Alert archive / New Mexico / Red Flag Warnings in 2012

Red Flag Warning 21, NWS El Paso, TX

May 1, 2012El Paso County, Hudspeth County, Texas; 8 counties in New Mexico

NWS El Paso, TX issued this red flag warning at May 1, 2012, 12:56 PM MDT for El Paso County, Hudspeth County, Texas; 8 counties in New Mexico. It took effect at May 2, 2012, 12:00 PM MDT. It was in force for 9 hr. No storm report in the archive falls inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
May 1, 2012, 12:56 PM MDT (18:56 UTC)
In effect from
May 2, 2012, 12:00 PM MDT
Expired
May 2, 2012, 9:00 PM MDT
In force
9 hr
Issued by
NWS El Paso, TX

Counties Catron County, NM, Doña Ana County, NM, Grant County, NM, Hidalgo County, NM, Lincoln County, NM, Luna County, NM, Otero County, NM, Sierra County, NM, El Paso County, TX, Hudspeth County, TX

The radar

The El Paso radar (KEPZ), 84 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 18:55 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 nearest sounding before it

Santa Teresa, NM (KEPZ), launched 12:00Z, 6.9 hours before the alert went out and 84 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, Santa Teresa, NM at 12:00Z on 2012-05-01Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 0 joules per kilogram.LCL10008507005003002001001 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, Santa Teresa, NM at 12:00Z on 2012-05-01The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity -22 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
0 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL
4377 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
34 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
-22 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
130 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.

253 
WWUS84 KEPZ 011856
RFWEPZ

URGENT - FIRE WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EL PASO TX/SANTA TERESA NM
1256 PM MDT TUE MAY 1 2012

...RED FLAG WARNING FOR FAR WEST TEXAS AND SOUTHWEST NEW MEXICO 
WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON...

.FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS WILL REMAIN A THREAT FOR THE REST OF THE
WEEK WITH VERY HIGH TO EXTREME FIRE DANGER RATINGS...ABOVE NORMAL 
TEMPERATURES...AND VERY LOW AFTERNOON HUMIDITY. A LEE SIDE TROUGH
FROM THE TEXAS PANHANDLE INTO SOUTHEASTERN NEW MEXICO AND AN UPPER
LEVEL DISTURBANCE CROSSING THE REGION FROM WEST TO EAST WILL CAUSE
SUSTAINED SURFACE WINDS OF 20 MPH OR MORE WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON AND
EVENING WITH GUSTS OF 30 TO 40 MPH. THE LOW HUMIDITY AND STRONG
WINDS...WITH VERY HIGH FIRE DANGER RATINGS...WILL CAUSE CRITICAL
FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS FOR WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING..

NMZ110>113-TXZ055-056-021400-
/O.UPG.KEPZ.FW.A.0020.120502T1900Z-120503T0300Z/
/O.NEW.KEPZ.FW.W.0021.120502T1800Z-120503T0300Z/
SOUTHWEST MOUNTAINS-SOUTHWEST DESERTS AND LOWLANDS-
SOUTH CENTRAL LOWLANDS AND SOUTHERN RIO GRANDE VALLEY-
CAPITAN AND SACRAMENTO MOUNTAINS-EL PASO-HUDSPETH-
1256 PM MDT TUE MAY 1 2012

...RED FLAG WARNING IN EFFECT FROM NOON TO 9 PM MDT WEDNESDAY FOR
LOW HUMIDITY AND STRONG WINDS FOR FIRE WEATHER ZONES 055...056...
110...111...112 AND 113...

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN EL PASO TX/SANTA TERESA HAS
ISSUED A RED FLAG WARNING...WHICH IS IN EFFECT FROM NOON TO 9 PM
MDT WEDNESDAY. THE FIRE WEATHER WATCH IS NO LONGER IN EFFECT. 

* TIMING: 1 PM TIL 9 PM MDT WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING.

* WIND: SOUTHWEST TO WEST 20 TO 30 MPH WITH GUSTS AROUND 40 MPH.

* HUMIDITY: 4 TO 9 PERCENT LOWER DESERTS TO 15 PERCENT MOUNTAINS

* IMPACTS...ANY FIRES THAT DEVELOP WILL LIKELY SPREAD RAPIDLY.
  OUTDOOR BURNING IS NOT RECOMMENDED.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A RED FLAG WARNING MEANS THAT CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS
ARE EITHER OCCURRING NOW...OR WILL SHORTLY. A COMBINATION OF
STRONG WINDS...LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY...AND HIGH FIRE DANGER RATINGS
WILL CREATE EXTREME FIRE GROWTH POTENTIAL.

&&

$$
1 follow-up statement
541 
WWUS84 KEPZ 021255
RFWEPZ

URGENT - FIRE WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EL PASO TX/SANTA TERESA NM
655 AM MDT WED MAY 2 2012

...RED FLAG WARNING FOR FAR WEST TEXAS AND SOUTHWEST NEW MEXICO
THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING...

.FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS WILL REMAIN A THREAT FOR THE REST OF THE
WEEK WITH VERY HIGH TO EXTREME FIRE DANGER RATINGS...ABOVE NORMAL
TEMPERATURES...AND VERY LOW AFTERNOON HUMIDITY. A LEE SIDE TROUGH
FROM THE TEXAS PANHANDLE INTO SOUTHEASTERN NEW MEXICO AND AN
UPPER LEVEL DISTURBANCE CROSSING THE REGION FROM WEST TO EAST
WILL CAUSE SUSTAINED SURFACE WINDS OF 20 MPH OR MORE WEDNESDAY
AFTERNOON AND EVENING WITH GUSTS OF 30 TO 40 MPH. THE LOW
HUMIDITY AND STRONG WINDS...WITH VERY HIGH FIRE DANGER RATINGS...
WILL CAUSE CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS FOR WEDNESDAY
AFTERNOON AND EVENING..

NMZ110>113-TXZ055-056-030300-
/O.CON.KEPZ.FW.W.0021.120502T1800Z-120503T0300Z/
SOUTHWEST MOUNTAINS-SOUTHWEST DESERTS AND LOWLANDS-
SOUTH CENTRAL LOWLANDS AND SOUTHERN RIO GRANDE VALLEY-
CAPITAN AND SACRAMENTO MOUNTAINS-EL PASO-HUDSPETH-
655 AM MDT WED MAY 2 2012

...RED FLAG WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM NOON TODAY TO 9 PM MDT
THIS EVENING FOR LOW HUMIDITY AND STRONG WINDS FOR FIRE WEATHER 
ZONES 055...056...110...111...112 AND 113...

* TIMING: NOON TIL 9 PM MDT WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING.

* WIND: SOUTHWEST TO WEST 20 TO 30 MPH WITH GUSTS UP TO 40 MPH.

* HUMIDITY: 4 TO 9 PERCENT LOWER DESERTS TO 15 PERCENT MOUNTAINS

* IMPACTS...ANY FIRES THAT DEVELOP WILL LIKELY SPREAD RAPIDLY. 
  OUTDOOR BURNING IS NOT RECOMMENDED.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A RED FLAG WARNING MEANS THAT CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS
ARE EITHER OCCURRING NOW...OR WILL SHORTLY. A COMBINATION OF
STRONG WINDS...LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY...AND HIGH FIRE DANGER
RATINGS WILL CREATE EXTREME FIRE GROWTH POTENTIAL.

&&

$$

Nearby

Red Flag Warnings in New Mexico, 2012Red Flag Warnings in Texas, 2012Every red flag 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; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.