Tornadoes · United States · Texas · 2009

EF1 tornado, Cool to Millsap, Texas, June 12, 2009

Name: EF1 tornado, Cool to Millsap, Texas, June 12, 2009
Start: 2009-06-13T00:15:00.000Z
End: 2009-06-13T00:20:00.000Z
Location: Cool to Millsap, Texas

From Cool to Millsap, this EF1 tornado ran 3.2 miles across Parker County on June 12, 2009, touching down at 7:15 PM CDT and reaching 50 yards wide. It killed nobody, and did $30,000 of property damage.

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 mph
Light damage. Surface peeled off some roofs, gutters and siding damaged, branches broken, shallow-rooted trees pushed over.
EF186 to 110 mphthis tornado
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: EF1
Date: June 12, 2009
Touchdown: 7:15 PM CDT (00:15 UTC)
Lifted: 7:20 PM CDT (00:20 UTC)
On the ground: 5 minutes
Path length: 3.2 miles (5.1 km)
Path width: 50 yards (46 m)
Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: $30,000
County: Parker County
Touchdown point: 32.681, -97.904
Lift-off point: 32.637, -97.886
Record number: 0906121815-01

What the Weather Service recorded

Severe thunderstorms developed along the dryline in the afternoon hours across parts of the western half of north Texas. Slow moving tornadic supercells developed in Jack County and moved southeast into Palo Pinto County producing four tornadoes. In addition, large hail up to the size of Golfballs and Hen Eggs was reported.

A tornado was observed from near Clark Gardens Botanical Park to near Cool. Large trees were uprooted in the path of the tornado. A large shed at the gardens had most of its metal roof removed and tossed over.

Carports and trees were ripped up as a tornado was tracked approximately 11 miles southeast of Millsap. Storage buildings were also destroyed.

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

The warnings

32 minutes of warning. NWS FWD issued a tornado warning for this county at 23:43 UTC, 32 minutes before the tornado touched down, in force until 00:45 UTC.

The county was under a tornado watch, issued at 20:29 UTC and running to 02:01 UTC.

Issued (UTC)	Expired	Product	Office
20:29 UTC	02:01 UTC	Tornado Watch	FWD
22:53 UTC	23:45 UTC	Tornado Warning	FWD
23:43 UTC	00:45 UTC	Tornado Warning	FWD
00:13 UTC	00:50 UTC	Tornado Warning	FWD
00:43 UTC	01:45 UTC	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FWD

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 20:01 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 Fort Worth, TX wrote its last area forecast discussion before the tornado touched down at Jun 12, 5:53 PM CDT, 1 hour 22 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jun 12, 5:53 PM CDT, 1 hour 22 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION...UPDATED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FORT WORTH TX
553 PM CDT FRI JUN 12 2009

.AVIATION...
SCT...SVR STORMS DEVELOPED OFF W-CENTRAL TX DRYLINE AS EXPECTED...THOUGH
ONE SUPERCELL DEVELOPED FURTHER EAST OVER JACK CO AND IS NOW MOVING
SE AROUND 10-15 KTS AND HAVE JUST AMD ALL D/FW TAF SITES FOR ARRIVAL
OF STORMS WITH TEMPO IFR/GUSTY NW WINDS BTWN 23Z- 01Z...WITH LINGERING
VCSH LATER THIS EVE TOWARD 06Z. THIS WILL GIVE THE AIRPORTS FITS FOR
THE NEXT FEW HOURS AND WILL LIKELY COORD AND ISSUE AWW IN NEXT 15 MINS
AFTER COORD CALLS. OTRW...VFR CONDS WITH SELY FLOW 8-12 KTS EXPECTED
OVRNGT THROUGH SAT AS BROAD LOW PRESSURE SITUATES OVER W TX/PANHANDLE
REGION IN VCNTY OF DRYLINE. NEW 00Z TAF ISSUANCE LIKELY WILL REMAIN
THE SAME...JUST WITH ADDITIONAL TIME FCST FRO 21Z SAT-06Z SUN.

05/

&&

.UPDATE...
WE/VE EXPANDED THE TORNADO WATCH EASTWARD A FEW COUNTIES. IT NOW
RUNS WEST OF A SHERMAN-DENNISON TO WAXAHACHIE...GATESVILLE...
LAMPASAS LINE.

