Several thunderstorms developed and moved across northeast Oregon on August 16th. One thunderstorm in general was a well organized supercell that produced heavy rain, large hail, damaging winds, and a funnel cloud.
Every event with a place to put it. Tap one for its entry below.
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.
The episode as NWS PDT wrote it up.
Several thunderstorms developed and moved across northeast Oregon on August 16th. One thunderstorm in general was a well organized supercell that produced heavy rain, large hail, damaging winds, and a funnel cloud.
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 Pendleton, OR wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Aug 16, 3:51 PM PST, 9 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION...UPDATED NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PENDLETON OR 451 PM PDT FRI AUG 16 2013 UPDATED AVIATION DISCUSSION .SHORT TERM...TONIGHT THROUGH MONDAY...AN UPPER TROUGH ROUGHLY ALONG 129W CONTINUES TO SHEAR AND WEAKEN AS ENERGY IN THE BOTTOM OF THE TROUGH BEGINS TO CUT OFF A LOW WEST OF CALIFORNIA. THE FLOW ALOFT ACROSS THE REGION WILL REMAIN SOUTHWESTERLY THROUGH TONIGHT, THEN BECOME WEST-SOUTHWEST BY SATURDAY AFTERNOON. AS SUCH THE AIR MASS WILL REMAIN MOIST AND UNSTABLE ACROSS A GOOD PORTION OF THE AREA INTO TONIGHT, THOUGH SOME DRYING WILL BEGIN IN THE COLUMBIA GORGE AND NORTH INTO SOUTH-CENTRAL WASHINGTON. CUMULUS CLOUDS HAVE DEVELOPED OVER CENTRAL OREGON, THE SOUTHERN BLUE MOUNTAINS AND THE MOUNTAINS OF GRANT COUNTY. ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS HAVE BEEN OCCURRING OVER CENTRAL OREGON, AND SEEM TO BE ATTACHED TO THE TAIL OF THE A PRECIP BAND THAT HAS MOVED EAST FROM WESTERN OREGON. CURRENTLY HAVE ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS IN MOST AREAS FOR LATE THIS AFTERNOON AND THIS EVENING EXCEPT THE LOWER BASIN, THE YAKIMA AND KITTITAS VALLEYS AND THE COLUMBIA GORGE. WILL HAVE TO WATCH THE DEVELOPMENT AND TRACKING OF STORMS AS THE EAST END OF THE GORGE AND THE LOWER BASIN MAY YET COME INTO PLAY. MEANWHILE THUNDER CURRENTLY IN THE FORECAST FOR THE EAST SLOPES OF THE WASHINGTON CASCADES IS LOOKING LESS LIKELY. INSTABILITY ALOFT MAY KEEP SOME STORMS GOING OVERNIGHT FROM CROOK AND GRANT COUNTIES NORTHEAST THROUGH THE BLUES TO EXTREME SOUTHEAST WASHINGTON AND WALLOWA COUNTY. WITH THE UPPER TROUGH MOVING ONSHORE SATURDAY AND SWITCHING THE FLOW ALOFT TOWARDS THE WEST-SOUTHWEST, SHOWER AND THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY WILL BE INCREASINGLY LIMITED. WILL CONTINUE TO INDICATE ISOLATED AFTERNOON AND EVENING SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS FROM CROOK AND GRANT COUNTIES NORTHEAST THROUGH THE BLUES TO EXTREME SOUTHEAST WASHINGTON AND WALLOWA COUNTY. THE FLOW ACROSS THE REGION LATE SATURDAY NIGHT THROUGH MONDAY WILL BE FROM THE WEST AND CONSIDERABLY DRIER. THUS WILL CONTINUE THE FAIR AND DRY FORECAST. TEMPS THROUGH THIS PERIOD WILL RUN NEAR TO SLIGHTLY ABOVE SEASONAL. 