Alert archive / Colorado / Red Flag Warnings in 2012

Red Flag Warning 40, NWS Pueblo, CO

October 18, 2012El Paso County, Kiowa County, Prowers County, Colorado

NWS Pueblo, CO issued this red flag warning at Oct 18, 2012, 3:26 AM MDT for El Paso County, Kiowa County, Prowers County, Colorado. It took effect at Oct 18, 2012, 12:00 PM MDT. 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
Oct 18, 2012, 3:26 AM MDT (09:26 UTC)
In effect from
Oct 18, 2012, 12:00 PM MDT
Expired
Oct 18, 2012, 6:08 PM MDT
In force
6 hr
Issued by
NWS Pueblo, CO

Counties El Paso County, CO, Kiowa County, CO, Prowers County, CO

The radar

The Pueblo radar (KPUX), 84 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 09:29 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

Denver, CO (KDNR), launched 00:00Z, 9.4 hours before the alert went out and 163 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, Denver, CO at 00:00Z on 2012-10-18Temperature 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 km-30°-20°-10°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Denver, CO at 00:00Z on 2012-10-18The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 119 square meters per square second.1939587897117136156Sfc1 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
3596 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
95 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
119 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
290 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.

146 
WWUS85 KPUB 180926
RFWPUB

URGENT - FIRE WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PUEBLO CO
326 AM MDT THU OCT 18 2012

...A RED FLAG WARNING IS IN EFFECT FOR GUSTY WINDS...LOW
HUMIDITIES AND DRY FUELS...FROM NOON UNTIL 7 PM TODAY...FOR FIRE
WEATHER ZONES 226...234 AND 236...WHICH INCLUDES NORTHERN EL
PASO...KIOWA AND PROWERS COUNTIES...

COZ226-234-236-190100-
/O.NEW.KPUB.FW.W.0040.121018T1800Z-121019T0100Z/
NORTHERN EL PASO COUNTY-KIOWA COUNTY-PROWERS COUNTY-
326 AM MDT THU OCT 18 2012

...RED FLAG WARNING IN EFFECT FROM NOON TODAY TO 7 PM MDT THIS
EVENING FOR GUSTY WINDS...LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY AND DRY FUELS FOR FIRE
WEATHER ZONES 226...234 AND 236...

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN PUEBLO HAS ISSUED A RED FLAG
WARNING FOR GUSTY WINDS...LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY AND DRY FUELS...WHICH
IS IN EFFECT FROM NOON TODAY TO 7 PM MDT THIS EVENING.

* AFFECTED AREA...FIRE WEATHER ZONES 226...234 AND 236.

* WINDS...NORTHWEST 15 TO 25 MPH...WITH GUSTS AROUND 30 MPH IN
  NORTHERN EL PASO COUNTY...AND GUSTS UP TO 40 MPH IN KIOWA AND
  PROWERS COUNTIES.

* RELATIVE HUMIDITY...AS LOW AS 11 PERCENT.

* IMPACTS...EXTREME FIRE BEHAVIOR WILL BE POSSIBLE...WITH RAPID
  RATES OF FIRE GROWTH AND SPREAD WITH ANY FIRE STARTS.

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 WARM TEMPERATURES WILL
CREATE EXPLOSIVE FIRE GROWTH POTENTIAL.

&&

$$
2 follow-up statements
696 
WWUS85 KPUB 182116
RFWPUB

URGENT - FIRE WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PUEBLO CO
316 PM MDT THU OCT 18 2012

...A RED FLAG WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR GUSTY WINDS...LOW
HUMIDITIES AND DRY FUELS UNTIL 7 PM THIS EVENING...FOR FIRE 
WEATHER ZONES 226...234 AND 236...WHICH INCLUDES NORTHERN EL
PASO...KIOWA AND PROWERS COUNTIES...

COZ226-234-236-190100-
/O.CON.KPUB.FW.W.0040.000000T0000Z-121019T0100Z/
NORTHERN EL PASO COUNTY-KIOWA COUNTY-PROWERS COUNTY-
316 PM MDT THU OCT 18 2012

...RED FLAG WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 7 PM MDT THIS EVENING
FOR GUSTY WINDS...LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY AND DRY FUELS FOR FIRE
WEATHER ZONES 226...234 AND 236...

* AFFECTED AREA...FIRE WEATHER ZONES 226...234 AND 236.

* WINDS...NORTHWEST 15 TO 25 MPH WITH WIND GUSTS UP TO 35 MPH AT TIMES.

* RELATIVE HUMIDITY...AS LOW AS 12 PERCENT.

* IMPACTS...EXTREME FIRE BEHAVIOR WILL BE POSSIBLE...WITH RAPID 
  RATES OF FIRE GROWTH AND SPREAD WITH ANY FIRE STARTS. 

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 WARM TEMPERATURES WILL
CREATE EXPLOSIVE FIRE GROWTH POTENTIAL.

&&

$$
942 
WWUS85 KPUB 190008
RFWPUB

URGENT - FIRE WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PUEBLO CO
608 PM MDT THU OCT 18 2012

...RED FLAG WARNING CANCELED...

COZ226-234-236-190115-
/O.CAN.KPUB.FW.W.0040.000000T0000Z-121019T0100Z/
NORTHERN EL PASO COUNTY-KIOWA COUNTY-PROWERS COUNTY-
608 PM MDT THU OCT 18 2012

...RED FLAG WARNING IS CANCELLED FOR GUSTY WINDS...LOW RELATIVE
HUMIDITY AND DRY FUELS FOR FIRE WEATHER ZONES 226...234 AND 236...

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN PUEBLO HAS CANCELED THE RED FLAG
WARNING.

WINDS ARE GENERALLY LIGHT ACROSS THE AREA...AND CRITICAL FIRE
WEATHER CONDITIONS ARE NO LONGER EXPECTED.

$$

Nearby

Red Flag Warnings in Colorado, 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.