Thunderstorm Wind, Polk
- When
- June 26, 6:43 PM CST
- Where
- Polk County, Tabor
- Measured
- 52 kt (60 mph) estimated gust
- Reported by
- Public
- Coordinates
- 48.050, -96.820
Several large 6 to 8 inch diameter tree branches were broken down in shelterbelts.
Damaging Winds in Minnesota, June 26, 2009
A warm front pushed northward through eastern North Dakota during the afternoon of the 26th. By the early evening, low pressure had set up over northwest South Dakota, with the warm front extending to the northeast along a line from near Bismarck to near Devils Lake.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it. Tap one for its entry below.
- Tornadoes
- Tropical storms and surge
- Floods
- Wind
- Hail
- Winter weather
- Heat and drought
- Cold
- Fire, smoke and dust
- Marine and coastal
- Other
The toll
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- None recorded
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 3
Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.
What happened
The episode as NWS FGF wrote it up.
A warm front pushed northward through eastern North Dakota during the afternoon of the 26th. By the early evening, low pressure had set up over northwest South Dakota, with the warm front extending to the northeast along a line from near Bismarck to near Devils Lake. The airmass in the warm sector was quite juicy, with surface dew points in the mid to upper 60s and temperatures in the low 90s. Thunderstorms fired up along the front and moved very slowly, which led to heavy rainfall and some flooding issues. Atmospheric conditions were also favorable for tornadoes, with the warm front, juicy air, and outflow boundaries from the thunderstorms. This led to a large number of funnel cloud reports, mostly because the rotating low clouds advanced through the larger population density centered around the Grand Forks/East Grand Forks area.
What forecasters said that day
The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
NWS Grand Forks, ND wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jun 26, 6:21 PM CST, 22 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Jun 26, 6:21 PM CST, 22 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GRAND FORKS ND
721 PM CDT FRI JUN 26 2009
.DISCUSSION...
CURRENT OBS SHOW SURFACE BOUNDARY EXTENDING FROM NEAR PEMBINA
SOUTHWEST TO JUST NORTH OF BISMARCK. NORTHEAST NORTH DAKOTA UNDER
A VERY MOIST AND UNSTABLE AIRMASS. CONVECTION MAINLY IN THE
NORTHEAST CORNER OF ND JUST EAST OF GFK. SEVERE THUNDERSTORM AND
TORNADIC ACTIVITY THREAT WILL BE HIGH IN TOR WATCH AREA AT LEAST
THROUGH THE NEXT FOUR HOURS.
&&
.AVIATION...
WIDESPREAD THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY ACROSS NORTHEAST ND AND NW MN.
EXPECT MORE DEVELOPMENT...LATER INTO THE EVENING...MAINLY NORTH OF
INTERSTATE 94. TSTMS WILL APPROACH BEMIDJI AFT MIDNIGHT. EXPECT
SVR STORMS AND AN ISOLATED TORNADO IN VCNTY OF TVF...GFK...AND DVL
OVER THE NEXT THREE TO FOUR HOURS.
&&
.PREV DISCUSSION... /ISSUED 250 PM CDT FRI JUN 26 2009/
SHORT TERM...
MAIN FORECAST CHALLENGE IS HEAVY RAIN/SEVERE POTENTIAL TONIGHT.
MODELS ARE IN DECENT CONSENSUS IN SHOWING BETTER DEVELOPMENT EARLY
ON TONIGHT OVER THE CENTRAL DAKOTAS...TRANSITIONING MORE TO A RAIN
EVENT LATE TONIGHT. FOLLOWED THE HPC PCPN AMOUNTS WHICH ARE MORE
OF A MODEL BLEND.
