Alert archive / North Dakota / Tornado Watches in 2018

Tornado Watch 177

June 14, 201816 counties in North Dakota

The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at Jun 14, 2018, 3:40 PM CDT for 16 counties in North Dakota. It was in force for 7 hr.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
Jun 14, 2018, 3:40 PM CDT (20:40 UTC)
Expired
Jun 14, 2018, 11:00 PM CDT
In force
7 hr
Issued by
the Storm Prediction Center
Largest hail expected
3 in
Strongest gust expected
60 kt

Counties Bottineau County, ND, Burke County, ND, Divide County, ND, Dunn County, ND, McHenry County, ND, McKenzie County, ND, McLean County, ND, Mercer County, ND, Mountrail County, ND, Oliver County, ND, Pierce County, ND, Renville County, ND, Rolette County, ND, Sheridan County, ND, Ward County, ND, Williams County, ND

The radar

The Minot AFB radar (KMBX), 102 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 20:43 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 SPC expected

The probabilities SPC published with the watch, for the watch area over its life.

Two or more tornadoes
70%
One or more EF2 to EF5 tornadoes
50%
Ten or more severe wind reports
40%
One or more gusts of 65 knots or more
20%
Ten or more severe hail reports
80%
One or more hailstones of 2 inches or more
80%
Six or more combined severe hail and wind reports
95%

Warnings issued inside it

16 tornado, severe thunderstorm and flash flood warnings for its counties while it was in force.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jun 14, 3:59 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBISPierce, Rolette61 min
Jun 14, 4:43 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBISBurke, Divide62 min
Jun 14, 5:42 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBISBurke, Renville63 min
Jun 14, 6:28 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBISBurke, Renville47 min
Jun 14, 7:01 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBISBottineau59 min
Jun 14, 7:40 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBISMountrail, Ward65 min
Jun 14, 7:44 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBISBottineau61 min
Jun 14, 8:11 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBISRolette64 min
Jun 14, 8:27 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBISDunn, Mercer63 min
Jun 14, 8:43 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBISBottineau, Pierce, Rolette62 min
Jun 14, 9:04 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBISWard56 min
Jun 14, 9:23 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBISDunn, McKenzie, McLean, Mountrail67 min
Jun 14, 9:34 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBISMcLean, Mercer18 min
Jun 14, 9:44 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBISPierce, Rolette33 min
Jun 14, 9:59 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBISMcHenry, Ward61 min
Jun 14, 10:41 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBISPierce37 min

Discussions around it

SPC mesoscale discussions over the same counties from four hours before the watch to its end.

The nearest sounding before it

Bismarck Municip, ND (KBIS), launched 12:00Z, 8.7 hours before the alert went out and 219 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, Bismarck Municip, ND at 12:00Z on 2018-06-14Temperature 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°0°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Bismarck Municip, ND at 12:00Z on 2018-06-14The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 84 square meters per square second.19395878Sfc1 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
1545 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
45 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
84 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
90 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
-0.1

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted.

465 
WWUS20 KWNS 142021
SEL7  
SPC WW 142021
NDZ000-150400-

URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
Tornado Watch Number 177
NWS Storm Prediction Center Norman OK
325 PM CDT Thu Jun 14 2018

The NWS Storm Prediction Center has issued a

* Tornado Watch for portions of 
  Northwest and north-central North Dakota

* Effective this Thursday afternoon and evening from 325 PM until
  1100 PM CDT.

* Primary threats include...
  A few tornadoes likely with a couple intense tornadoes possible
  Widespread large hail and scattered very large hail events to 3
    inches in diameter likely
  Scattered damaging wind gusts to 70 mph possible

SUMMARY...A few intense thunderstorms are expected to develop near
the Montana, Saskatchewan, and North Dakota border area and move
east across northwest and north-central portions of the state
through this evening. A long-track supercell or two is anticipated
producing very large hail and a few tornadoes.

The tornado watch area is approximately along and 80 statute miles
either side of a line from 20 miles south southwest of Williston ND
to 75 miles east northeast of Minot ND. For a complete depiction of
the watch see the associated watch outline update (WOUS64 KWNS
WOU7).

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

REMEMBER...A Tornado Watch means conditions are favorable for
tornadoes and severe thunderstorms in and close to the watch
area. Persons in these areas should be on the lookout for
threatening weather conditions and listen for later statements
and possible warnings.

&&

AVIATION...Tornadoes and a few severe thunderstorms with hail
surface and aloft to 3 inches. Extreme turbulence and surface wind
gusts to 60 knots. A few cumulonimbi with maximum tops to 550. Mean
storm motion vector 27035.

...Grams

SPC that day

Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jun 14, 2:54 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBenson, Bottineau, Burke, Divide, McHenry, McKenzie and 9 more96 min
Jun 14, 2:58 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAdams, Grant, Hettinger62 min
Jun 14, 3:40 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCAdams, Bowman, Burleigh, Emmons, Grant, Hettinger and 7 more8 hr
Jun 14, 5:27 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCCavalier, Pembina, Towner93 min
Jun 14, 6:15 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAdams, Bowman, Burleigh, Emmons, Grant, Hettinger and 4 more90 min
Jun 14, 6:41 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBillings, Bottineau, Burke, Divide, Dunn, McHenry and 11 more94 min

Nearby

Tornado Watches in North Dakota, 2018Every tornado watch in 2018

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.