Alert archive / Minnesota / Tornado Warnings in 2015

Tornado Warning 42, NWS Grand Forks, ND

July 12, 2015Otter Tail County, Wilkin County, Minnesota

NWS Grand Forks, ND issued this tornado warning at Jul 12, 2015, 4:36 PM CDT for Otter Tail County, Wilkin County, Minnesota. It was in force for 39 min. 1 report 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 12, 2015, 4:36 PM CDT (21:36 UTC)
Expired: Jul 12, 2015, 5:15 PM CDT
In force: 39 min
Issued by: NWS Grand Forks, ND
Area: Storm-based polygon
Tornado: Radar indicated
Hail: 1.5 in

Counties Otter Tail County, MN, Wilkin County, MN

The radar

The Fargo/Grand Forks radar (KMVX), 161 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 21:40 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 12, 5:01 PM CDT	FUNNEL CLOUD	Elizabeth, MN	POSSIBLE TOUCHDOWN NEAR ELIZABETH.

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
Jul 12, 3:06 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Watch	SPC	7 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Aberdeen, SD (KABR), launched 12:00Z, 9.6 hours before the alert went out and 251 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: 871 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -318 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 2134 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 38 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 194 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 166 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.

739 
WFUS53 KFGF 122136
TORFGF
MNC111-167-122215-
/O.NEW.KFGF.TO.W.0042.150712T2136Z-150712T2215Z/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EASTERN ND/GRAND FORKS ND
436 PM CDT SUN JUL 12 2015

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN GRAND FORKS HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  EAST CENTRAL WILKIN COUNTY IN WEST CENTRAL MINNESOTA...
  CENTRAL OTTER TAIL COUNTY IN WEST CENTRAL MINNESOTA...

* UNTIL 515 PM CDT
    
* AT 435 PM CDT...A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A
  TORNADO WAS LOCATED OVER CARLISLE...OR 10 MILES NORTHWEST OF FERGUS
  FALLS...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 30 MPH.

  HAZARD...TORNADO AND PING PONG BALL SIZE HAIL. 

  SOURCE...RADAR INDICATED ROTATION. 

  IMPACT...EXPECT DAMAGE TO MOBILE HOMES...ROOFS AND VEHICLES. 

* THIS DANGEROUS STORM WILL BE NEAR...
  ELIZABETH AROUND 440 PM CDT.
  ERHARD AROUND 445 PM CDT.
  SOUTHERN LAKE LIDA...MAPLEWOOD STATE PARK AND EDWARDS AROUND 450 PM
  CDT.
  STAR LAKE AND BIG MCDONALD LAKE AROUND 500 PM CDT.
  DENT AND RICHVILLE AROUND 505 PM CDT.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

TO REPORT SEVERE WEATHER CONTACT YOUR NEAREST LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY.
THEY WILL SEND YOUR REPORT TO THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OFFICE IN
GRAND FORKS.

IF ON OR NEAR OTTER TAIL LAKE...GET AWAY FROM THE WATER AND MOVE TO 
SAFE SHELTER IMMEDIATELY. IF YOU CAN HEAR THUNDER...YOU ARE CLOSE 
ENOUGH TO BE STRUCK BY LIGHTNING. SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS CAN PRODUCE 
LARGE CAPSIZING WAVES...EVEN ON SMALL BODIES OF WATER. MOVE INTO 
DOCK AND SEEK SAFE SHELTER NOW. DO NOT BE CAUGHT ON THE WATER IN A 
THUNDERSTORM.

&&

LAT...LON 4642 9641 4672 9557 4625 9525 4623 9630
TIME...MOT...LOC 2135Z 245DEG 51KT 4638 9624 

TORNADO...RADAR INDICATED
HAIL...1.50IN

$$
SPEICHER

1 follow-up statement

057 
WWUS53 KFGF 122200
SVSFGF

SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EASTERN ND/GRAND FORKS ND
500 PM CDT SUN JUL 12 2015

MNC111-167-122215-
/O.CON.KFGF.TO.W.0042.000000T0000Z-150712T2215Z/
WILKIN MN-OTTER TAIL MN-
500 PM CDT SUN JUL 12 2015

...A TORNADO WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 515 PM CDT FOR EAST
CENTRAL WILKIN AND CENTRAL OTTER TAIL COUNTIES...
        
