Alert archive / California / Red Flag Warnings in 2012

Red Flag Warning 15, NWS Medford, OR

September 4, 2012Modoc County, California

NWS Medford, OR issued this red flag warning at Sep 4, 2012, 2:09 PM PDT for Modoc County, California. It took effect at Sep 5, 2012, 3:00 PM PDT. It was in force for 6 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
Sep 4, 2012, 2:09 PM PDT (21:09 UTC)
In effect from
Sep 5, 2012, 3:00 PM PDT
Expired
Sep 5, 2012, 9:00 PM PDT
In force
6 hr
Issued by
NWS Medford, OR

County Modoc County, CA

The radar

The Medford radar (KMAX), 174 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 21:11 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

Medford/Jackson, OR (KMFR), launched 12:00Z, 9.2 hours before the alert went out and 192 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, Medford/Jackson, OR at 12:00Z on 2012-09-04Temperature 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, Medford/Jackson, OR at 12:00Z on 2012-09-04The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 14 square meters per square second.1939Sfc1 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
1616 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
5 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
14 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
-17 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.

126 
WWUS86 KMFR 042109
RFWMFR

URGENT - FIRE WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEDFORD OR
209 PM PDT TUE SEP 4 2012

CAZ285-051215-
/O.UPG.KMFR.FW.A.0014.120905T2200Z-120906T0400Z/
/O.NEW.KMFR.FW.W.0015.120905T2200Z-120906T0400Z/
MODOC COUNTY EXCEPT FOR THE SURPRISE VALLEY-
209 PM PDT TUE SEP 4 2012

...RED FLAG WARNING IN EFFECT FROM 3 PM TO 9 PM PDT WEDNESDAY FOR
COMBINATION OF STRONG WINDS AND LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITIES FOR FIRE
ZONE 285...

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN MEDFORD HAS ISSUED A RED FLAG
WARNING...WHICH IS IN EFFECT FROM 3 PM TO 9 PM PDT WEDNESDAY. THE
FIRE WEATHER WATCH HAS BEEN UPGRADED.

* AFFECTED AREA: FIRE ZONE 285...WHICH INCLUDES MODOC COUNTY
  EXCEPT FOR THE SURPRISE VALLEY.

* WIND...SOUTHWEST WINDS 10 TO 15 MPH WITH GUSTS TO 25 MPH ARE EXPECTED.

* HUMIDITY...MINIMUM RELATIVE HUMIDITIES WILL BE 5 TO 10 PERCENT
  WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING.

* IMPACTS...THESE GUSTY WINDS AND LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITIES CREATE
  THE POTENTIAL FOR EXPLOSIVE WIND DRIVEN FIRE GROWTH.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A RED FLAG WARNING MEANS THAT CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS
ARE EITHER OCCURRING NOW...OR WILL SHORTLY. THESE CONDITIONS WILL
CREATE THE POTENTIAL FOR EXPLOSIVE FIRE GROWTH.

&&

$$
DW

VISIT US AT WWW.WEATHER.GOV/MEDFORD
3 follow-up statements
425 
WWUS86 KMFR 051200
RFWMFR

URGENT - FIRE WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEDFORD OR
500 AM PDT WED SEP 5 2012

CAZ285-060000-
/O.CON.KMFR.FW.W.0015.120905T2200Z-120906T0400Z/
MODOC COUNTY EXCEPT FOR THE SURPRISE VALLEY-
500 AM PDT WED SEP 5 2012

...RED FLAG WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM 3 PM THIS AFTERNOON TO
9 PM PDT THIS EVENING FOR COMBINATION OF STRONG WINDS AND LOW
RELATIVE HUMIDITIES FOR FIRE ZONE 285...

* AFFECTED AREA: FIRE ZONE 285...WHICH INCLUDES MODOC COUNTY 
  EXCEPT FOR THE SURPRISE VALLEY.

* WIND...SOUTHWEST WINDS 10 TO 15 MPH WITH GUSTS TO 25 MPH ARE
  EXPECTED.

* HUMIDITY...MINIMUM RELATIVE HUMIDITIES WILL BE 5 TO 10 
  PERCENT WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING. 

* IMPACTS...THESE GUSTY WINDS AND LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITIES 
  CREATE THE POTENTIAL FOR EXPLOSIVE WIND DRIVEN FIRE GROWTH. 

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A RED FLAG WARNING MEANS THAT CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS
ARE EITHER OCCURRING NOW...OR WILL SHORTLY. THESE CONDITIONS WILL
CREATE THE POTENTIAL FOR EXPLOSIVE FIRE GROWTH.

&&

$$


VISIT US AT WWW.WEATHER.GOV/MEDFORD
835 
WWUS86 KMFR 052156
RFWMFR

URGENT - FIRE WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEDFORD OR
256 PM PDT WED SEP 5 2012

CAZ285-060400-
/O.CON.KMFR.FW.W.0015.120905T2200Z-120906T0400Z/
MODOC COUNTY EXCEPT FOR THE SURPRISE VALLEY-
256 PM PDT WED SEP 5 2012

...RED FLAG WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 9 PM PDT THIS EVENING
   FOR COMBINATION OF STRONG WINDS AND LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITIES FOR
   FIRE ZONE 285...INCLUDING THE MODOC NATIONAL FOREST...

* AFFECTED AREA: FIRE ZONE 285...WHICH INCLUDES MODOC COUNTY 
  EXCEPT FOR THE SURPRISE VALLEY.

* WIND...SOUTHWEST WINDS 10 TO 15 MPH WITH GUSTS TO 25 MPH.

* HUMIDITY...MINIMUM RELATIVE HUMIDITIES OF 3 TO 10 PERCENT
  WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING.

* IMPACTS...THESE GUSTY WINDS AND LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITIES 
  CREATE THE POTENTIAL FOR EXPLOSIVE WIND DRIVEN FIRE GROWTH.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A RED FLAG WARNING MEANS THAT CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS
ARE EITHER OCCURRING NOW...OR WILL SHORTLY. THESE CONDITIONS WILL
CREATE THE POTENTIAL FOR EXPLOSIVE FIRE GROWTH.

&&

$$

VISIT US AT WWW.WEATHER.GOV/MEDFORD

STOCKTON
510 
WWUS86 KMFR 060342
RFWMFR

URGENT - FIRE WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEDFORD OR
842 PM PDT WED SEP 5 2012


CAZ285-060445-
/O.EXP.KMFR.FW.W.0015.000000T0000Z-120906T0400Z/
MODOC COUNTY EXCEPT FOR THE SURPRISE VALLEY-
842 PM PDT WED SEP 5 2012

...RED FLAG WARNING WILL EXPIRE AT 9 PM PDT THIS EVENING FOR
COMBINATION OF STRONG WINDS AND LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITIES FOR   
FIRE ZONE 285...INCLUDING THE MODOC NATIONAL FOREST...

THE RED FLAG WARNING WILL EXPIRE AT 9 PM PDT THIS EVENING. 

WINDS ARE DIMINISHING AND HUMIDITIES ARE GRADUALLY RECOVERING
OVER FIRE WEATHER ZONE 285.

$$

SK
VISIT US AT WWW.WEATHER.GOV/MEDFORD

The office that day

Everything else NWS Medford, OR issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Sep 4, 6:12 AM PDTFire Weather WatchMFRModoc8 hr

Nearby

Red Flag Warnings in California, 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.