Tornadoes · United States · Nebraska · 2014

EF0 tornado, Brownlee, Nebraska, June 17, 2014

Name: EF0 tornado, Brownlee, Nebraska, June 17, 2014
Start: 2014-06-18T01:39:00.000Z
Location: Brownlee, Nebraska

This EF0 tornado ran 0.2 miles across Cherry County on June 17, 2014, touching down at 7:39 PM MDT and reaching 20 yards wide. It killed nobody.

The rating scale

Tracks are drawn in the color of the rating. The Enhanced Fujita scale rates the damage rather than measuring the wind: the speeds are what that damage is taken to imply.

EF065 to 85 mphthis tornado
Light damage. Surface peeled off some roofs, gutters and siding damaged, branches broken, shallow-rooted trees pushed over.
EF186 to 110 mph
Moderate damage. Roofs badly stripped, mobile homes overturned or badly damaged, exterior doors lost, windows broken.
EF2111 to 135 mph
Considerable damage. Roofs torn off well-built houses, frame homes shifted on their foundations, mobile homes destroyed, large trees snapped or uprooted, cars lifted off the ground.
EF3136 to 165 mph
Severe damage. Whole stories of well-built houses destroyed, large buildings badly damaged, trains overturned, trees debarked, heavy cars lifted and thrown.
EF4166 to 200 mph
Devastating damage. Well-built houses leveled, structures with weak foundations moved some distance, cars thrown and large missiles generated.
EF5over 200 mph
Incredible damage. Strong frame houses swept off their foundations, car-sized missiles thrown more than 100 meters, steel-reinforced concrete badly damaged, high-rise buildings deformed.
Unrated
The survey recorded a tornado but could not put a number on it, most often because it crossed open country and damaged nothing a rating can be read from.

The record

Rating: EF0
Date: June 17, 2014
Touchdown: 7:39 PM MDT (01:39 UTC)
Path length: 0.2 miles (0.3 km)
Path width: 20 yards (18 m)
Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
County: Cherry County
Touchdown point: 42.120, -101.150
Lift-off point: 42.120, -101.150
Record number: 1406171939-01

The damage survey

3 damage points were recorded along this path by NWS LBF, in the Damage Assessment Toolkit the survey teams carry. The strongest indicator was rated EF0. The highest wind the damage implies is 65 mph.

Survey points are preliminary and are the raw material the published rating was built from. Source: NWS Damage Assessment Toolkit.

What the Weather Service recorded

Severe thunderstorms produced six tornadoes and hail up to grapefruit size on June 17th. The tornadoes occurred in open rangeland, although a semi and car were impacted on Highway 61 near Mile Marker 194. All tornadoes were rated EF-0.

At 1939CST, a tornado briefly touched down in open rangeland.

From NOAA NCEI's Storm Events Database, the narrative the local forecast office wrote for Storm Data.

The warnings

No tornado warning for this county appears in the archive as in force at the moment the tornado touched down. One was issued for the county at another hour that day.

The county was under a tornado watch, issued at 21:56 UTC and running to 03:43 UTC.

Issued (UTC)	Expired	Product	Office
21:56 UTC	03:43 UTC	Tornado Watch	LBF
22:18 UTC	23:00 UTC	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	LBF
22:20 UTC	23:00 UTC	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	LBF
22:41 UTC	23:15 UTC	Tornado Warning	LBF
22:48 UTC	23:15 UTC	Tornado Warning	LBF
23:14 UTC	00:00 UTC	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	LBF
23:29 UTC	00:00 UTC	Tornado Warning	LBF
23:56 UTC	00:30 UTC	Tornado Warning	LBF
00:16 UTC	00:45 UTC	Tornado Warning	LBF
00:26 UTC	01:15 UTC	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	LBF
00:43 UTC	01:15 UTC	Tornado Warning	LBF
01:13 UTC	01:41 UTC	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	LBF
01:15 UTC	02:00 UTC	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	LBF
02:00 UTC	02:45 UTC	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	LBF
02:12 UTC	02:36 UTC	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	LBF

Every warning and watch covering the touchdown point that day, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service products. Lead time is measured from the issue of the warning in force to the touchdown time in the database, both of which were recorded to the minute by different people.