CLUSTER OF STRONG/SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS OVER JACK COUNTY WILL MOVE
EAST ABOUT 15 MPH AND THROUGH WISE COUNTY. WE ARE EXPECTING THIS
MOVEMENT TO BECOME MORE SOUTHEASTERLY WITH TIME AND HEAD FOR THE
NORTHERN METROPLEX 700-730 PM. 75

&&

.PREV DISCUSSION... /ISSUED 358 PM CDT FRI JUN 12 2009/
THUNDERSTORMS ARE JUST STARTING TO FIRE ALONG THE DRYLINE AS OF
2045Z. A TORNADO WATCH HAS RECENTLY BEEN ISSUED TO COVER THE
WESTERN PART OF NORTH TEXAS GENERALLY ALONG AND WEST OF A
GAINESVILLE...WEATHERFORD...LAMPASAS LINE. THESE STORMS SHOULD
MOVE EAST AT 20-25 MPH...WITH THE SUPERCELLS TRACKING SOUTHEAST.
HAVE KEPT THE BEST POPS FOR THIS EVENING ACROSS THE WESTERN HALF
OF NORTH TEXAS TEXAS. WE WILL SEE A CHANCE OF SHOWERS AND
THUNDERSTORMS AREAWIDE TOMORROW AND TOMORROW NIGHT. CHANCES
SUNDAY WILL ONLY BE ALONG THE RED RIVER. THE UPPER RIDGE WILL
BUILD IN MONDAY THROUGH MUCH OF NEXT WEEK...WITH AFTERNOON HIGHS
IN THE 90S TO AROUND 100 DEGREES...AND MORNING LOWS IN THE 70S.

58

&&

.PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS...
DALLAS-FT. WORTH, TX  77  96  76  97  76 /  30  20  30  10  10
WACO, TX              78  98  76  98  76 /  20  20  20  10   5
PARIS, TX             74  94  74  94  74 /  30  20  30  20  10
DENTON, TX            76  96  74  97  74 /  30  20  30  10  10
MCKINNEY, TX          75  96  74  96  72 /  30  20  30  20  10
DALLAS, TX            79  96  78  97  78 /  30  20  30  10   5
TERRELL, TX           76  96  76  96  75 /  30  20  20  10   5
CORSICANA, TX         75  97  75  96  75 /  20  20  20  10   5
TEMPLE, TX            74  97  74  97  74 /  20  20  20  10   5

&&

.FWD WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
NONE.

&&

05/75

Hazardous weather outlook, Jun 12, 3:45 PM CDT, 3 hours 30 minutes before

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...CORRECTED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FORT WORTH TX
345 PM CDT FRI JUN 12 2009

TXZ091>095-100>107-115>123-129>135-141>148-156>162-174-175-131100-
MONTAGUE-COOKE-GRAYSON-FANNIN-LAMAR-YOUNG-JACK-WISE-DENTON-COLLIN-
HUNT-DELTA-HOPKINS-STEPHENS-PALO PINTO-PARKER-TARRANT-DALLAS-
ROCKWALL-KAUFMAN-VAN ZANDT-RAINS-EASTLAND-ERATH-HOOD-SOMERVELL-
JOHNSON-ELLIS-HENDERSON-COMANCHE-MILLS-HAMILTON-BOSQUE-HILL-NAVARRO-
FREESTONE-ANDERSON-LAMPASAS-CORYELL-BELL-MCLENNAN-FALLS-LIMESTONE-
LEON-MILAM-ROBERTSON-
345 PM CDT FRI JUN 12 2009

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR NORTH TEXAS.

.DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT.
THERE IS A CHANCE OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS THIS AFTERNOON AND
EVENING ACROSS ALL OF NORTH TEXAS. THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WILL
HAVE THE POTENTIAL TO PRODUCE LARGE HAIL...DAMAGING WINDS...AND
TORNADOES. IN ADDITION...HEAVY RAINFALL AND DANGEROUS CLOUD TO
GROUND LIGHTNING ARE EXPECTED WITH THE THUNDERSTORMS.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SATURDAY THROUGH THURSDAY.
A CHANCE FOR THUNDERSTORMS WILL CONTINUE SATURDAY AND SUNDAY.
SEVERE WEATHER WILL BE POSSIBLE WITH ANY STORMS THAT DEVELOP.

