Alert archive / Colorado / Dust Storm Warnings in 2021

Dust Storm Warning 4, NWS Pueblo, CO

April 6, 2021Alamosa County, Rio Grande County, Saguache County, Colorado

NWS Pueblo, CO issued this dust storm warning at Apr 6, 2021, 2:13 PM MDT for Alamosa County, Rio Grande County, Saguache County, Colorado. It was in force for 92 min. No storm report in the archive falls inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
Apr 6, 2021, 2:13 PM MDT (20:13 UTC)
Expired
Apr 6, 2021, 3:45 PM MDT
In force
92 min
Issued by
NWS Pueblo, CO
Area
Storm-based polygon

Counties Alamosa County, CO, Rio Grande County, CO, Saguache County, CO

The radar

The Pueblo radar (KPUX), 163 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 20:18 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

Grand Junction, CO (KGJT), launched 12:00Z, 8.2 hours before the alert went out and 272 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, Grand Junction, CO at 12:00Z on 2021-04-06Temperature 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, Grand Junction, CO at 12:00Z on 2021-04-06The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 50 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
2733 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
46 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
50 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
73 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted.

427 
WWUS55 KPUB 062018
DSWPUB

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
Dust Storm Warning
National Weather Service Pueblo CO
213 PM MDT Tue Apr 6 2021

COC003-105-109-062145-
/O.NEW.KPUB.DS.W.0004.210406T2013Z-210406T2145Z/
Alamosa CO-Rio Grande CO-Saguache CO-
213 PM MDT Tue Apr 6 2021

The National Weather Service in Pueblo has issued a

* Dust Storm Warning for...
  Northwestern Alamosa County in southeastern Colorado...
  Northeastern Rio Grande County in south central Colorado...
  Southeastern Saguache County in central Colorado...

* Until 345 PM MDT.

* At 213 PM MDT, a plume of dust was located between Hooper and 
  Moffat, or 27 miles north of Alamosa, blowing to the northeast.

  HAZARD...Less than a quarter mile visibility with damaging wind in 
           excess of 60 mph.

  SOURCE...Law enforcement and satellite imagery.

  IMPACT...Dangerous life-threatening travel.

* Highway 17 between Hooper and Moffat will be affected.

Locations impacted include...
Crestone, Moffat, Hooper, Great Sand Dunes and Mosca. 

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

Dust storms lead to dangerous driving conditions with visibility
reduced to near zero. If driving, avoid dust storms if possible. If
caught in one, pull off the road, turn off your lights and keep your
foot off the brake.

Motorists should not drive into a dust storm. PULL ASIDE STAY ALIVE!

&&

LAT...LON 3762 10594 3791 10619 3816 10577 3780 10547
TIME...MOT...LOC 2013Z 240DEG 49KT 3786 10585 

$$

29

The office that day

Everything else NWS Pueblo, CO issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Apr 6, 3:53 AM MDTHigh Wind WatchPUBAlamosa, Bent, Conejos, Costilla, Crowley, Custer and 9 more5 hr
Apr 6, 4:21 AM MDTFire Weather WatchPUBAlamosa, Conejos, Costilla, Rio Grande, Saguache10 hr
Apr 6, 9:18 AM MDTHigh Wind WarningPUBAlamosa, Baca, Bent, Conejos, Costilla, Crowley and 11 more14 hr
Apr 6, 2:45 PM MDTRed Flag WarningPUBAlamosa, Conejos, Costilla, Rio Grande, Saguache29 hr
Apr 6, 3:39 PM MDTBlowing Dust WarningPUBAlamosa, Rio Grande, Saguache5 hr
Apr 6, 5:56 PM MDTDust Storm AdvisoryPUBBent, Las Animas, Otero64 min

Nearby

Dust Storm Warnings in Colorado, 2021Every dust storm warning in 2021

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.