The forecast that day

The Storm Prediction Center had this point in a Slight Risk, with a 0.05 chance of a tornado within 25 miles. The outlook in force was issued at 01:00 UTC.

SPC's Day 1 convective outlook as it stood when the tornado began, read at the touchdown point. The same archive is on the radar archive.

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before the tornado touched down, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS North Platte, NE wrote its last area forecast discussion before the tornado touched down at Jun 17, 6:00 PM MDT, 1 hour 39 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jun 17, 6:00 PM MDT, 1 hour 39 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NORTH PLATTE NE
700 PM CDT TUE JUN 17 2014

.SHORT TERM...(THIS EVENING THROUGH WEDNESDAY)
ISSUED AT 326 PM CDT TUE JUN 17 2014

STORM CHANCES TONIGHT...THEN THE COLD FRONTAL PASSAGE ON WEDNESDAY
ARE THE MAIN CONCERNS OF THE FORECAST.

A STRONG UPPER LEVEL LOW WAS CENTERED OVER IDAHO WITH RIDGING
CENTERED FROM THE DEEP SOUTH INTO THE UPPER MISSISSIPPI RIVER
VALLEY. 20Z SURFACE ANALYSIS SHOWED LOW PRESSURE LOCATED OVER
SOUTHWEST NEBRASKA...IN THE KLBF VICINITY. A DISTINCT DRY-LINE WAS
SEEN FROM JUST WEST OF KMCK DOWN THROUGH CENTRAL KANSAS.
MEANWHILE...A STATIONARY FRONT WAS LOCATED FROM AROUND KAIA TO KANW
TO KOFK THIS AFTERNOON. 12Z UPPER ANALYSIS SHOWED 700MB TEMPERATURES
AT KLBF AND KOAX OF +13C AND +15C RESPECTIVELY INDICATING A GOOD CAP
OVER THE FORECAST AREA. LAPS SOUNDINGS AT 19Z SHOWED THIS CAP
WELL...HOWEVER SHOWED AREAS OF SOUTHWEST NEBRASKA HAD NEARLY BROKEN
THE CAP. BUT VERY DRY AIR IN THESE AREAS WILL KEEP ANY DEVELOPMENT
OF STORMS...OR CLOUDS FROM OCCURRING. TO THE WEST OVER THE PANHANDLE
THERE WAS A BIT MORE MOISTURE IN THE ATMOSPHERE...AND WITH A LIFTING
MECHANISM COMING FROM WEAK UPPER LEVEL SHORTWAVE ENERGY PUSHING OUT
OF THE TROUGH...CUMULUS AND SOME RADAR ECHOES WERE STARTING TO SHOW
UP.

BELIEVE THE MAIN FOCUS FOR STORMS WILL BE OVER SOUTH DAKOTA...BUT
COULD GET SOME STORMS TONIGHT...MAINLY ACROSS NORTHERN NEBRASKA. THE
UPPER LEVEL LOW WON/T MAKE MUCH PROGRESSION TONIGHT...LEAVING THE
UPPER JET STREAK FROM UTAH INTO WYOMING. THIS WILL LEAD TO THE
STRONGEST LARGE-SCALE LIFT BEING FROM NORTHERN COLORADO INTO
SOUTHWEST SOUTH DAKOTA. LOOKING IN THE LOWER LEVELS...CURRENT
MESO-ANALYSIS SHOWS AN AREA OF CONVERGENCE IN LOW LEVEL MOISTURE
TRANSPORT FROM THE BLACK HILLS INTO THE WESTERN SANDHILLS OF
NEBRASKA. SHORT TERM FORECAST MODELS INDICATE THIS AREA OF
CONVERGENCE WILL STAY FAIRLY STATIONARY THROUGH THE EARLY EVENING
HOURS WHICH COULD BE THE AREA TO LOOK FOR STORM DEVELOPMENT. THE
BETTER CONVERGENCE WILL STAY OVER SOUTH DAKOTA...BUT WITH THE SB
INSTABILITY NORTH OF THE FRONT UP IN THE 3500-4500 J/KG RANGE AND
HAVING EASTERLY UPSLOPE FLOW THINK THERE SHOULD BE AT LEAST A SLIGHT
CHANCE FOR STORMS IN THE FORECAST. THE REMAINDER OF THE FORECAST
AREA SHOULD STAY DRY TONIGHT...AND WITH THE WARM AIRMASS IN PLACE
SHOULD GET LOWS TO STAY ABOVE NORMAL MOST PLACES...IN THE UPPER 50S
AND 60S.

