	GJT	Moffat	44 min
Jul 19, 2:24 PM MDT	Areal Flood Advisory	GJT	Garfield, Mesa, Pitkin	2 hr
Jul 19, 3:02 PM MDT	Areal Flood Advisory	GJT	Montrose, Ouray, San Miguel	3 hr
Jul 19, 3:13 PM MDT	Special Weather Statement	GJT	Rio Blanco	47 min
Jul 19, 3:20 PM MDT	Areal Flood Advisory	GJT	Delta, Montrose, Ouray	3 hr
Jul 19, 3:38 PM MDT	Areal Flood Advisory	GJT	Mesa, Montrose	3 hr
Jul 19, 4:45 PM MDT	Flash Flood Warning	GJT	Dolores, Ouray, San Juan, San Miguel	3 hr
Jul 19, 4:48 PM MDT	Areal Flood Advisory	GJT	Delta, Eagle, Garfield, Gunnison, Mesa, Moffat and 3 more	4 hr
Jul 19, 4:51 PM MDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	GJT	Moffat, Rio Blanco	35 min
Jul 19, 5:03 PM MDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	GJT	Moffat, Routt	42 min
Jul 19, 5:44 PM MDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	GJT	Moffat, Routt	46 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Colorado, 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.