HEAT INDEX VALUES WILL REACH THE TRIPLE DIGITS IN SOME LOCATIONS
THIS WEEKEND...THEN BECOME MORE WIDESPREAD DURING THE FORTHCOMING
WEEK. AT TIMES...HEAT INDEX VALUES MAY REACH 105 DEGREES OR MORE.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...
SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS LIKELY THIS EVENING...PRIMARILY WEST OF THE
I-35 CORRIDOR. ADDITIONAL ACTIVATION MAY BE REQUESTED ELSEWHERE.

25

In the hours before

Local storm report, Jun 12, 6:39 PM CDT, 36 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FORT WORTH TX
639 PM CDT FRI JUN 12 2009

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

0634 PM     TORNADO          9 WNW PERRIN            33.08N  98.21W
06/12/2009                   JACK               TX   LAW ENFORCEMENT

            TORNADO DEBRIS HWY 2210 EAST OF BARTON CHAPEL 33N 03.882
            98W 12.363

Local storm report, Jun 12, 6:43 PM CDT, 32 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FORT WORTH TX
643 PM CDT FRI JUN 12 2009

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

0635 PM     HAIL             1 W COMANCHE            31.90N  98.62W
06/12/2009  E1.75 INCH       COMANCHE           TX   BROADCAST MEDIA

            PER KWTX

Local storm report, Jun 12, 7:01 PM CDT, 14 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FORT WORTH TX
701 PM CDT FRI JUN 12 2009

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

0659 PM     HAIL             1 W COOL                32.80N  98.03W
06/12/2009  E1.00 INCH       PARKER             TX   AMATEUR RADIO

            QUARTER HAIL 2 MILES E OF MINERAL WELLS

Local storm report, Jun 12, 7:07 PM CDT, 8 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FORT WORTH TX
707 PM CDT FRI JUN 12 2009

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

0658 PM     TORNADO          COOL                    32.80N  98.01W
06/12/2009                   PARKER             TX   PUBLIC

            LARGE TREE LIMBS DOWN AND EST 65 MPH WINDS

Local storm report, Jun 12, 7:08 PM CDT, 7 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FORT WORTH TX
708 PM CDT FRI JUN 12 2009

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

0703 PM     TSTM WND GST     MINERAL WELLS           32.82N  98.08W
06/12/2009  E58 MPH          PALO PINTO         TX   ASOS

            KMWL ASOS REPORTED A 50 KNOT GUST AT 703 PM

Local storm report, Jun 12, 7:14 PM CDT, 1 minute before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FORT WORTH TX
714 PM CDT FRI JUN 12 2009

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

0703 PM     HAIL             6 NNW MILLSAP           32.83N  98.05W
06/12/2009  E1.25 INCH       PARKER             TX   NWS EMPLOYEE

            HALF DOLLAR HAIL AT MINERAL WELLS STATE PARK. FORWARDED
            FROM WFO OUN.

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.

Fort Worth, TX (KFWD), 00:00Z

0.3 hours before the tornado, 60 km from the path. June 13, 2009.

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: 3698 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -28 J/kg
Surface CAPE: 3346 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 1518 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 30 kt
0-1 km bulk shear: 13 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 86 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 179 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 1.2
Supercell composite: 13.8
0-3 km lapse rate: 6.8 K/km

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

Fort Worth, TX (KFWD), 12:00Z

11.7 hours after it, 60 km from the path. June 13, 2009.