TONIGHT...AT 19Z...THERE WAS STILL BROAD SFC LOW PRESSURE OVER THE
WESTERN HIGH PLAINS...MAINLY BETWEEN KMBG AND KPHP. NICE WARM
SECTOR AROUND AND AHEAD OF THE LOW...WITH TEMPS IN THE LOW 90S AND
DEW POINTS IN THE 60S. THIS IS GIVING SFC BASED CAPE VALUES OF
AROUND 3500 J/KG AND MLCAPE VALUES ABOUT THE SAME. BULK SHEAR
VALUES ARE BEST OVER THE WESTERN DAKOTAS...BUT THERE ARE SOME 40KT
VALUES UP TOWARD KDVL. LOWEST SFC BASED LIS ARE RIGHT AROUND THE
SFC LOW (-9)...BUT DO EXTEND ALL OVER THE WARM SECTOR. 18Z
SOUNDINGS AT KABR/KUNR ARE STILL SHOWING SOME WEAK CAP IN PLACE
..SO ARE STILL AWAITING THE KICKER TO GET THINGS GOING WITHIN THE
NEXT FEW HOURS. FORCING STILL LOOKS BEST NEAR THE SFC LOW AND ITS
VARIOUS BOUNDARIES...OR WITH ANY PIECE OF UPPER LEVEL ENERGY THAT
EJECTS OUT IN THE SOUTHWEST FLOW. SPC ALREADY MONITORING PORTIONS
OF THE DAKOTAS FOR SEVERE WEATHER POTENTIAL. AS STORMS GET GOING
LATE THIS AFTERNOON/EARLY EVENING...THINK THINGS WILL SLOWLY
TRANSITION MORE TO A WIDESPREAD RAIN EVENT OVERNIGHT. MODELS TRACK
THE SFC LOW INTO EAST CENTRAL NORTH DAKOTA BY 06Z SAT...THEN UP
INTO NORTHWEST MN BY 12Z SAT. NICE MOISTURE TRANSPORT ALSO SETS UP
WITH THE LOW LEVEL JET CRANKING UP TO 50KTS OR GREATER. NOT SURE
ABOUT HOW ANY CONVECTION THAT DEVELOPS SOUTH OF THE FA WILL AFFECT
THINGS UP IN THE FA EITHER...IF AN MCS DEVELOPS TO THE SOUTH IT
COULD SAP SOME OF THIS MOISTURE TRANSPORT. PREVIOUS FORECAST
ISSUED A FLASH FLOOD WATCH FOR KDVL REGION INTO THE NORTHERN RED
RIVER VALLEY...WHICH STILL LOOKS FINE. THE SOUTHERN VALLEY HAS
ALSO BEEN HIT HARD RECENTLY...BUT THE HEAVIER RAINS LOOK TO STAY
NORTH OF THIS AREA.
SAT-MON...SAT AFTERNOON INTO EARLY EVENING LOOKS MORE FAVORABLE
FOR PCPN TODAY...AS A 500MB SHORT WAVE TRACKS THRU. TEMPS ALOFT
LOOK PRETTY CHILLY TOO WHICH FAVOR AFTERNOON INSTABILITY SHOWERS/
TSTMS. NORTHWEST WINDS LOOK PRETTY DECENT TOO...SO IT WILL BE A
MUCH DIFFERENT DAY THAN TODAY. LOWERED HIGHS A BIT BUT PROBABLY
NOT QUITE ENOUGH...MUCH DEPENDS ON LINGERING CLOUD COVER. REST OF
FORECAST LOOKS FINE.
LONG TERM TUE-FRI...
00Z AND 06Z MODEL RUNS WERE QUITE VARIED IN THEIR SOLUTIONS
REGARDING MID TO LATE WEEK 500 MB PATTERN. 12Z RUNS A BIT BETTER
BUT STILL QUITE VARIED IN HOW DEEP THE 500 MB TROUGH WILL BE OVER
THE GREAT LAKES. IT IS LOOKING LIKE A WEAK SFC TROUGH WILL PASS
THRU TUES NIGHT OR WED FOLLOWED BY HIGH PRESSURE. BASED ON COORD
WITH SURROUNDING OFFICES WE WENT AGAINST HPC POPS AND LOWERED AND
WENT DRY FOR THU-FRI PERIOD. TEMPS LOOK A BIT CLOSER TO NORMAL OR A
FEW DEGREES BELOW NORMAL.
AVIATION...
