Alert archive / Oregon / Tornado Warnings in 2012

Tornado Warning 1, NWS Pendleton, OR

July 18, 2012Union County, Wallowa County, Oregon

NWS Pendleton, OR issued this tornado warning at Jul 18, 2012, 6:39 PM PDT for Union County, Wallowa County, Oregon. It was in force for 51 min. 2 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: Jul 18, 2012, 6:39 PM PDT (01:39 UTC)
Expired: Jul 18, 2012, 7:30 PM PDT
In force: 51 min
Issued by: NWS Pendleton, OR
Area: Storm-based polygon

Counties Union County, OR, Wallowa County, OR

The radar

The Pendleton radar (KPDT), 90 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 01:41 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
Jul 18, 6:40 PM PDT	HAIL 2	5 Nw Cove, OR	HAIL STILL GOING AT 755 PM
Jul 18, 7:40 PM PDT	HAIL 0.5	7 Ese Elgin, OR

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

The nearest sounding before it

Boise Airport, ID (KBOI), launched 00:00Z, 1.7 hours before the alert went out and 243 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: 3713 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 31 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 26 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 80 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.

819 
WFUS56 KPDT 190139
TORPDT
ORC061-063-190230-
/O.NEW.KPDT.TO.W.0001.120719T0139Z-120719T0230Z/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PENDLETON OR
639 PM PDT WED JUL 18 2012

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN PENDLETON HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  CENTRAL UNION COUNTY IN NORTHEAST OREGON...
  WEST CENTRAL WALLOWA COUNTY IN NORTHEAST OREGON...

* UNTIL 730 PM PDT

* AT 636 PM PDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM PRODUCING A TORNADO NEAR COVE...OR 13 MILES
  EAST OF LA GRANDE...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 25 MPH.

* THE TORNADO WILL OTHERWISE REMAIN OVER MAINLY RURAL AREAS OF THE
  INDICATED COUNTIES.

WHEN A TORNADO WARNING IS ISSUED BASED ON DOPPLER RADAR...IT MEANS
THAT STRONG ROTATION HAS BEEN DETECTED IN THE STORM. A TORNADO MAY
ALREADY BE ON THE GROUND...OR IS EXPECTED TO DEVELOP SHORTLY. IF YOU
ARE IN THE PATH OF THIS DANGEROUS STORM...MOVE INDOORS AND TO THE
LOWEST LEVEL OF THE BUILDING. STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS. IF DRIVING...DO
NOT SEEK SHELTER UNDER A HIGHWAY OVERPASS.

THE SAFEST PLACE TO BE DURING A TORNADO IS IN A BASEMENT. GET UNDER A
WORKBENCH OR OTHER PIECE OF STURDY FURNITURE. IF NO BASEMENT IS
AVAILABLE...SEEK SHELTER ON THE LOWEST FLOOR OF THE BUILDING IN AN
INTERIOR HALLWAY OR ROOM SUCH AS A CLOSET. USE BLANKETS OR PILLOWS TO
COVER YOUR BODY AND ALWAYS STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS.

IF YOU EXPERIENCE SEVERE WEATHER PLEASE CONTACT THE NATIONAL WEATHER
SERVICE IN PENDLETON AT 1...8...0...0...2...4...0...4...5...2...7.

LAT...LON 4557 11774 4543 11739 4529 11783 4543 11800
TIME...MOT...LOC 0139Z 231DEG 23KT 4537 11779

$$

DGW

2 follow-up statements

785 
WWUS56 KPDT 190159
SVSPDT

SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PENDLETON OR
659 PM PDT WED JUL 18 2012

ORC061-063-190230-
/O.CON.KPDT.TO.W.0001.000000T0000Z-120719T0230Z/
UNION OR-WALLOWA OR-
659 PM PDT WED JUL 18 2012

...A TORNADO WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 730 PM PDT FOR WEST
CENTRAL WALLOWA AND CENTRAL UNION COUNTIES...

AT 654 PM PDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR CONTINUED TO 
INDICATE A TORNADO.  THIS TORNADO WAS LOCATED OVER EAST CENTRAL 
UNION COUNTY...OR 21 MILES EAST OF LA GRANDE...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 
25 MPH.

THE TORNADO WILL OTHERWISE REMAIN OVER MAINLY RURAL AREAS OF THE
INDICATED COUNTY.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

WHEN A TORNADO WARNING IS ISSUED BASED ON DOPPLER RADAR...IT MEANS
THAT STRONG ROTATION HAS BEEN DETECTED IN THE STORM. A TORNADO MAY
ALREADY BE ON THE GROUND...OR IS EXPECTED TO DEVELOP SHORTLY. IF YOU
ARE IN THE PATH OF THIS DANGEROUS STORM...MOVE INDOORS AND TO THE
LOWEST LEVEL OF THE BUILDING. STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS. IF DRIVING...DO
NOT SEEK SHELTER UNDER A HIGHWAY OVERPASS.

THE SAFEST PLACE TO BE DURING A TORNADO IS IN A BASEMENT. GET UNDER A
WORKBENCH OR OTHER PIECE OF STURDY FURNITURE. IF NO BASEMENT IS
AVAILABLE...SEEK SHELTER ON THE LOWEST FLOOR OF THE BUILDING IN AN
INTERIOR HALLWAY OR ROOM SUCH AS A CLOSET. USE BLANKETS OR PILLOWS TO
COVER YOUR BODY AND ALWAYS STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS.

&&

LAT...LON 4548 11757 4536 11778 4543 11800 4557 11774
TIME...MOT...LOC 0158Z 231DEG 23KT 4545 11766

$$

DGW

171 
WWUS56 KPDT 190229
SVSPDT

SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PENDLETON OR
729 PM PDT WED JUL 18 2012

ORC061-063-190235-
/O.EXP.KPDT.TO.W.0001.000000T0000Z-120719T0230Z/
UNION OR-WALLOWA OR-
729 PM PDT WED JUL 18 2012

...THE TORNADO WARNING FOR WEST CENTRAL WALLOWA AND CENTRAL UNION 
COUNTIES WILL EXPIRE AT 730 PM PDT...

LAT...LON 4548 11757 4536 11778 4543 11800 4557 11774
TIME...MOT...LOC 0225Z 231DEG 23KT 4556 11747

$$

DGW

The office that day

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

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Jul 18, 5:00 PM PDT	Special Weather Statement	PDT	Umatilla	30 min
Jul 18, 5:35 PM PDT	Special Weather Statement	PDT	Union	25 min
Jul 18, 5:51 PM PDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	PDT	Union, Wallowa	54 min
Jul 18, 6:15 PM PDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	PDT	Union	60 min
Jul 18, 7:12 PM PDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	PDT	Union, Wallowa	48 min
Jul 18, 7:17 PM PDT	Special Weather Statement	PDT	Grant	58 min
Jul 19, 2:15 PM PDT	Special Weather Statement	PDT	Grant	60 min
Jul 19, 3:20 PM PDT	Special Weather Statement	PDT	Umatilla	55 min
Jul 19, 3:31 PM PDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	PDT	Grant, Umatilla, Union	59 min
Jul 19, 4:17 PM PDT	Special Weather Statement	PDT	Morrow	58 min
Jul 19, 4:59 PM PDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	PDT	Morrow, Umatilla	61 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Oregon, 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.