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: 3009 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -231 J/kg
Surface CAPE: 1458 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 738 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 28 kt
0-1 km bulk shear: 26 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 178 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 179 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.0
Supercell composite: 3.5
0-3 km lapse rate: 3.8 K/km

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The radar

The Dallas/Ft Worth radar (KFWS), 56 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the touchdown began at 00:15 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
22:29 UTC	TORNADO	5 S Jacksboro	Jack, TX	TORNADO LASTED ABOUT 4-5 MINUTES
22:50 UTC	TORNADO	2 Wnw Perrin	Jack, TX	SPOTTER REPORTED TORNADO JUST WNW OF PERRIN
23:15 UTC	HAIL 1.75	Perrin	Jack, TX	GOLF BALL HAIL NEAR PERRIN
23:34 UTC	TORNADO	9 Wnw Perrin	Jack, TX	TORNADO DEBRIS HWY 2210 EAST OF BARTON CHAPEL 33N 03.882 98W 12.363
23:36 UTC	TSTM WND GST 60	Graford	Palo Pinto, TX	HAMS REPORT 60 MPH WINDS IN GRAFORD
23:58 UTC	TORNADO	Cool	Parker, TX	LARGE TREE LIMBS DOWN AND EST 65 MPH WINDS
23:59 UTC	HAIL 1	1 W Cool	Parker, TX	QUARTER HAIL 2 MILES E OF MINERAL WELLS
00:03 UTC	TSTM WND GST 58	Mineral Wells	Palo Pinto, TX	KMWL ASOS REPORTED A 50 KNOT GUST AT 703 PM
00:03 UTC	HAIL 1.25	6 Nnw Millsap	Parker, TX	HALF DOLLAR HAIL AT MINERAL WELLS STATE PARK. FORWARDED FROM WFO OUN.
00:18 UTC	TSTM WND DMG	5 W Weatherford	Parker, TX	20 INCH DIAMETER TREE DOWN ON HWY 180 5 MILES WEST OF WEATHERFORD
00:34 UTC	TSTM WND DMG	11 Ssw Weatherford	Parker, TX	HAMS REPORTED A TREE FELL ON A HOUSE IN THE HORSESHOE BEND AREA
00:35 UTC	HAIL 0.75	7 Nnw Granbury	Hood, TX	HAMS REPORT PENNY HAIL ON HWY 51 AT 7 MILES NNW OF GRANBURY
00:36 UTC	HAIL 1.75	12 S Weatherford	Parker, TX	HAMS REPORT GOLF BALL HAIL IN TIN TOP
00:40 UTC	HAIL 1.25	7 Nnw Granbury	Hood, TX	HAMS REPORT HALF DOLLAR HAIL ON HWY 51 ABOUT 7 NNW OF GRANBURY
00:52 UTC	TSTM WND GST 68	8 Ne Granbury	Hood, TX	SPOTTER NETWORK REPORT OF 68 MPH WINDS IN CRESSON
01:00 UTC	TORNADO	8 Sw Weatherford	Parker, TX	LOTS OF CARPORTS AND LARGE TREES DOWN. SHEET METAL TWISTED AROUND TREES.
01:18 UTC	HAIL 1	3 Nnw Granbury	Hood, TX
01:20 UTC	HAIL 1	Oak Trail Shores	Hood, TX
01:30 UTC	HAIL 1.75	4 S Granbury	Hood, TX
01:32 UTC	HAIL 2	1 E Granbury	Hood, TX	2 INCH HAIL IN INDIAN HARBOR

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

This ground now

The live radar over the track Every 2009 tornado in Texas Every tornado in Texas since 1950 Warnings in force in Texas now The forecast where you are

The other tornadoes of June 12, 2009

11 more were confirmed in the United States that day.

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Injuries	Damage
June 12	2:10 PM CDT	EF1	Conway, AR	2.4	500		$200,000
June 12	4:58 PM CDT	EF2	DeSoto, MS	2.9	75	1	$4.0 million
June 12	5:00 PM CDT	EF1	Shelby, TN	0.1	30		$25,000
June 12	5:29 PM CDT	EF1	Jack, TX	1.7	100		$20,000
June 12	5:50 PM CDT	EF1	Jack, TX	3.3	50		$20,000
June 12	6:10 PM CDT	EF1	San Saba, TX	0.6	250
June 12	6:58 PM CDT	EF0	Parker, TX	1.6	30		$2,000
June 12	7:50 PM CDT	EF0	San Saba, TX	0.7	200
June 12	8:40 PM CDT	EF0	San Saba, TX	0.5	250
June 12	9:38 PM CDT	EF1	Mason, TX	0.9	200		$80,000
June 12	10:23 PM CDT	EF1	Cleveland, OK	2.2	200

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.