Alert archive / Iowa / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2012

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 49, NWS Des Moines, IA

May 3, 2012Humboldt County, Iowa

NWS Des Moines, IA issued this severe thunderstorm warning at May 3, 2012, 6:13 PM CDT for Humboldt County, Iowa. It was in force for 47 min. 3 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: May 3, 2012, 6:13 PM CDT (23:13 UTC)
Expired: May 3, 2012, 7:00 PM CDT
In force: 47 min
Issued by: NWS Des Moines, IA
Area: Storm-based polygon
Hail: 1.0 in
Wind: 50.0 mph

County Humboldt County, IA

The radar

The Des Moines radar (KDMX), 128 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 23:16 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
May 3, 6:23 PM CDT	HAIL 1	4 Nne Rutland, IA	DIME TO QUARTER SIZE HAIL
May 3, 6:32 PM CDT	HAIL 1	8 N Humboldt, IA
May 3, 6:35 PM CDT	HAIL 1.25	8 N Humboldt, IA	HAIL COVERING THE GROUND. HAILED FOR ABOUT 12 MINUTES.

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

The nearest sounding before it

Minneapolis, MN (KMPX), launched 12:00Z, 11.2 hours before the alert went out and 229 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: 1755 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -7 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 521 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 31 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 27 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 33 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.1
Supercell composite: 0.3

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

582 
WUUS53 KDMX 032313
SVRDMX
IAC091-040000-
/O.NEW.KDMX.SV.W.0049.120503T2313Z-120504T0000Z/

BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DES MOINES IA
613 PM CDT THU MAY 3 2012

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN DES MOINES HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  NORTHERN HUMBOLDT COUNTY IN NORTH CENTRAL IOWA...

* UNTIL 700 PM CDT

* AT 612 PM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING QUARTER SIZE HAIL.  THIS
  STORM WAS LOCATED 8 MILES NORTH OF HUMBOLDT...OR 16 MILES SOUTH OF
  ALGONA...AND MOVING EAST AT 10 MPH.

* LOCATIONS IMPACTED INCLUDE...
  LIVERMORE.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

LARGE HAIL CAN CAUSE INJURY AND PROPERTY DAMAGE. SEEK SAFETY INDOORS
UNTIL THE STORM PASSES.

&&

LAT...LON 4287 9404 4272 9423 4281 9435 4291 9419
TIME...MOT...LOC 2313Z 289DEG 7KT 4284 9424
WIND...HAIL <50MPH 1.00IN

$$

COGIL

1 follow-up statement

172 
WWUS53 KDMX 032328
SVSDMX

SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DES MOINES IA
628 PM CDT THU MAY 3 2012

IAC091-040000-
/O.CON.KDMX.SV.W.0049.000000T0000Z-120504T0000Z/
HUMBOLDT IA-
628 PM CDT THU MAY 3 2012

...A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR NORTHERN
HUMBOLDT COUNTY UNTIL 700 PM CDT...

AT 627 PM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING PING PONG BALL SIZE HAIL. 
THIS STORM WAS LOCATED 7 MILES NORTH OF HUMBOLDT...OR 17 MILES SOUTH
OF ALGONA...MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 5 MPH.

LOCATIONS IMPACTED INCLUDE...
  MAINLY RURAL AREAS OF CENTRAL HUMBOLDT COUNTY.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

PREPARE FOR LARGE HAIL AND DEADLY CLOUD TO GROUND LIGHTNING. PEOPLE
OUTSIDE SHOULD MOVE TO A REINFORCED BUILDING AND AWAY FROM WINDOWS.

&&

LAT...LON 4287 9404 4272 9423 4281 9435 4291 9419
TIME...MOT...LOC 2328Z 321DEG 5KT 4283 9421
WIND...HAIL <50MPH 1.50IN

$$

COGIL

The office that day

Everything else NWS Des Moines, IA issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
May 3, 5:11 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	DMX	Butler, Cerro Gordo, Franklin	47 min
May 3, 2:24 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	DMX	Kossuth	21 min
May 3, 2:48 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	DMX	Kossuth	42 min
May 3, 3:31 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	DMX	Hancock, Kossuth, Winnebago	44 min
May 3, 3:48 PM CDT	Flash Flood Warning	DMX	Kossuth	4 hr
May 3, 4:03 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	DMX	Emmet, Kossuth	42 min
May 3, 4:18 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	DMX	Cerro Gordo, Hancock, Winnebago, Worth	42 min
May 3, 4:52 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	DMX	Cerro Gordo	53 min
May 3, 5:06 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	DMX	Kossuth	39 min
May 3, 6:57 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	DMX	Humboldt	48 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Iowa, 2012 Every severe thunderstorm warning in 2012

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.