THE UPPER LEVEL LOW WILL PROGRESS NORTHEAST DURING THE DAY WEDNESDAY
WHICH WILL PUSH THE COLD FRONT WHICH IS NOW OVER THE ROCKY MOUNTAINS
THROUGH THE FORECAST AREA. FORECAST MODELS SHOW THE FRONT THROUGH
MUCH OF THE AREA BY 18Z WEDNESDAY SO TEMPERATURES MOST PLACES WILL
BE COOLER. THE FRONT LOOKS TO STALL SOMEWHERE FROM SOUTHWEST INTO
NORTHEAST NEBRASKA SO IF IT DOESN/T COMPLETELY CLEAR THE FORECAST
AREA...WILL SEE WARMER TEMPERATURES...POSSIBLY INTO THE 90S IN THE
SOUTHEAST PARTS OF THE FORECAST AREA. HELD OFF ON ANY MENTION OF
STORMS UNTIL LATE AFTERNOON...WITH THE HIGHER CHANCES COMING AFTER
00Z THURSDAY. BELIEVE THE SHORTWAVE TROUGH WON/T MOVE OUT OF
COLORADO UNTIL LATER AFTERNOON WHICH WILL BE THE PRIMARY PROVIDER
FOR THE LIFT FOR ACTIVITY LOCALLY. THE AREAS THAT WILL SEE THE
CHANCES FOR STORMS PRIOR TO 00Z WILL BE OVER THE PANHANDLE AND FAR
SOUTHERN NEBRASKA.

.LONG TERM...(WEDNESDAY NIGHT THROUGH TUESDAY)
ISSUED AT 326 PM CDT TUE JUN 17 2014

MODELS IN FAIR AGREEMENT IN THE MID TERM WITH SOME TEMPERATURE
ISSUES IN THE LONG TERM. WILL USE A BLEND FOR THE FORECAST. COLD
FRONT WILL MOVE ACROSS WESTERN NEBRASKA WEDNESDAY NIGHT. MAIN PLAYER
WILL BE UPPER LOW OVER IDAHO...AS SEEN IN IR...TODAY WHICH WILL MOVE
SLOWLY ACROSS THE NORTHERN PLAINS THROUGH SUNDAY. WEDNESDAY NIGHT
WILL SEE CONTINUED THUNDERSTORMS ALONG THE COLD FRONTAL BOUNDARY
WITH MODELS INDICATING CONTINUED CONVECTIVE ACTIVITY TO THE WEST AS
A STRONG 700MB WAVE ROUNDS THE BOTTOM OF THE CLOSED LOW OVER
MONTANA. GFS HAD SAME SCENARIO LAST WEEK WHICH FAILED TO
MATERIALIZE. STRONG COLD FRONT WITH 850MB TEMPERATURES DROPPING FROM
24C AT 850MB TO 14C AT 850MB THROUGH THURSDAY MORNING OVER THE
FORECAST AREA. LOOKS TO BE STRONG SUBSIDENCE. WILL CUT BACK ON POPS
SOME TO THE WEST. 850MB TEMPERATURES REBOUND THROUGH THE DAY
THURSDAY TO 20C AT 850MB WHICH TRANSLATES INTO 70S AND 80S AT THE
SURFACE. THURSDAY NIGHT INTO FRIDAY DRY WITH CONVECTION FIRING SOUTH
AND EAST OF THE FORECAST AREA ALONG THE FRONTAL BOUNDARY. FRIDAY
EVENING WITH SURFACE TROUGH OF LOW PRESSURE OVER THE NORTHERN PLAINS
AND ZONAL FLOW ALOFT...MID LEVEL WAVE MOVES THROUGH AND SLIGHT
CHANCES RETAINED MAINLY OVER THE EASTERN HALF OF THE FORECAST AREA.
SOME TIMING ISSUES WITH MODELS SATURDAY HAVE CARRIED SLIGHT CHANCE
POPS THROUGH THE DAY AND INCREASED TO CHANCE POPS THROUGH THE NIGHT
AS NUMEROUS MID LEVEL WAVES MOVE THROUGH FAST ZONAL FLOW ALOFT.
TIMING ISSUES TO BE RESOLVED WITH LATER FORECASTS. SIMILAR PATTERN
SUNDAY WITH SCHC POPS THROUGH THE DAY AND THEN CHANCE POPS THROUGH
THE EVENING AS COLD FRONTAL BOUNDARY MOVES THROUGH WESTERN NEBRASKA
SUNDAY NIGHT. DAYTIME HIGHS IN THE 80S THROUGH THE WEEKEND AND INTO
THE 70S THE FIRST PART OF NEXT WEEK.