90 .LONG TERM...MONDAY NIGHT THROUGH FRIDAY...A WEST-SOUTHWEST FLOW ALOFT WILL BE OVER THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST MONDAY NIGHT, WHICH WILL KEEP WESTERLY DOWNSLOPE WINDS EAST OF THE CASCADES THUS YIELDING SINKING MOTION FOR DRY CONDITIONS ACROSS THE FORECAST AREA. THIS SCENARIO WILL PERSIST THROUGH TUESDAY NIGHT. ON WEDNESDAY MID LEVEL WRAP AROUND MOISTURE ASSOCIATED WITH A CLOSED MID/UPPER LEVEL LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM OFF THE CALIFORNIA COAST BEGINS MOVING NORTH INTO EASTERN OREGON. THE MOISTURE WILL COMBINE WILL DAYTIME SURFACE HEATING TO YIELD MARGINAL INSTABILITY FOR A SLIGHT CHANCE OF AFTERNOON AND EVENING THUNDERSTORMS ON WEDNESDAY IN CENTRAL AND EAST CENTRAL OREGON AND IN THE BLUE MOUNTAINS OF OREGON. WEDNESDAY NIGHT AND THURSDAY THE 12Z GFS AND ECMWF RUNS SHOW THE LOW MOVING NORTH INTO NORTHERN CALIFORNIA. THE GFS IS FASTER IN BRINGING THE LOW NORTH AS WELL AS OPENING IT UP TO A NEGATIVELY TILTED TROUGH ON THURSDAY AND THEN BRINGING THE TROUGH ACROSS THE FORECAST AREA THURSDAY NIGHT AND FRIDAY. THE ECMWF MODEL ALLOWS THE LOW TO LINGER OVER NORTHERN CALIFORNIA THROUGH THURSDAY NIGHT, THEN TAKES THE LOW INTO SOUTHERN AND CENTRAL OREGON FRIDAY AFTERNOON FOLLOWED BY THE LOW OPENING UP TO A NEGATIVELY TILTED TROUGH THAT SWEEPS ACROSS THE FORECAST AREA FRIDAY NIGHT. AS SUCH THE GFS IS ABOUT 24 HOURS FASTER IN TAKING THE SYSTEM INTO AND THROUGH THE FORECAST AREA. THE AFOREMENTIONED SYSTEM WILL INTRODUCE ELEVATED MOISTURE AND MARGINAL INSTABILITY INTO PICTURE FOR AT LEAST OF COUPLE OF DAYS IF NOT FOR THE LAST THREE WORK DAYS OF THE COMING WEEK. I THEREFORE INCREASED POPS TO A SLIGHT CHANCE TO LOW CHANCE FOR CENTRAL AND NORTHEAST OREGON AND ADDED ALIGHT CHANCE OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS, MAINLY FOR CENTRAL AND NORTHEAST OREGON AND THE MOUNTAINS OF SOUTHEAST WASHINGTON FOR WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH FRIDAY EVENING. POLAN && .AVIATION...00Z TAFS...VFR CONDITIONS FOR NEXT 24 HOURS. BKN-SCT CLOUDS AOA 09K FT AGL. ISOLD TSRA UNTIL 17/04Z ARE POSSIBLE FROM CENTRAL TO NORTHEAST OREGON. A LINE OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WILL MOVE TO KPDT BY 0030Z OR AROUND 530 PM PDT THIS AFTERNOON. THESE STORMS WILL MOVE TO KALW BY AROUND 01Z. KDLS WILL ALSO HAVE TSRA UNTIL AROUND 01Z. KBDN WILL ALSO HAVE VCTS UNTIL AROUND 03Z/17TH. ADDITIONAL THUNDERSTORMS WILL DEVELOP IN HIGHER TERRAIN IN CENTRAL OREGON THROUGH THIS EVENING. THUNDERSTORMS SHOULD TAPER OFF BY LATE IN THE EVENING WITH THE LOSS OF SURFACE HEATING. STORMS MAY PASS NEAR KRDM AND KBDN SO I INCLUDED VCTS AT KBDN AND KRDM UNTIL 03Z/17TH. WINDS LESS THAN 12 KTS AT TAF SITES, EXCEPT IN THE IMMEDIATE VICINITY OF THUNDERSTORMS WHERE VARIABLE WINDS OF 30-45 KTS ARE POSSIBLE THROUGH THIS EVENING. POLAN && .FIRE WEATHER...FIRE DANGER IS HEIGHTENED