Alert archive / Kansas / Severe Thunderstorm Watches in 2011

Severe Thunderstorm Watch 85

April 3, 201114 counties in Kansas; 11 counties in Missouri

The Storm Prediction Center issued this severe thunderstorm watch at Apr 3, 2011, 8:33 PM CDT for 14 counties in Kansas; 11 counties in Missouri. It was in force for 5 hr.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
Apr 3, 2011, 8:33 PM CDT (01:33 UTC)
Expired
Apr 4, 2011, 1:51 AM CDT
In force
5 hr
Issued by
the Storm Prediction Center
Largest hail expected
2 in
Strongest gust expected
60 kt
All 25 counties

Allen County, KS, Bourbon County, KS, Butler County, KS, Chautauqua County, KS, Cherokee County, KS, Cowley County, KS, Crawford County, KS, Elk County, KS, Greenwood County, KS, Labette County, KS, Montgomery County, KS, Neosho County, KS, Wilson County, KS, Woodson County, KS, Barton County, MO, Benton County, MO, Camden County, MO, Cedar County, MO, Dade County, MO, Hickory County, MO, Jasper County, MO, Miller County, MO, Morgan County, MO, St. Clair County, MO, Vernon County, MO

The radar

The Topeka radar (KTWX), 134 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 01:36 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 SPC expected

The probabilities SPC published with the watch, for the watch area over its life.

Two or more tornadoes
20%
One or more EF2 to EF5 tornadoes
5%
Ten or more severe wind reports
50%
One or more gusts of 65 knots or more
30%
Ten or more severe hail reports
60%
One or more hailstones of 2 inches or more
20%
Six or more combined severe hail and wind reports
90%

Warnings issued inside it

8 tornado, severe thunderstorm and flash flood warnings for its counties while it was in force.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Apr 3, 9:03 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningICTButler, Greenwood, Neosho27 min
Apr 3, 9:26 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningICTButler, Elk, Greenwood50 min
Apr 3, 9:28 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningICTCowley, Sumner62 min
Apr 3, 9:35 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningICTWoodson25 min
Apr 3, 9:54 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningICTAllen, Woodson51 min
Apr 3, 10:11 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningSGFBourbon49 min
Apr 3, 10:17 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningICTChautauqua40 min
Apr 3, 10:35 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningSGFVernon40 min

Discussions around it

SPC mesoscale discussions over the same counties from four hours before the watch to its end.

The nearest sounding before it

Topeka, KS (KTOP), launched 00:00Z, 1.6 hours before the alert went out and 126 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, Topeka, KS at 00:00Z on 2011-04-04Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1873 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°0°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Topeka, KS at 00:00Z on 2011-04-04The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 138 square meters per square second.1939587897Sfc1 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
1873 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-29 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
2220 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
67 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
138 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
140 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
6.1

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

556 
WWUS20 KWNS 040132
SEL5
SPC WW 040132
KSZ000-MOZ000-040700-

URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH NUMBER 85
NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
835 PM CDT SUN APR 3 2011

THE NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF

       SOUTHEAST KANSAS
       SOUTHWEST MISSOURI

EFFECTIVE THIS SUNDAY NIGHT AND MONDAY MORNING FROM 835 PM UNTIL
200 AM CDT.

HAIL TO 2 INCHES IN DIAMETER...THUNDERSTORM WIND GUSTS TO 70
MPH...AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE IN THESE AREAS.

THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH AREA IS APPROXIMATELY ALONG AND 50
STATUTE MILES NORTH AND SOUTH OF A LINE FROM 65 MILES SOUTHWEST
OF EMPORIA KANSAS TO 65 MILES NORTHEAST OF JOPLIN MISSOURI.  FOR
A COMPLETE DEPICTION OF THE WATCH SEE THE ASSOCIATED WATCH
OUTLINE UPDATE (WOUS64 KWNS WOU5).

REMEMBER...A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH MEANS CONDITIONS ARE
FAVORABLE FOR SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS IN AND CLOSE TO THE WATCH
AREA. PERSONS IN THESE AREAS SHOULD BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR
THREATENING WEATHER CONDITIONS AND LISTEN FOR LATER STATEMENTS
AND POSSIBLE WARNINGS. SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS CAN AND OCCASIONALLY
DO PRODUCE TORNADOES.

OTHER WATCH INFORMATION...CONTINUE...WW 82...WW 83...WW 84...

DISCUSSION...THUNDERSTORMS ARE DEVELOPING ALONG A SURFACE COLD FRONT
SAGGING ACROSS EASTERN KS.  STORMS ARE EXPECTED TO STAY ELEVATED AND
JUST NORTH OF THE BOUNDARY...WITH LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS
BEING THE PRIMARY THREAT THROUGH EARLY MONDAY MORNING.

AVIATION...A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH HAIL SURFACE AND ALOFT
TO 2 INCHES. EXTREME TURBULENCE AND SURFACE WIND GUSTS TO 60
KNOTS. A FEW CUMULONIMBI WITH MAXIMUM TOPS TO 500. MEAN STORM
MOTION VECTOR 26040.


...HART

SPC that day

Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Apr 3, 7:26 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAtchison, Brown, Chase, Dickinson, Doniphan, Douglas and 19 more64 min
Apr 3, 8:15 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAllen, Anderson, Atchison, Bourbon, Brown, Butler and 34 more60 min
Apr 3, 11:02 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBourbon, Cherokee, Crawford, Labette, Neosho88 min
Apr 4, 1:29 AM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCCherokee91 min
Apr 3, 7:44 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCClark, Putnam, Schuyler, Scotland61 min
Apr 3, 8:11 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCAudrain, Boone, Callaway, Cole, Franklin, Gasconade and 12 more6 hr
Apr 3, 9:51 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBarry, McDonald, Newton84 min
Apr 3, 10:50 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCChariton, Howard, Knox, Lewis, Macon, Marion and 4 more85 min
Apr 4, 5:48 AM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCOregon, Ripley117 min
Apr 4, 7:22 AM CDTTornado WatchSPCBollinger, Butler, Cape Girardeau, Carter, Dunklin, Mississippi and 7 more7 hr

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Watches in Kansas, 2011Severe Thunderstorm Watches in Missouri, 2011Every severe thunderstorm watch 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.