&&

.AVIATION...(FOR THE 00Z TAFS THROUGH 00Z WEDNESDAY EVENING)
ISSUED AT 659 PM CDT TUE JUN 17 2014

FOR THE KLBF TERMINAL...EXPECT MAINLY CLEAR SKIES WITH THE
EXCEPTION OF SOME HIGH CLOUDINESS IN ASSOCIATION WITH
THUNDERSTORMS TO THE NORTHWEST OF NORTH PLATTE. AT THIS
TIME...THIS ACTIVITY IS EXPECTED TO DISSIPATE AS IT TRACKS
SOUTHEAST. FOR THE KVTN TERMINAL...EXPECT IFR CIGS TO DEVELOP
OVERNIGHT THANKS TO EASTERLY WINDS. CIGS WILL SCATTER OUT BY LATE
MORNING WITH SCATTERED HIGH CLOUDINESS EXPECTED DURING THE
AFTERNOON HOURS.

&&

.LBF WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
NONE.
&&

SHORT TERM...BROOKS
LONG TERM...POWER
AVIATION...CLB

Hazardous weather outlook, Jun 17, 3:51 PM MDT, 3 hours 48 minutes before

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NORTH PLATTE NE
451 PM CDT TUE JUN 17 2014

NEZ004>010-022>029-035>038-056>059-069>071-094-182200-
SHERIDAN-EASTERN CHERRY-KEYA PAHA-BOYD-BROWN-ROCK-HOLT-GARDEN-
GRANT-HOOKER-THOMAS-BLAINE-LOUP-GARFIELD-WHEELER-ARTHUR-MCPHERSON-
LOGAN-CUSTER-DEUEL-KEITH-PERKINS-LINCOLN-CHASE-HAYES-FRONTIER-
WESTERN CHERRY-
451 PM CDT TUE JUN 17 2014 /351 PM MDT TUE JUN 17 2014/

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF WESTERN AND
NORTH CENTRAL NEBRASKA.

.DAY ONE...TONIGHT.

THUNDERSTORMS ARE POSSIBLE ACROSS THE EASTERN NEBRASKA PANHANDLE
INTO NORTH CENTRAL NEBRASKA TONIGHT. STORMS COULD BECOME
SEVERE...GENERALLY EAST OF A LINE FROM GORDON TO ARTHUR AND NORTH
OF HIGHWAYS 2 AND 91. THE PRIMARY THREATS WILL BE LARGE HAIL AND
DAMAGING WIND GUSTS...HOWEVER A FEW TORNADOES CANNOT BE RULED OUT.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY.

THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE POSSIBLE LATE WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON AND
WEDNESDAY NIGHT. AREAS EAST OF A LINE FROM IMPERIAL THROUGH
VALENTINE HAVE THE HIGHEST CHANCE FOR STRONG TO SEVERE STORMS
WEDNESDAY EVENING.

THUNDERSTORMS CHANCES THEN RETURN FOR FRIDAY THROUGH MONDAY. AT
THIS TIME IT IS TOO EARLY TO DISCERN CHANCES FOR SEVERE STORMS..

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE NEEDED THROUGH THIS EVENING...FOR AREAS
EAST OF A LINE FROM GORDON TO ARTHUR AND NORTH OF HIGHWAYS 2 AND 91.

