Alert archive / Minnesota / Tornado Warnings in 2012

Tornado Warning 22, NWS Twin Cities, MN

May 4, 2012Martin County, Minnesota

NWS Twin Cities, MN issued this tornado warning at May 4, 2012, 3:10 PM CDT for Martin County, Minnesota. It was in force for 35 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 4, 2012, 3:10 PM CDT (20:10 UTC)
Expired: May 4, 2012, 3:45 PM CDT
In force: 35 min
Issued by: NWS Twin Cities, MN
Area: Storm-based polygon

County Martin County, MN

The radar

The Minneapolis radar (KMPX), 161 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 20:13 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
May 4, 3:45 PM CDT	HAIL 1	1 Ne Alpha, MN
May 4, 3:45 PM CDT	TORNADO	3 N Sherburn, MN
May 4, 3:52 PM CDT	HAIL 1	6 W Sherburn, MN

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 4, 2:00 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Watch	SPC	9 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Minneapolis, MN (KMPX), launched 12:00Z, 8.2 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: 0 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL: 1101 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 38 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: -52 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 15 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.

243 
WFUS53 KMPX 042010
TORMPX
MNC091-042045-
/O.NEW.KMPX.TO.W.0022.120504T2010Z-120504T2045Z/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TWIN CITIES/CHANHASSEN MN
310 PM CDT FRI MAY 4 2012

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN THE TWIN CITIES HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  WESTERN MARTIN COUNTY IN SOUTH CENTRAL MINNESOTA...

* UNTIL 345 PM CDT

* AT 305 PM CDT...TRAINED WEATHER SPOTTERS REPORTED A TORNADO JUST   
  WEST OF JACKSON IN JACKSON COUNTY OF SOUTHWEST MINNESOTA.       
  RADAR SHOWED THE TORNADIC STORM MOVING EAST AT 30 MPH. THIS STORM
  COULD ALSO PRODUCE SOME VERY LARGE HAIL. 

* LOCATIONS IN THE WARNING INCLUDE...
  FAIRMONT...
  DUNNELL...
  SHERBURN...
  CEYLON...
  TRIMONT...
  WELCOME...
  FOXLAKE...
  WILBERT...

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

IF IN MOBILE HOMES OR VEHICLES...EVACUATE THEM AND GET INSIDE A
STURDY SHELTER. IF NO SHELTER IS AVAILABLE...LIE FLAT IN THE NEAREST
DITCH OR OTHER LOW SPOT AND COVER YOUR HEAD WITH YOUR HANDS.

&&

LAT...LON 4351 9486 4380 9487 4381 9484 4384 9444
      4350 9443
TIME...MOT...LOC 2009Z 253DEG 27KT 4366 9501

$$

BAP

The office that day

Everything else NWS Twin Cities, MN issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
May 3, 7:00 PM CDT	Special Weather Statement	MPX	Goodhue	30 min
May 4, 2:07 PM CDT	Special Weather Statement	MPX	Redwood	38 min
May 4, 2:33 PM CDT	Special Weather Statement	MPX	Blue Earth, Martin, Watonwan	57 min
May 4, 3:40 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	MPX	Martin	50 min
May 4, 4:07 PM CDT	Special Weather Statement	MPX	Blue Earth, Waseca, Watonwan	38 min
May 4, 4:22 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MPX	Faribault, Martin	38 min
May 4, 4:32 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MPX	Martin	13 min
May 4, 5:00 PM CDT	Special Weather Statement	MPX	Faribault	45 min
May 4, 5:41 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MPX	Faribault, Freeborn	49 min
May 4, 5:52 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	MPX	Faribault, Freeborn	23 min
May 4, 6:15 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MPX	Freeborn	45 min
May 4, 6:21 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	MPX	Freeborn	24 min
May 4, 6:24 PM CDT	Areal Flood Advisory	MPX	Blue Earth, Faribault, Martin, Watonwan	3 hr

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Minnesota, 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.