Alert archive / Minnesota / Red Flag Warnings in 2015

Red Flag Warning 2, NWS Grand Forks, ND

April 2, 20157 counties in Minnesota; 5 counties in North Dakota

NWS Grand Forks, ND issued this red flag warning at Apr 2, 2015, 4:05 AM CDT for 7 counties in Minnesota; 5 counties in North Dakota. It took effect at Apr 2, 2015, 12:00 PM CDT. It was in force for 7 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
Apr 2, 2015, 4:05 AM CDT (09:05 UTC)
In effect from
Apr 2, 2015, 12:00 PM CDT
Expired
Apr 2, 2015, 7:00 PM CDT
In force
7 hr
Issued by
NWS Grand Forks, ND

Counties Becker County, MN, Clay County, MN, Grant County, MN, Hubbard County, MN, Otter Tail County, MN, Wadena County, MN, Wilkin County, MN, Barnes County, ND, Cass County, ND, Ransom County, ND, Richland County, ND, Sargent County, ND

The radar

The Fargo/Grand Forks radar (KMVX), 124 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 09:08 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

Aberdeen, SD (KABR), launched 00:00Z, 9.1 hours before the alert went out and 239 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, Aberdeen, SD at 00:00Z on 2015-04-02Temperature 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, Aberdeen, SD at 00:00Z on 2015-04-02The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity -76 square meters per square second.1939587897Sfc1 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
2665 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
62 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
-76 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
81 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.

914 
WWUS83 KFGF 020905
RFWFGF

URGENT - FIRE WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GRAND FORKS ND
405 AM CDT THU APR 2 2015

...CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS THIS AFTERNOON...

.DRY FUELS WILL CONTINUE ACROSS THE REGION TODAY. NORTHWEST WINDS
WILL INCREASE TO 30 MPH WITH GUSTS CLOSE TO 40 MPH AT TIMES THIS
AFTERNOON. THIS WILL BE IN COMBINATION WITH RELATIVE HUMIDITY
VALUES IN THE 25 TO 35 PERCENT RANGE...WHICH WILL MAKE EXPLOSIVE
FIRE GROWTH POSSIBLE.

MNZ003-024-027>032-040-NDZ038-039-049-052-053-021715-
/O.NEW.KFGF.FW.W.0002.150402T1700Z-150403T0000Z/
CLAY-HUBBARD-WEST BECKER-EAST BECKER-WILKIN-WEST OTTER TAIL-
EAST OTTER TAIL-WADENA-GRANT-BARNES-CASS-RANSOM-SARGENT-RICHLAND-
405 AM CDT THU APR 2 2015

...RED FLAG WARNING IN EFFECT FROM NOON TODAY TO 7 PM CDT THIS
EVENING FOR DRY FUELS AND STRONG WINDS FOR SOUTHEASTERN NORTH 
DAKOTA INTO WEST CENTRAL MINNESOTA...

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN GRAND FORKS HAS ISSUED A RED FLAG
WARNING FOR DRY FUELS AND STRONG WINDS...WHICH IS IN EFFECT FROM
NOON TODAY TO 7 PM CDT THIS EVENING.

* AFFECTED AREA...IN MINNESOTA...FIRE WEATHER ZONES 003...024... 
  027...028...029...030...031...032 AND 040. IN NORTH DAKOTA...
  FIRE WEATHER ZONES 038...039...049...052 AND 053.

* WINDS...WEST 25 TO 30 MPH WITH GUSTS UP TO 40 MPH.

* TIMING...CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS DURING THE AFTERNOON
  HOURS. 

* RELATIVE HUMIDITY...25 TO 35 PERCENT WITH SOME SPOTS IN THE 20
  TO 25 PERCENT RANGE. 

* TEMPERATURES...IN THE UPPER 40S.

* IMPACTS...EXTREME FIRE BEHAVIOR POSSIBLE. ANY FIRES MAY SPREAD
  RAPIDLY. 

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
CONTRIBUTE TO EXTREME FIRE BEHAVIOR.

&&

$$

JR
2 follow-up statements
163 
WWUS83 KFGF 022010 AAA
RFWFGF

URGENT - FIRE WEATHER MESSAGE...UPDATED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GRAND FORKS ND
310 PM CDT THU APR 2 2015

...CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS THIS AFTERNOON...