AT 459 PM CDT...A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A TORNADO
WAS LOCATED OVER CARLISLE...OR 9 MILES NORTHWEST OF FERGUS FALLS...
MOVING EAST AT 15 MPH.

HAZARD...TORNADO AND PING PONG BALL SIZE HAIL. 

SOURCE...WEATHER SPOTTERS REPORTED A ROTATING WALL CLOUD. 

IMPACT...EXPECT DAMAGE TO MOBILE HOMES...ROOFS AND VEHICLES. 

THIS DANGEROUS STORM WILL BE NEAR...
  FERGUS FALLS AND ELIZABETH AROUND 505 PM CDT.
  ERHARD...EDWARDS AND SOUTHWESTERN MAPLEWOOD STATE PARK AROUND 515
PM CDT.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

IF A TORNADO OR OTHER SEVERE WEATHER IS SPOTTED...REPORT IT TO THE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OR YOUR LOCAL NEAREST LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY
WHO WILL SEND YOUR REPORT. THIS ACT MAY SAVE LIVES OF OTHERS IN THE
PATH OF DANGEROUS WEATHER.

IF ON OR NEAR OTTER TAIL LAKE...GET AWAY FROM THE WATER AND MOVE TO 
SAFE SHELTER IMMEDIATELY. IF YOU CAN HEAR THUNDER...YOU ARE CLOSE 
ENOUGH TO BE STRUCK BY LIGHTNING. SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS CAN PRODUCE 
LARGE CAPSIZING WAVES...EVEN ON SMALL BODIES OF WATER. MOVE INTO 
DOCK AND SEEK SAFE SHELTER NOW. DO NOT BE CAUGHT ON THE WATER IN A 
THUNDERSTORM.

&&

LAT...LON 4642 9641 4672 9557 4625 9525 4623 9630
TIME...MOT...LOC 2159Z 248DEG 14KT 4640 9617 

TORNADO...RADAR INDICATED
HAIL...1.50IN

$$
SPEICHER

The office that day

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

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Jul 12, 4:50 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FGF	Marshall, Pennington, Polk	55 min
Jul 12, 6:25 AM CDT	Special Weather Statement	FGF	Roseau	65 min
Jul 12, 6:48 AM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FGF	Lake of the Woods	42 min
Jul 12, 7:21 AM CDT	Special Weather Statement	FGF	Beltrami	54 min
Jul 12, 7:28 AM CDT	Special Weather Statement	FGF	Lake of the Woods	32 min
Jul 12, 8:23 AM CDT	Special Weather Statement	FGF	Beltrami	67 min
Jul 12, 3:53 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	FGF	Clay, Otter Tail, Wilkin	52 min
Jul 12, 4:03 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	FGF	Polk	42 min
Jul 12, 4:21 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	FGF	Becker, Clay, Otter Tail, Wilkin	39 min
Jul 12, 4:46 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FGF	Kittson, Marshall	59 min
Jul 12, 4:49 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FGF	Marshall, Polk	43 min
Jul 12, 5:04 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	FGF	Kittson, Marshall	41 min
Jul 12, 5:07 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	FGF	Grant, Otter Tail, Wilkin	38 min
Jul 12, 5:18 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	FGF	Becker, Otter Tail, Wadena, Wilkin	42 min
Jul 12, 5:37 PM CDT	Tornado Warning Tornado observed	FGF	Grant, Otter Tail, Wilkin	38 min
Jul 12, 5:40 PM CDT	Areal Flood Advisory	FGF	Marshall	12 hr
Jul 12, 5:43 PM CDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FGF	Kittson, Marshall, Pennington, Roseau	62 min
Jul 12, 5:49 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	FGF	Otter Tail, Wadena	41 min
Jul 12, 6:08 PM CDT	Areal Flood Advisory	FGF	Otter Tail	12 hr
Jul 12, 6:15 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	FGF	Grant, Otter Tail	45 min
Jul 12, 6:23 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	FGF	Clay, Wilkin	52 min
Jul 12, 6:25 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	FGF	Otter Tail, Wadena	50 min
Jul 12, 6:56 PM CDT	Tornado Warning	FGF	Grant	49 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Minnesota, 2015 Every tornado warning in 2015 Tornadoes 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; local storm reports from the same archive; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.