&&

GET YOUR WEATHER...HYDROLOGICAL...AND CLIMATE INFORMATION AT
HTTP://WWW.WEATHER.GOV/NORTHPLATTE (ALL LOWERCASE)

BROOKS

In the hours before

Local storm report, Jun 17, 6:52 PM MDT, 47 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NORTH PLATTE NE
752 PM CDT TUE JUN 17 2014

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0718 PM     HAIL             32 NE HYANNIS           42.33N 101.32W
06/17/2014  M2.75 INCH       CHERRY             NE   PUBLIC

            GOLF BALL TO BASEBALL SIZED HAIL...ALONG WITH TORRENTIAL
            RAIN. SOME STANDING WATER IN FIELDS.

&&

CARMEL

Local storm report, Jun 17, 6:55 PM MDT, 44 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NORTH PLATTE NE
755 PM CDT TUE JUN 17 2014

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0700 PM     TORNADO          25 N WHITMAN            42.41N 101.54W
06/17/2014                   CHERRY             NE   PUBLIC

            FIRST TORNADO SIGHTED...APPROXIMATELY 1/4 MILE WIDE.
            LOCATION IS JUST SOUTHEAST OF ROUND LAKE.

&&

CARMEL

Local storm report, Jun 17, 6:56 PM MDT, 43 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NORTH PLATTE NE
756 PM CDT TUE JUN 17 2014

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0710 PM     TORNADO          25 N WHITMAN            42.41N 101.54W
06/17/2014                   CHERRY             NE   PUBLIC

            2ND TORNADO TOPPED TREES ON PROPERTY AND SOME LARGE TREE
            BRANCHES WERE DOWNED...JUST SOUTHEAST OF ROUND LAKE.

&&

CARMEL

Local storm report, Jun 17, 6:59 PM MDT, 40 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NORTH PLATTE NE
759 PM CDT TUE JUN 17 2014

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0715 PM     TORNADO          25 N WHITMAN            42.41N 101.54W
06/17/2014                   CHERRY             NE   PUBLIC

            2 TO 3 SEPARATE TORNADOES WERE SPOTTED ABOUT 5 MILES WEST
            OF THIS LOCATION. REPORTED AS SEPARATE DISTINCT
            TORNADOES.

&&

CARMEL

Local storm report, Jun 17, 7:09 PM MDT, 30 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NORTH PLATTE NE
809 PM CDT TUE JUN 17 2014

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0715 PM     HAIL             23 N WHITMAN            42.38N 101.54W
06/17/2014  M1.75 INCH       CHERRY             NE   PUBLIC

&&

CARMEL

Special weather statement, Jun 17, 7:17 PM MDT, 22 minutes before

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NORTH PLATTE NE
817 PM CDT TUE JUN 17 2014

NEZ094-180200-
WESTERN CHERRY NE-
717 PM MDT TUE JUN 17 2014

...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ADVISORY FOR SOUTHWESTERN CHERRY COUNTY UNTIL
800 PM MDT...

AT 713 PM MDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR WAS TRACKING A
STRONG THUNDERSTORM 17 MILES NORTH OF ASHBY...OR 42 MILES SOUTHEAST
OF GORDON.  THIS STORM WAS NEARLY STATIONARY.

HAIL UP TO THE SIZE OF NICKELS AND WIND GUSTS UP TO 50 MPH ARE
EXPECTED WITH THIS STORM...ALONG WITH HEAVY RAIN AND FREQUENT
DANGEROUS LIGHTNING.

LOCATIONS NEAR THE PATH OF THIS STORM INCLUDE...

HIGHWAY 61 BETWEEN MILE MARKERS 173 AND 184.

THIS STORM MAY INTENSIFY....AND A TORNADO WATCH IS IN EFFECT FOR THIS
AREA. BE CERTAIN TO MONITOR LOCAL RADIO AND TV STATIONS...AS WELL AS
LOCAL CABLE TV OUTLETS....FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION AND POSSIBLE
WARNINGS FROM THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE.

TORRENTIAL RAIN...WHICH MAY FLOOD LOW LYING AREAS SUCH AS DITCHES AND
UNDERPASSES...IS ALSO LIKELY. DO NOT DRIVE YOUR VEHICLE ON A FLOODED
ROADWAY.

JACOBS

The air that afternoon

The radiosonde launches on either side of the tornado, from the nearest station that was launching then, drawn and analyzed the way Storm Lab does: the same diagram, the same parcel and shear definitions SPC's mesoanalysis uses.