.EXPECT CHANGING CONDITIONS THROUGH THE LATE AFTERNOON AND EARLY
EVENING OVER THE RED FLAG WARNING AREA. A COLD FRONT WILL MOVE
SOUTHEAST THROUGH THE AREA. THIS WILL TURN THE WEST WIND TO A MORE
NORTHWEST DIRECTION AND TEMPERATURES WILL DROP 10 TO 20 DEGREES
VERY QUICKLY. WIND SPEEDS WILL STILL BE IN THE 25 TO 40 MPH RANGE
NEAR AND BEHIND THE FRONT. THERE ARE SOME RAIN SHOWERS AND THEN
SNOW SHOWERS WITH THE FRONT WITH AMOUNTS UNDER ONE TENTH OF AN
INCH. HOWEVER THE CHANGING WIND DIRECTIONS EVEN WITH SOME
PRECIPITATION WILL MAKE FOR DANGEROUS CONITIONS FOR ANY FIRES OR
BURNS THAT ARE OCCURRING. BY 7 PM...EXPECT COOLER WEATHER AND
HIGHER HUMIDITY VALUES OVER ALL AREAS.


MNZ003-024-027>032-040-NDZ038-039-049-052-053-030000-
/O.CON.KFGF.FW.W.0002.000000T0000Z-150403T0000Z/
CLAY-HUBBARD-WEST BECKER-EAST BECKER-WILKIN-WEST OTTER TAIL-
EAST OTTER TAIL-WADENA-GRANT-BARNES-CASS-RANSOM-SARGENT-RICHLAND-
310 PM CDT THU APR 2 2015

...RED FLAG WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 7 PM CDT THIS EVENING
FOR SOUTHEASTERN NORTH DAKOTA AND WEST CENTRAL MINNESOTA...

* AFFECTED AREA...IN MINNESOTA...FIRE WEATHER ZONES 003...024... 
  027...028...029...030...031...032 AND 040. IN NORTH DAKOTA...
  FIRE WEATHER ZONES 038...039...049...052 AND 053.

* WINDS...NORTHWEST 25 TO 35 MPH WITH GUSTS UP TO 50 MPH.

* TIMING...CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS DURING THE AFTERNOON 
  HOURS. 

* RELATIVE HUMIDITY...AS LOW AS 25 PERCENT.

* TEMPERATURES...IN THE UPPER 40S TO LOWER 50S.

* IMPACTS...EXTREME FIRE BEHAVIOR POSSIBLE. ANY FIRES MAY SPREAD 
  RAPIDLY. 

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 DRY FUELS WILL
CONTRIBUTE TO EXTREME FIRE BEHAVIOR.

&&

$$


DTR
984 
WWUS83 KFGF 022347
RFWFGF

URGENT - FIRE WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GRAND FORKS ND
647 PM CDT THU APR 2 2015

...RED FLAG WARNING TO EXPIRE...

.THE RED FLAG WARNING WILL BE ALLOWED TO EXPIRE AT 700 PM AS 
ATMOSPHERIC CONDITIONS ARE NO LONGER CONDUCIVE TO EXTREME FIRE
BEHAVIOR.

MNZ003-024-027>032-040-NDZ038-039-049-052-053-030100-
/O.EXP.KFGF.FW.W.0002.000000T0000Z-150403T0000Z/
CLAY-HUBBARD-WEST BECKER-EAST BECKER-WILKIN-WEST OTTER TAIL-
EAST OTTER TAIL-WADENA-GRANT-BARNES-CASS-RANSOM-SARGENT-RICHLAND-
647 PM CDT THU APR 2 2015

...RED FLAG WARNING WILL EXPIRE AT 7 PM CDT THIS EVENING FOR SOUTHEASTERN
NORTH DAKOTA AND WEST CENTRAL MINNESOTA...


$$
WJB

The office that day

Everything else NWS Grand Forks, ND issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Apr 2, 10:32 AM CDTWind AdvisoryFGFBecker, Clay, Grant, Mahnomen, Norman, Otter Tail and 2 more8 hr

Nearby

Red Flag Warnings in Minnesota, 2015Red Flag Warnings in North Dakota, 2015Every red flag warning in 2015

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.