FOR THE NEXT COUPLE OF DAYS DUE TO LIGHTNING STRIKES FROM ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS. THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING A FEW THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED IN CENTRAL AND NORTH CENTRAL OREGON INITIALLY THEN SPREADING EASTWARD ACROSS THE NORTHEAST OREGON MOUNTAINS IN THE EVENING AND OVERNIGHT. THERE IS A LESSER THREAT OF THUNDERSTORMS THIS EVENING ALONG THE WASHINGTON CASCADES AS WELL. RAIN DIRECTLY BELOW ANY CELLS THAT DEVELOP MAY HAVE UP TO A QUARTER INCH WHICH WILL HELP LIMIT NEW FIRE STARTS. AWAY FROM THE CORE OF THE STORM RAINFALL WILL BE SIGNIFICANTLY LESS AND LIGHTNING STRIKES AWAY FROM THE MAIN CORE OF THE STORMS WILL POSE A GREATER DANGER. ADDITIONALLY, GUSTY DOWNDRAFT WINDS TO 45 MPH WILL HELP SPREAD FIRES. ON SATURDAY INSTABILITY WILL BE LESS, BUT ENOUGH FOR A SLIGHT CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS IN THE EASTERN OREGON MOUNTAINS, THOUGH THE NUMBER OF THUNDERSTORMS SHOULD BE EVEN LESS TOMORROW. LIGHTNING PREDICTIONS FOR TONIGHT AND TOMORROW WERE LOW ENOUGH THAT NO RED FLAG WARNING WAS ISSUED, BUT IF THUNDERSTORMS ARE MORE NUMEROUS THAN EXPECTED, A RED FLAG WARNING MAY BE NEEDED FOR AFFECTED ZONES. PERRY && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... PDT 61 87 59 88 / 20 10 10 0 ALW 66 89 63 89 / 20 10 10 0 PSC 62 93 61 91 / 10 0 0 0 YKM 62 88 61 88 / 10 0 0 0 HRI 60 91 61 90 / 10 10 0 0 ELN 60 84 59 86 / 10 10 10 0 RDM 53 85 51 88 / 20 10 10 0 LGD 60 85 56 86 / 20 20 20 10 GCD 54 87 56 88 / 20 20 20 0 DLS 66 86 62 86 / 10 0 0 0 && .PDT WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... OR...NONE. WA...NONE. && THREAT INDEX SATURDAY : GREEN SUNDAY : GREEN MONDAY : GREEN GREEN: NONE OR LIMITED NEED FOR WATCHES, WARNINGS, OR ADVISORIES. YELLOW: A FEW WATCHES, WARNINGS, OR ADVISORIES POSSIBLE OR IN EFFECT. RED: NUMEROUS WATCHES, WARNINGS, OR ADVISORIES POSSIBLE OR IN EFFECT. FOR ADDITIONAL WEATHER INFORMATION, CHECK OUR WEB SITE AT... WWW.WEATHER.GOV/PENDLETON 90/99/99/83
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PENDLETON OR 403 PM PDT FRI AUG 16 2013 ORZ041-042-044-049-050-502-503-505>509-WAZ024-027>030-521-172315- EASTERN COLUMBIA RIVER GORGE OF OREGON-NORTH CENTRAL OREGON- LOWER COLUMBIA BASIN OF OREGON-GRANDE RONDE VALLEY-WALLOWA COUNTY- NORTHERN BLUE MOUNTAINS OF OREGON- SOUTHERN BLUE MOUNTAINS OF OREGON-JOHN DAY BASIN-OCHOCO- JOHN DAY HIGHLANDS- FOOTHILLS OF THE NORTHERN BLUE MOUNTAINS OF OREGON- FOOTHILLS OF THE SOUTHERN BLUE MOUNTAINS OF OREGON- EAST SLOPES OF THE OREGON CASCADES- EASTERN COLUMBIA RIVER GORGE OF WASHINGTON-YAKIMA VALLEY- LOWER COLUMBIA BASIN OF WASHINGTON- FOOTHILLS OF THE BLUE MOUNTAINS OF WASHINGTON- NORTHWEST BLUE MOUNTAINS OF WASHINGTON-SIMCOE HIGHLANDS- 403 PM PDT FRI AUG 16 2013 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF CENTRAL OREGON...NORTH CENTRAL OREGON...NORTHEAST OREGON...CENTRAL WASHINGTON...SOUTH