N. Platte/Lee Bi, NE (KLBF), 00:00Z

1.7 hours before the tornado, 119 km from the path. June 18, 2014.

Skew-T log-p

Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed. The warm shading is its CAPE, the cool shading the inhibition it has to break through.

Hodograph

The wind turning with height, colored by layer: ground to 1 km, 1 to 3 km, 3 to 6 km, 6 to 10 km. RM and LM are the right and left moving storms Bunkers' method gives; the shaded area is the 0 to 1 km storm-relative helicity.

Mixed-layer CAPE: 823 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -35 J/kg
Surface CAPE: 2304 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 2891 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 21 kt
0-1 km bulk shear: 6 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 12 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 64 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.0
Supercell composite: 1.5
0-3 km lapse rate: 9.0 K/km

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

N. Platte/Lee Bi, NE (KLBF), 12:00Z

10.3 hours after it, 119 km from the path. June 18, 2014.

Skew-T log-p

Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed. The warm shading is its CAPE, the cool shading the inhibition it has to break through.

Hodograph

Mixed-layer CAPE: 0 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -91174 J/kg
Surface CAPE: 6 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 3421 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 10 kt
0-1 km bulk shear: 15 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: -50 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: -34 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.0
Supercell composite: 0.0
0-3 km lapse rate: 4.1 K/km

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The radar

The North Platte radar (KLNX), 51 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the touchdown began at 01:37 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment, over the track

Reflectivity and velocity, decoded from the Level II archive in the browser. Volumes take a few seconds to open the first time.

What was reported nearby

Local storm reports within 60 km of the path, in the three hours either side.

Time (UTC)	Report	Where	County	Remark
23:30 UTC	TORNADO	32 S Merriman	Cherry, NE	TORNADO LIFTED A 40 FOOT STOCK TRAILER OF THE HIGHWAY. THE DRIVER HEADED FOR THE DITCH TO AVOID THE TRAILER BEING OVERTURNED. THE EVENT TOOK PLACE ON HIGHWAY 61 AT MILE MARKER 195.
23:30 UTC	TORNADO	32 S Merriman	Cherry, NE	TORNADO WINDS LIFTED A 40 FOOT STOCK TRAILER OFF THE ROADWAY ON HIGHWAY 61 AT MILE MARKER 195. THE DRIVER HEADED FOR THE DITCH TO AVOID THE TRAILER FROM BEING OVERTURNED.
23:30 UTC	TORNADO	35 Ne Hyannis	Cherry, NE	SAW TORNADO ON WAY HOME FROM WORK IN VICINITY OF WILLOW VALLEY SCHOOL. FLIPPED A SEMI ON HIGHWAY 61 AROUND MILE MARKER 194. CAR FROM NEIGHBOR WAS BLOWN OFF ROAD.
00:00 UTC	TORNADO	25 N Whitman	Cherry, NE	FIRST TORNADO SIGHTED...APPROXIMATELY 1/4 MILE WIDE. LOCATION IS JUST SOUTHEAST OF ROUND LAKE.
00:10 UTC	TORNADO	25 N Whitman	Cherry, NE	2ND TORNADO TOPPED TREES ON PROPERTY AND SOME LARGE TREE BRANCHES WERE DOWNED...JUST SOUTHEAST OF ROUND LAKE.
00:15 UTC	HAIL 1.75	23 N Whitman	Cherry, NE
00:15 UTC	TORNADO	25 N Whitman	Cherry, NE	2 TO 3 SEPARATE TORNADOES WERE SPOTTED ABOUT 5 MILES WEST OF THIS LOCATION. REPORTED AS SEPARATE DISTINCT TORNADOES.
00:18 UTC	HAIL 2.75	32 Ne Hyannis	Cherry, NE	GOLF BALL TO BASEBALL SIZED HAIL...ALONG WITH TORRENTIAL RAIN. SOME STANDING WATER IN FIELDS.
00:28 UTC	HAIL 1.75	30 Ne Hyannis	Cherry, NE	HAIL RANGING IN SIZE FROM MARBLE TO GOLF BALL SIZE.
00:30 UTC	HAIL 4.25	25 Ne Hyannis	Cherry, NE	HAIL WAS LARGER THAN SOFTBALL SIZE AND MEASURED 5 INCHES IN DIAMTER. DELAYED REPORT. TIME ESTIMATED.
01:36 UTC	FUNNEL CLOUD	12 Wsw Mullen	Hooker, NE
01:38 UTC	HAIL 2.75	19 W Mullen	Hooker, NE	GOLF BALL TO BASEBALL SIZED HAIL...SPARSE AT TIME OF REPORT.
01:39 UTC	TORNADO	8 Nw Mullen	Cherry, NE	BRIEF FULL CONDENSATION TO GROUND...VERY RAPID ROTATION REPORTED BY OFF DUTY NWS EMPLOYEE.
02:07 UTC	TORNADO	12 Wsw Mullen	Hooker, NE	POSSIBLE RAIN-WRAPPED TORNADO
02:10 UTC	TORNADO	12 Wsw Mullen	Hooker, NE	MULTI VORTEX TORNADO PICKING UP DIRT
02:15 UTC	HAIL 1.75	9 Sw Mullen	Hooker, NE
02:15 UTC	TORNADO	9 Sw Mullen	Hooker, NE	TORNADO REPORTED 3 MILES SOUTH OF HECLA. REPORTED AS CONE GOING TO ROPE PHASE.
02:17 UTC	TORNADO	9 Sw Mullen	Hooker, NE	PUBLIC REPORTED A SMALL WEDGE SHAPED TORNADO APPROXIMATELY 9 MILES SOUTHWEST OF MULLEN.
02:20 UTC	FUNNEL CLOUD	10 Sw Mullen	Hooker, NE	FUNNEL CLOUD SIGHTED 10 MILES SOUTHWEST OF MULLEN.
02:20 UTC	HAIL 0.5	3 Sw Mullen	Hooker, NE
02:50 UTC	HAIL 1.25	7 Sw Mullen	Hooker, NE	MARBLE TO HALF DOLLAR SIZED HAIL AT TIME OF REPORT.

