Alert archive / Kansas / Red Flag Warnings in 2016

Red Flag Warning 4, NWS Topeka, KS

February 29, 201623 counties in Kansas

NWS Topeka, KS issued this red flag warning at Feb 29, 2016, 9:39 AM CST for 23 counties in Kansas. It took effect at Feb 29, 2016, 1:00 PM CST. It was in force for 5 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
Feb 29, 2016, 9:39 AM CST (15:39 UTC)
In effect from
Feb 29, 2016, 1:00 PM CST
Expired
Feb 29, 2016, 6:00 PM CST
In force
5 hr
Issued by
NWS Topeka, KS
All 23 counties

Anderson County, KS, Brown County, KS, Clay County, KS, Cloud County, KS, Coffey County, KS, Dickinson County, KS, Douglas County, KS, Franklin County, KS, Geary County, KS, Jackson County, KS, Jefferson County, KS, Lyon County, KS, Marshall County, KS, Morris County, KS, Nemaha County, KS, Osage County, KS, Ottawa County, KS, Pottawatomie County, KS, Republic County, KS, Riley County, KS, Shawnee County, KS, Wabaunsee County, KS, Washington County, KS

The radar

The Topeka radar (KTWX), 16 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 15:42 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

Topeka, KS (KFOE), launched 12:00Z, 3.7 hours before the alert went out and 61 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, Topeka, KS at 12:00Z on 2016-02-29Temperature 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, Topeka, KS at 12:00Z on 2016-02-29The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 179 square meters per square second.193958Sfc1 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
2281 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
39 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
179 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
165 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted.

932 
WWUS83 KTOP 291539
RFWTOP

URGENT - FIRE WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TOPEKA KS
939 AM CST MON FEB 29 2016

KSZ008>012-020>024-026-034>040-054>056-058-059-010000-
/O.NEW.KTOP.FW.W.0004.160229T1900Z-160301T0000Z/
REPUBLIC-WASHINGTON-MARSHALL-NEMAHA-BROWN-CLOUD-CLAY-RILEY-
POTTAWATOMIE-JACKSON-JEFFERSON-OTTAWA-DICKINSON-GEARY-MORRIS-
WABAUNSEE-SHAWNEE-DOUGLAS-LYON-OSAGE-FRANKLIN-COFFEY-ANDERSON-
939 AM CST MON FEB 29 2016

...RED FLAG WARNING IN EFFECT FROM 1 PM THIS AFTERNOON TO 6 PM
CST THIS EVENING FOR LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITIES...WINDY CONDITIONS
AND DRY FUELS FOR FIRE WEATHER ZONES
008...009...010...011...012...020...021...022...023...024...026...
034...035...036...037...038...039...040...054...055...056... 058
AND 059...

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN TOPEKA HAS ISSUED A RED FLAG
WARNING...WHICH IS IN EFFECT FROM 1 PM THIS AFTERNOON TO 6 PM CST
THIS EVENING. 

* AFFECTED AREA...FIRE WEATHER ZONES 008...009...010...011... 
  012...020...021...022...023...024...026...034...035...036... 
  037...038...039...040...054...055...056...058 AND 059. 

* WIND...SOUTHWEST WINDS SUSTAINED AT 10 TO 20 MPH WITH GUSTS UP
  TO 30 MPH. BY LATE AFTERNOON...WINDS SHIFT TO THE WEST AT 10 TO
  20 MPH OVER NORTH CENTRAL KANSAS...BECOMING NORTHWEST AT AROUND
  10 MPH THIS EVENING. 

* HUMIDITY...MINIMUM RELATIVE HUMIDITY VALUES RANGE FROM AROUND 18
  PERCENT TO 22 PERCENT THROUGH THE AFTERNOON.

* HIGHEST THREAT...IS LOCATED FROM REPUBLIC THROUGH OTTAWA
  COUNTIES WHERE RELATIVE HUMIDITY VALUES ARE EXPECTED TO BE
  LOWEST. 

* IMPACTS...ANY FIRES THAT DEVELOP WILL LIKELY SPREAD RAPIDLY. 
  OUTDOOR BURNING IS NOT RECOMMENDED.

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 MAY
LEAD TO EXTREME FIRE BEHAVIOR.

&&

$$
1 follow-up statement
616 
WWUS83 KTOP 292358
RFWTOP

URGENT - FIRE WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TOPEKA KS
558 PM CST MON FEB 29 2016

KSZ008>012-020>024-026-034>040-054>056-058-059-010100-
/O.EXP.KTOP.FW.W.0004.000000T0000Z-160301T0000Z/
REPUBLIC-WASHINGTON-MARSHALL-NEMAHA-BROWN-CLOUD-CLAY-RILEY-
POTTAWATOMIE-JACKSON-JEFFERSON-OTTAWA-DICKINSON-GEARY-MORRIS-
WABAUNSEE-SHAWNEE-DOUGLAS-LYON-OSAGE-FRANKLIN-COFFEY-ANDERSON-
558 PM CST MON FEB 29 2016

...RED FLAG WARNING WILL EXPIRE AT 6 PM CST THIS EVENING FOR FIRE
WEATHER ZONES 008...009...010...011...
012...020...021...022...023...024...026...034...035...036...037...
038...039...040...054...055...056...058 AND 059...

RELATIVE HUMIDITY VALUES WILL CONTINUE TO RISE THIS EVENING WHILE
GUSTY WINDS HAVE BRIEFLY SUBSIDED. WINDS WILL SHIFT FROM THE
NORTHWEST BY 10 PM BECOMING GUSTY AGAIN OVERNIGHT BEHIND THE COLD
FRONT...WITH GUSTS UP TO 25 MPH POSSIBLE.

$$

Nearby

Red Flag Warnings in Kansas, 2016Every red flag warning in 2016

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.