MAIN PLAYER WILL BE TIMING THE DEVELOPMENT OF WIDESPREAD RAIN AND
THUNDERSTORMS OVER NORTH DAKOTA THIS EVENING AND SPREADING INTO
NW/WCNTRL MN LATE TONIGHT-SAT MORNING. WENT WIDESPREAD
THUNDERSTORMS IN THE TAFS LATE EVENING AND OVERNIGHT AT MOST TAF
SITES. CIGS COULD GO DOWN INTO MVFR RANGE LATER IN THE NIGHT IN
SATURATED AIRMASS...BUT EXTENT IS NOT CLEAR.
&&
.FGF WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
ND...FLASH FLOOD WATCH UNTIL 7 AM CDT SATURDAY FOR NDZ006>008-014>016-
024-026-054.
MN...FLASH FLOOD WATCH UNTIL 7 AM CDT SATURDAY FOR MNZ004-007.
&&
SPEICHERHazardous weather outlook, Jun 26, 5:52 AM CST, 12 hours 51 minutes before
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GRAND FORKS ND 652 AM CDT FRI JUN 26 2009 MNZ001>009-013>017-022>024-027>032-040-NDZ006>008-014>016-024- 026>030-038-039-049-052>054-271200- WEST POLK-NORMAN-CLAY-KITTSON-ROSEAU-LAKE OF THE WOODS- WEST MARSHALL-EAST MARSHALL-NORTH BELTRAMI-PENNINGTON-RED LAKE- EAST POLK-NORTH CLEARWATER-SOUTH BELTRAMI-MAHNOMEN- SOUTH CLEARWATER-HUBBARD-WEST BECKER-EAST BECKER-WILKIN- WEST OTTER TAIL-EAST OTTER TAIL-WADENA-GRANT-TOWNER-CAVALIER- PEMBINA-BENSON-RAMSEY-EASTERN WALSH COUNTY-EDDY-NELSON- GRAND FORKS-GRIGGS-STEELE-TRAILL-BARNES-CASS-RANSOM-SARGENT- RICHLAND-WESTERN WALSH COUNTY- 652 AM CDT FRI JUN 26 2009 ...FLASH FLOOD WATCH TONIGHT FOR THE DEVILS LAKE BASIN AND FAR NORTHERN RED RIVER VALLEY... ...RISK OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS THE REGION TONIGHT... THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF EASTERN NORTH DAKOTA...WEST CENTRAL AND NORTHWEST MINNESOTA. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT AN APPROACHING COLD FRONT WILL BE THE FOCUS FOR STRONG THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT LATE THIS AFTERNOON CONTINUING OVERNIGHT AS THE FRONT SHIFTS EAST. THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED TO DEVELOP ALONG A LINE FROM DEVILS LAKE TO LANGDON BY THIS EVENING AND SHIFT SLOWLY EAST ACROSS EASTERN NORTH DAKOTA AND FAR NORTHWEST MINNESOTA OVERNIGHT. ISOLATED TORNADOES...LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS ARE ALL POSSIBLE WITH THESE STORMS. IN ADDITION HEAVY RAIN WILL BE A THREAT MAINLY ACROSS THE DEVILS LAKE BASIN INTO THE FAR NORTHERN VALLEY WHERE RAINFALL AMOUNTS EXCEEDING TWO INCHES ARE POSSIBLE. ANOTHER POTENTIAL AREA FOR STRONG STORMS WILL BE ACROSS PORTIONS OF WEST CENTRAL MINNESOTA AFTER MIDNIGHT. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SATURDAY THROUGH THURSDAY AREAS OF RAIN AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL SHIFT EAST ACROSS NORTHWEST AND WEST CENTRAL MINNESOTA MAINLY SATURDAY MORNING. NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE REQUIRED FOR SEVERE WEATHER AND RAINFALL REPORTS. VOELKER
In the hours before
Local storm report, Jun 26, 6:23 PM CST, 20 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EASTERN ND/GRAND FORKS ND
723 PM CDT FRI JUN 26 2009
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0722 PM TORNADO 1 N MANVEL 48.09N 97.18W
06/26/2009 GRAND FORKS ND PUBLIC
FUNNEL CLOUD BRIEFLY TOUCHED DOWN.