From the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service local storm reports.

This ground now

The live radar over the track Every 2014 tornado in Nebraska Every tornado in Nebraska since 1950 Warnings in force in Nebraska now The forecast where you are

The other tornadoes of June 17, 2014

19 more were confirmed in the United States that day.

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Damage
June 17	4:40 AM CDT	EF1	Green, WI	6.8	641	$300,000
June 17	11:57 AM EDT	EF1	Iosco, MI	1.6	100	$140,000
June 17	2:27 PM MDT	EF3	Carter, MT	10.0	880
June 17	3:54 PM MDT	EF0	Garfield, MT	0.1	15
June 17	4:40 PM MDT	EF0	Cherry, NE	0.2	40
June 17	4:40 PM MDT	EF0	Cherry, NE	0.4	40
June 17	5:28 PM MDT	EF0	Cherry, NE	0.7	40	$60,000
June 17	6:00 PM MDT	EF0	Cherry, NE	0.7	40	$10,000
June 17	7:57 PM CDT	EF1	Cedar, NE	3.9	630	$10,000
June 17	8:09 PM CDT	EF3	Cedar, NE	4.0	2,059	$2.0 million
June 17	10:03 PM EDT	EF1	Oneida, NY	11.0	250
June 17	8:07 PM MDT	EF0	Hooker, NE	1.7	40
June 17	9:10 PM CDT	EF0	Cedar, NE	1.3	100
June 17	9:10 PM CDT	EF1	Cedar, NE	3.4	850	$25,000
June 17	9:28 PM CDT	EF2	Cedar, NE	0.9	200	$50,000
June 17	9:45 PM CDT	EF2	Cedar, NE	5.3	850	$250,000
June 17	10:44 PM CDT	EF2	Minnehaha, SD	3.4	400	$100,000
June 17	10:45 PM CDT	EF1	Dixon, NE	2.5	100	$20,000
June 17	11:27 PM CDT	EF0	Lyon, IA	0.3	50

What this means

Ratings are the survey's, read off the damage rather than measured; the rating scale is above. Tornado counts rise through the record as reporting improved, so a year in the 1950s is not comparable with one today except for the strongest tornadoes, which were always noticed.

Sources

NOAA Storm Prediction Center tornado database, 1950-2025, the official record kept by NOAA's Storm Prediction Center.