Alert archive / Kansas / Tornado Warnings in 2012

Tornado Warning 50, NWS Wichita, KS

May 25, 2012Russell County, Kansas

NWS Wichita, KS issued this tornado warning at May 25, 2012, 9:29 PM CDT for Russell County, Kansas. It was in force for 46 min. 4 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 25, 2012, 9:29 PM CDT (02:29 UTC)
Expired: May 25, 2012, 10:15 PM CDT
In force: 46 min
Issued by: NWS Wichita, KS
Area: Storm-based polygon
Tornado: Radar indicated
Hail: 1.75 in

County Russell County, KS

The radar

The Grand Island radar (KUEX), 160 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 02:32 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 25, 9:40 PM CDT	TORNADO	Russell, KS	STORM CHASER REPORTS SMALL ROPE TORNADO LOCATED NEAR THE TOWN OF RUSSELL.
May 25, 9:42 PM CDT	TORNADO	Russell, KS	TORNADO LOCATED JUST TO THE SOUTH OF RUSSELL AND NO POWER IN THE CITY THUS SIRENS WILL NOT BE ABLE TO SOUND.
May 25, 9:45 PM CDT	TORNADO	Russell, KS	TRAINED SPOTTER REPORTS DAMAGE FROM THE ROPE TORNADO WHICH COMPLETELY LEVELED ONE HOME ON THE SOUTH SIDE OF RUSSELL. OCCUPANT HAD ONLY A FEW CUTS AND BRUISES. HOUSES ON EITHER SIDE OF THE LEVELED HOME WERE DAMAGED BUT EXTENT UNKNOWN AT THIS TIME.
May 25, 9:48 PM CDT	TORNADO	Russell, KS	FRAMED HOMES WERE DAMAGED ON THE SOUTH SIDE OF RUSSELL CITY LIMITS.

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
May 25, 6:48 PM CDT	Tornado Watch	SPC	5 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Dodge City, (KDDC), launched 00:00Z, 2.5 hours before the alert went out and 159 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: 1736 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -37 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 2725 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 41 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 119 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 178 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.0
Supercell composite: 10.4

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

039 
WFUS53 KICT 260229
TORICT
KSC167-260315-
/O.NEW.KICT.TO.W.0050.120526T0229Z-120526T0315Z/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WICHITA KS
929 PM CDT FRI MAY 25 2012

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN WICHITA HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  CENTRAL RUSSELL COUNTY IN CENTRAL KANSAS...

* UNTIL 1015 PM CDT

* AT 926 PM CDT...A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A
  TORNADO WAS LOCATED NEAR RUSSELL...AND MOVING NORTHEAST AT 10 MPH.

  HAZARD...DEVELOPING TORNADO AND GOLF BALL SIZE HAIL.

  SOURCE...RADAR INDICATED ROTATION.

  IMPACT...SIGNIFICANT HOUSE AND BUILDING DAMAGE POSSIBLE. MOBILE
           HOMES COMPLETELY DESTROYED IF HIT. SOME TREES UPROOTED OR
           SNAPPED. VEHICLES WILL LIKELY BE THROWN BY TORNADIC WINDS.

* LOCATIONS IMPACTED INCLUDE...
  RUSSELL...BUNKER HILL AND RUSSELL AIRPORT.

THIS INCLUDES INTERSTATE 70 BETWEEN MILE MARKERS 179 AND 197.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

THIS TORNADO WARNING REPLACES THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING THAT
WAS IN EFFECT FOR THE SAME AREA.

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 3905 9877 3883 9861 3873 9889 3891 9900
TIME...MOT...LOC 0229Z 229DEG 9KT 3884 9885

TORNADO...RADAR INDICATED
HAIL...1.75IN

$$

CARUSO

2 follow-up statements

679 
WWUS53 KICT 260242
SVSICT

SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WICHITA KS
942 PM CDT FRI MAY 25 2012

KSC167-260315-
/O.CON.KICT.TO.W.0050.000000T0000Z-120526T0315Z/
RUSSELL KS-
942 PM CDT FRI MAY 25 2012

...A TORNADO WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR CENTRAL RUSSELL COUNTY
UNTIL 1015 PM CDT...

AT 940 PM CDT...A CONFIRMED TORNADO WAS LOCATED NEAR RUSSELL...AND
MOVING NORTHEAST AT 10 MPH.

HAZARD...DAMAGING TORNADO AND GOLF BALL SIZE HAIL.

SOURCE...STORM CHASER CONFIRMED TORNADO.

IMPACT...SIGNIFICANT HOUSE AND BUILDING DAMAGE POSSIBLE. MOBILE HOMES
         COMPLETELY DESTROYED IF HIT. SOME TREES UPROOTED OR SNAPPED.
         VEHICLES WILL LIKELY BE THROWN BY TORNADIC WINDS.

LOCATIONS IMPACTED INCLUDE...
BUNKER HILL AND RUSSELL AIRPORT.

THIS INCLUDES INTERSTATE 70 BETWEEN MILE MARKERS 179 AND 197.

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 3905 9877 3883 9861 3873 9889 3891 9900
TIME...MOT...LOC 0242Z 229DEG 9KT 3887 9884

TORNADO...OBSERVED
HAIL...1.75IN

$$

CARUSO

037 
WWUS53 KICT 260254
SVSICT

SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WICHITA KS
954 PM CDT FRI MAY 25 2012

KSC167-260315-
/O.CON.KICT.TO.W.0050.000000T0000Z-120526T0315Z/
RUSSELL KS-
954 PM CDT FRI MAY 25 2012

...A TORNADO WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR CENTRAL RUSSELL COUNTY
UNTIL 1015 PM CDT...

AT 950 PM CDT...A CONFIRMED TORNADO WAS LOCATED NEAR RUSSELL...AND
MOVING NORTHEAST AT 10 MPH.

HAZARD...DAMAGING TORNADO AND GOLF BALL SIZE HAIL.

SOURCE...EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT CONFIRMED TORNADO.

IMPACT...SIGNIFICANT HOUSE AND BUILDING DAMAGE POSSIBLE. MOBILE HOMES
         COMPLETELY DESTROYED IF HIT. SOME TREES UPROOTED OR SNAPPED.
         VEHICLES WILL LIKELY BE THROWN BY TORNADIC WINDS.

LOCATIONS IMPACTED INCLUDE...
BUNKER HILL.

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 3877 9884 3894 9894 3905 9877 3883 9861
TIME...MOT...LOC 0254Z 231DEG 10KT 3890 9879

TORNADO...OBSERVED
HAIL...1.75IN

$$

The office that day

Everything else NWS Wichita, KS issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
May 25, 7:29 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	ICT	Russell	46 min
May 25, 8:13 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	ICT	Russell	62 min
May 25, 8:31 PM CDT	Tornado Warning Tornado observed	ICT	Russell	44 min
May 25, 9:13 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	ICT	Russell	47 min
May 25, 10:13 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	ICT	Russell	31 min
May 25, 11:08 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	ICT	Russell	52 min
May 25, 11:19 PM CDT	Areal Flood Warning	ICT	Russell	8 hr
May 25, 11:41 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	ICT	Russell	8 min
May 26, 4:20 AM CDT	Wind Advisory	ICT	Barton, Ellsworth, Lincoln, Rice, Russell	16 hr

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Kansas, 2012 Every tornado warning in 2012 Tornadoes 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.