Alert archive / Minnesota / Severe Thunderstorm Watches in 2021

Severe Thunderstorm Watch 277

June 17, 202115 counties in Minnesota; 4 counties in Wisconsin

The Storm Prediction Center issued this severe thunderstorm watch at Jun 17, 2021, 7:22 PM CDT for 15 counties in Minnesota; 4 counties in Wisconsin. It was in force for 4 hr.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
Jun 17, 2021, 7:22 PM CDT (00:22 UTC)
Expired
Jun 17, 2021, 11:51 PM CDT
In force
4 hr
Issued by
the Storm Prediction Center
Largest hail expected
2.5 in
Strongest gust expected
60 kt

Counties Blue Earth County, MN, Brown County, MN, Dakota County, MN, Faribault County, MN, Freeborn County, MN, Goodhue County, MN, Le Sueur County, MN, Martin County, MN, Nicollet County, MN, Rice County, MN, Scott County, MN, Sibley County, MN, Steele County, MN, Waseca County, MN, Watonwan County, MN, Dunn County, WI, Eau Claire County, WI, Pepin County, WI, Pierce County, WI

The radar

The Minneapolis radar (KMPX), 52 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 00:22 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
5%
One or more EF2 to EF5 tornadoes
2%
Ten or more severe wind reports
30%
One or more gusts of 65 knots or more
10%
Ten or more severe hail reports
60%
One or more hailstones of 2 inches or more
50%
Six or more combined severe hail and wind reports
80%

Warnings issued inside it

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jun 17, 7:41 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMPXNicollet, Sibley26 min
Jun 17, 7:44 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMPXGoodhue32 min
Jun 17, 7:50 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMPXGoodhue55 min
Jun 17, 8:00 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMPXDakota, Goodhue45 min
Jun 17, 8:28 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMPXGoodhue34 min
Jun 17, 8:34 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMPXDunn, Eau Claire, Pepin56 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

Minneapolis, MN (KMPX), launched 00:00Z, 0.4 hours before the alert went out and 54 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, Minneapolis, MN at 00:00Z on 2021-06-18Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 61 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 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, Minneapolis, MN at 00:00Z on 2021-06-18The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity -13 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
61 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-387 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1555 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
55 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
-13 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
56 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.1

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted.

037 
WWUS20 KWNS 180018
SEL7  
SPC WW 180018
MNZ000-WIZ000-180600-

URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
Severe Thunderstorm Watch Number 277
NWS Storm Prediction Center Norman OK
720 PM CDT Thu Jun 17 2021

The NWS Storm Prediction Center has issued a

* Severe Thunderstorm Watch for portions of 
  South-central/Southeast Minnesota
  Western Wisconsin

* Effective this Thursday night and Friday morning from 720 PM
  until 100 AM CDT.

* Primary threats include...
  Scattered large hail likely with isolated very large hail events
    to 2.5 inches in diameter possible
  Isolated damaging wind gusts to 70 mph possible

SUMMARY...Scattered severe thunderstorms including some supercells
will continue generally eastward across south-central/southeast
Minnesota into western Wisconsin. Large hail should be the most
common risk, but damaging winds may also occur.

The severe thunderstorm watch area is approximately along and 40
statute miles north and south of a line from 35 miles north
northwest of Fairmont MN to 30 miles east southeast of Eau Claire
WI. For a complete depiction of the watch see the associated watch
outline update (WOUS64 KWNS WOU7).

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

REMEMBER...A Severe Thunderstorm Watch means conditions are
favorable for 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. Severe thunderstorms can and occasionally do produce
tornadoes.

&&

OTHER WATCH INFORMATION...CONTINUE...WW 276...

AVIATION...A few severe thunderstorms with hail surface and aloft to
2.5 inches. Extreme turbulence and surface wind gusts to 60 knots. A
few cumulonimbi with maximum tops to 550. Mean storm motion vector
27030.

...Guyer

SPC that day

Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jun 17, 7:02 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBlue Earth, Dakota, Dodge, Faribault, Fillmore, Freeborn and 11 more88 min
Jun 17, 9:01 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCDodge, Fillmore, Freeborn, Goodhue, Houston, Mower and 5 more89 min
Jun 17, 10:01 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCDodge, Fillmore, Houston, Mower, Olmsted, Wabasha and 1 more6 hr
Jun 17, 10:52 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCFillmore, Houston, Mower, Olmsted, Wabasha, Winona83 min
Jun 18, 1:34 AM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCHouston116 min
Jun 18, 5:03 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBecker, Beltrami, Cass, Clay, Clearwater, Crow Wing and 9 more87 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Watches in Minnesota, 2021Severe Thunderstorm Watches in Wisconsin, 2021Every severe thunderstorm watch 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.