Alert archive / Minnesota / Severe Thunderstorm Watches in 2021

Severe Thunderstorm Watch 471

August 28, 202117 counties in Minnesota

The Storm Prediction Center issued this severe thunderstorm watch at Aug 28, 2021, 5:59 PM CDT for 17 counties in Minnesota. It was in force for 6 hr.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
Aug 28, 2021, 5:59 PM CDT (22:59 UTC)
Expired
Aug 29, 2021, 12:00 AM CDT
In force
6 hr
Issued by
the Storm Prediction Center
Largest hail expected
1.5 in
Strongest gust expected
75 kt

Counties Blue Earth County, MN, Brown County, MN, Carver County, MN, Faribault County, MN, Freeborn County, MN, Le Sueur County, MN, Martin County, MN, McLeod County, MN, Nicollet County, MN, Redwood County, MN, Renville County, MN, Rice County, MN, Scott County, MN, Sibley County, MN, Steele County, MN, Waseca County, MN, Watonwan County, MN

The radar

The Minneapolis radar (KMPX), 87 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 23:00 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
20%
One or more EF2 to EF5 tornadoes
20%
Ten or more severe wind reports
80%
One or more gusts of 65 knots or more
50%
Ten or more severe hail reports
40%
One or more hailstones of 2 inches or more
10%
Six or more combined severe hail and wind reports
95%

Warnings issued inside it

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Aug 28, 6:06 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm Warning Considerable damage threatMPXBrown, Redwood, Watonwan54 min
Aug 28, 6:19 PM CDTTornado WarningMPXBrown, Redwood26 min
Aug 28, 6:26 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm Warning Considerable damage threatMPXBlue Earth, Faribault, Martin, Watonwan64 min
Aug 28, 6:43 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMPXBlue Earth, Brown, Nicollet, Redwood, Renville, Sibley and 1 more62 min
Aug 28, 6:51 PM CDTTornado WarningMPXBrown, Nicollet24 min
Aug 28, 7:13 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMPXBlue Earth, Le Sueur, Nicollet, Rice, Sibley32 min
Aug 28, 7:40 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMPXBrown, Redwood23 min
Aug 28, 9:02 PM CDTFlash Flood WarningMPXRedwood6 hr
Aug 28, 10:15 PM CDTTornado WarningMPXBrown30 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 12:00Z, 11.0 hours before the alert went out and 85 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 12:00Z on 2021-08-28Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1550 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 12:00Z on 2021-08-28The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 139 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
1550 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-130 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
676 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
29 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
139 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
193 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
2.3

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted.

953 
WWUS20 KWNS 282255
SEL1  
SPC WW 282255
MNZ000-290400-

URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
Severe Thunderstorm Watch Number 471
NWS Storm Prediction Center Norman OK
555 PM CDT Sat Aug 28 2021

The NWS Storm Prediction Center has issued a

* Severe Thunderstorm Watch for portions of 
  Southern Minnesota

* Effective this Saturday afternoon and evening from 555 PM until
  1100 PM CDT.

* Primary threats include...
  Widespread damaging winds likely with isolated significant gusts
    to 85 mph possible
  Scattered large hail events to 1.5 inches in diameter possible
  A tornado or two possible

SUMMARY...A well-organized and fast east/northeastward-moving
cluster of storms will pose a severe risk as it progresses across
southern Minnesota through early/mid-evening. Potentially
widespread/intense damaging winds are the primary hazard along with
some potential for isolated large hail and/or a brief tornado risk.

The severe thunderstorm watch area is approximately along and 45
statute miles north and south of a line from 35 miles south of
Redwood Falls MN to 45 miles east of Mankato MN. For a complete
depiction of the watch see the associated watch outline update
(WOUS64 KWNS WOU1).

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 469...WW 470...

AVIATION...A few severe thunderstorms with hail surface and aloft to
1.5 inches. Extreme turbulence and surface wind gusts to 75 knots. A
few cumulonimbi with maximum tops to 550. Mean storm motion vector
25050.

...Guyer

SPC that day

Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Aug 27, 9:57 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCFillmore, Houston93 min
Aug 28, 2:17 AM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBig Stone, Stevens, Swift, Traverse2 hr
Aug 28, 2:32 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCBig Stone, Traverse5 hr
Aug 28, 5:42 AM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBenton, Big Stone, Chippewa, Douglas, Grant, Kandiyohi and 11 more2 hr
Aug 28, 7:08 AM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCBig Stone, Chippewa, Douglas, Grant, Kandiyohi, Lac qui Parle and 13 more5 hr
Aug 28, 9:39 AM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAnoka, Benton, Chisago, Douglas, Grant, Isanti and 12 more2 hr
Aug 28, 10:34 AM CDTTornado WatchSPCAitkin, Anoka, Benton, Carlton, Carver, Chisago and 14 more4 hr
Aug 28, 1:13 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAnoka, Chisago, Isanti, Kanabec, Pine2 hr
Aug 28, 2:43 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCMurray, Nobles, Pipestone, Rock3 hr
Aug 28, 3:44 PM CDTTornado WatchSPCCottonwood, Jackson, Lincoln, Lyon, Murray, Nobles and 2 more5 hr
Aug 28, 3:57 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCCottonwood, Jackson, Murray, Nobles, Rock7 hr
Aug 28, 5:27 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBlue Earth, Brown, Carver, Cottonwood, Dakota, Dodge and 22 more63 min
Aug 28, 6:09 PM CDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBlue Earth, Brown, Cottonwood, Nicollet, Watonwan66 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Watches in Minnesota, 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.