&&
WBARRETTLocal storm report, Jun 26, 6:24 PM CST, 19 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EASTERN ND/GRAND FORKS ND
724 PM CDT FRI JUN 26 2009
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0722 PM FUNNEL CLOUD GRAND FORKS 47.92N 97.07W
06/26/2009 GRAND FORKS ND TRAINED SPOTTER
EXIT 138 INTERSTATE 29. OBSCURED ON HORIZON BY TREES.
&&
WBARRETTLocal storm report, Jun 26, 6:25 PM CST, 18 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EASTERN ND/GRAND FORKS ND
725 PM CDT FRI JUN 26 2009
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0724 PM FUNNEL CLOUD 3 W GRAND FORKS 47.92N 97.14W
06/26/2009 GRAND FORKS ND PUBLIC
TWO FUNNEL CLOUDS OBSERVED.
&&
WBARRETTLocal storm report, Jun 26, 6:29 PM CST, 14 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EASTERN ND/GRAND FORKS ND
729 PM CDT FRI JUN 26 2009
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0727 PM FUNNEL CLOUD GRAND FORKS 47.92N 97.07W
06/26/2009 GRAND FORKS ND PUBLIC
TWO FUNNEL CLOUDS MERGING WITH A LOWERING TOWARD THE
GROUND. IN DOUBT WHETHER OR NOT IT TOUCHED DOWN.
&&
WBARRETTLocal storm report, Jun 26, 6:32 PM CST, 11 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EASTERN ND/GRAND FORKS ND
732 PM CDT FRI JUN 26 2009
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0728 PM FUNNEL CLOUD GRAND FORKS 47.92N 97.07W
06/26/2009 GRAND FORKS ND TRAINED SPOTTER
32ND AVE. NEAR I-29
&&
WBARRETTLocal storm report, Jun 26, 6:40 PM CST, 3 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EASTERN ND/GRAND FORKS ND
740 PM CDT FRI JUN 26 2009
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0738 PM HAIL 5 S ARVILLA 47.85N 97.49W
06/26/2009 E0.75 INCH GRAND FORKS ND UNKNOWN
&&
WBARRETTThe radar
The Fargo/Grand Forks radar (KMVX), 69 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 00:41 UTC.
Event by event
2 thunderstorm wind, 1 funnel cloud. Local standard time, as filed.
Thunderstorm Wind, Polk
- When
- June 26, 6:55 PM CST
- Where
- Polk County, 3.75 mi W of Roan
- Measured
- 52 kt (60 mph) estimated gust
- Reported by
- Public
- Coordinates
- 48.160, -96.830
Several large 4 to 6 inch diameter tree branches were broken down in a shelterbelt. An NDAWN mesonet wind sensor nearby reported peak winds of 55 mph.
Funnel Cloud, Polk
- When
- June 26, 7:45 PM CST
- Where
- Polk County, Kankel
- Reported by
- Trained Spotter
- Coordinates
- 47.670, -96.450
A persistent wall cloud produced a brief funnel.
What these are
- Thunderstorm Wind
- Winds from a thunderstorm of 50 knots (58 mph) or more, or lower winds that caused damage or casualties. Measured gusts are marked MG, estimated EG.
- Funnel Cloud
- A rotating column of cloud extending from a thunderstorm that did not reach the ground.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Maryland, June 26, 2009
- Tornadoes and Flash Flooding in North Dakota, June 26 to 30, 2009
- Tornado and Hail in Connecticut, June 26, 2009
- Tornadoes and Hail in Nebraska, June 26, 2009
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Pennsylvania, June 26, 2009
- Flash Flood and Hail in Idaho, June 26, 2009
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Tennessee, June 26, 2009
- Tornado and Damaging Winds in Colorado, June 26, 2009
- Flooding in Maine, June 26, 2009
- Flash Flood in Maine, June 26, 2009
- Tornadoes and Flash Flood in North Dakota, June 26, 2009
- Damaging Winds in North Carolina, June 26, 2009
More
Every storm in Minnesota in 2009Every state in 2009This day in weather historyWarnings in Minnesota, June 2009
Sources
NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 180533, 180534, 180535.