WASHINGTON...SOUTH CENTRAL WASHINGTON AND SOUTHEAST WASHINGTON. .DAY ONE...THIS EVENING AND TONIGHT A SOUTHWEST FLOW WILL TRANSPORT MID LEVEL MOISTURE AND INSTABILITY NORTHWARD INTO THE REGION THROUGH TONIGHT. THIS WILL RESULT IN ISOLATED TO SCATTERED AFTERNOON AND EVENING SHOWERS WITH ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS IN THE ABOVE LISTED AREAS. THUNDERSTORMS WILL GENERALLY PRODUCE SMALL HAIL, BRIEF HEAVY RAIN AND GUSTY WINDS. WIND SHEAR ALOFT LOOKS TO BE SUFFICIENT ENOUGH OVER PORTIONS OF GRANT AND WALLOWA COUNTIES IN OREGON FOR A STRAY STRONG TO MARGINALLY SEVERE THUNDERSTORM. AS SUCH THE STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS A SEE TEXT STATEMENT FOR PORTIONS OF OUR AREA. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SATURDAY THROUGH THURSDAY ISOLATED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED AGAIN FROM CENTRAL OREGON EAST AND NORTHEASTWARD ON SATURDAY. THIS INCLUDES THE OCHOCO MOUNTAINS, THE JOHN DAY HIGHLANDS, BLUE MOUNTAINS, WALLOWA MOUNTAINS, AND THE ELKHORN MOUNTAINS. DRY AND STABLE CONDITIONS WILL RETURN ON SUNDAY AND CONTINUE THROUGH MOST OF NEXT WEEK.
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PENDLETON OR
346 PM PDT FRI AUG 16 2013
ORZ503-508-162345-
FOOTHILLS OF THE SOUTHERN BLUE MOUNTAINS OF OREGON OR-SOUTHERN BLUE
MOUNTAINS OF OREGON OR-
346 PM PDT FRI AUG 16 2013
...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ADVISORY FOR SOUTHEASTERN GILLIAM...CENTRAL
MORROW AND NORTHERN WHEELER COUNTIES UNTIL 445 PM PDT...
AT 340 PM PDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR WAS TRACKING A
STRONG THUNDERSTORM 8 MILES NORTHEAST OF MAYVILLE...OR 61 MILES
SOUTHWEST OF HERMISTON...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 30 MPH.
HAIL UP TO THE SIZE OF NICKELS AND WIND GUSTS UP TO 50 MPH ARE
EXPECTED WITH THIS STORM.
LAT...LON 4498 11995 4517 12020 4558 11959 4559 11956
4539 11933
TIME...MOT...LOC 2246Z 236DEG 27KT 4516 12000PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PENDLETON OR
416 PM PDT FRI AUG 16 2013
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0400 PM HAIL 2 WNW WAMIC 45.23N 121.30W
08/16/2013 E0.75 INCH WASCO OR TRAINED SPOTTER
0400 PM HAIL 3 WNW WAMIC 45.24N 121.32W
08/16/2013 E0.75 INCH WASCO OR PUBLIC
&&
MLThe Pendleton radar (KPDT), 40 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 00:00 UTC.
4 hail, 3 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.
Public called and reported strong winds and 3/4 inch hail, and a funnel cloud.
Two large trees down across road. The road also had standing water and looked like a little river.
Several large tree limbs down, also 1/2 inch hail reported.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Oregon in 2013Every state in 2013This day in weather historyWarnings in Oregon, August 2013
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: 467794, 467795, 467796, 467797, 467798, 467799, 467800.