Alert archive / South Carolina / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1987
Severe Thunderstorm Warning 2, NWS Charleston, SC
NWS Charleston, SC issued this severe thunderstorm warning at May 19, 1987, 4:02 PM EDT for Berkeley County, South Carolina. It was in force for 58 min. 2 reports came from inside the area while it was in force.
The area
The counties it named, with what was reported inside it.
The facts
- Issued
- May 19, 1987, 4:02 PM EDT (20:02 UTC)
- Expired
- May 19, 1987, 5:00 PM EDT
- In force
- 58 min
- Issued by
- NWS Charleston, SC
- Area
- Whole counties
County Berkeley County, SC
The radar
The WSR-88D network and its archive begin in 1991, so there is no radar volume for this alert.
What was reported inside it
| Time | Report | Where | Remark |
|---|---|---|---|
| May 19, 4:11 PM EDT | Hail 0.75 | Berkeley, SC | |
| May 19, 5:10 PM EDT | Hail 1.5 | Berkeley, SC |
NCEI Storm Data entries that began inside the alert's area while it was in force. Before 2003 the local storm report archive is thin, so this is the record of what happened rather than what was phoned in. Storm Data before 1996 records only tornadoes, thunderstorm wind and hail.
The nearest sounding before it
Charleston AFB, SC (KCHS), launched 12:00Z, 8.0 hours before the alert went out and 33 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.
- Mixed-layer CAPE
- 910 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -20 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 697 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 8 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 17 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 39 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 0.0
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000 TTAA00 KCHS 192002 SVRCHS SCC015-192100- BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLESTON SC 402 PM EDT TUE MAY 19 1987 THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 500 PM EDT FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING COUNTY OF SOUTH CAROLINA...BERKELEY AT 358 PM EDT RADAR INDICATED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM NEAR MONCKS CORNER. MOVING TO THE NORTHEAST AT 15 MILES AN HOUR. THIS STORM HAS FREQUENT DANGEROUS LIGHTNING..LARGE HAIL AND STRONG DAMAGING WINDS. IF YOU ARE NEAR THE WARNED AREA.. BE ALERT FOR CHANGING WEATHER CONDITIONS AND POSSIBLE WARNINGS THAT MAY BE ISSUED. HEAVY DOWNPOURS OF RAIN WILL FLOOD STREETS AND HIWAYS IN AND NEAR THIS STORM. MORE DETAILED INFORMATION CONCERNING THIS WARNING WILL BE ISSUED SHORTLY AS A SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT. OLIVER
What forecasters said that day
The local office's own words before this severe thunderstorm warning went out, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
In the hours before
Special weather statement, May 19, 2:42 PM EDT, 1 hour 20 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT AND RADAR SUMMARY NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLESTON, SC 240 PM EDT TUE MAY 19 1987 AT 2.35 PM...RADAR INDICATED HEAVY THUNDERSTORMS OVER THE COAST FROM MYRTLE BEACH SOUTHWARD TO NORTHERN FLORIDA. THESE STORMS WERE BEING CREATED BY THE CLASH OF HOT LAND AIR AND THE SEABREEZES OFF THE OCEAN. ALMOST THE ENTIRE COAST WAS AFFECTED BY THESE STORMS FROM JUST INLAND FROM THE SHORELINE TO 35 MILES INLAND. THERE WAS A GOOD CHANCE SOME OF THESE STORMS WERE PRODUCING SMALL HAIL...SHORT PERIODS OF GUSTY WINDS AND HEAVY DOWNPOURS. PERSONS IN THE AFFECTED COASTAL COUNTIES SHOULD REMAIN ALERT FOR SOME POSSIBLE SEVERE WEATHER WITH THESE STORMS OVER THE NEXT FEW HOURS. THEY SHOULD CONTINUE TO MOVE SLOWLY INLAND FROM THE COAST OVER THE NEXT FEW HOURS. ELSEWHERE...ISOLATED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WERE NOTED OVER INLAND AREAS OF SOUTH CAROLINA AND GEORGIA. SLB
Special weather statement, May 19, 3:44 PM EDT, 18 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT AND RADAR SUMMARY NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLESTON, SC 340 PM EDT TUE MAY 19 1987 AT 3.35 PM...RADAR INDICATED HEAVY THUNDERSTORMS OVER MOST OF THE ENTIRE COASTAL PLAINS OF SOUTH CAROLINA AND GEORGIA. THEY EXTENDED FROM JUST INLAND FROM THE COASTLINE TO 30 TO 40 MILES INLAND. THESE STORMS ARE BEING CAUSED BY THE INTERACTION OF THE OCEAN SEABREEZES AND HOT INLAND AIR. MOST OF THE HEAVIEST THUNDERSTORMS WERE FROM CHARLESTON SOUTHWARD. SOME WERE SUSPECTED OF PRODUCING HAIL SOUTH OF SAVANNAH. THERE HAVE BEEN NO REPORTS OF ANY SEVERE WEATHER AT THIS TIME. HOWEVER...PERSONS ALONG THE COAST SHOULD REMAIN ALERT FOR POSSIBLE SEVERE WEATHER FOR THE NEXT FEW HOURS AS THESE STORMS CAN POSSIBLY PRODUCE SOME SMALL HAIL...BRIEF GUSTY WINDS AND HEAVY LOCAL DOWNPOURS. ELSEWHERE...ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS WERE OCCURRING OVER THE PIEDMONT AND MIDLANDS OF THE CAROLINAS AND GEORGIA. SLB
Special weather statement, May 19, 3:45 PM EDT, 17 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SAVANNAH GA 345 PM EDT TUE MAY 19 1987 ...VERY STRONG THUNDERSTORMS HAVE CONTINUED TO FORM OVER THE SAVANNAH AREA... STRONG THUNDERSTORMS HAVE DEVELOPED RAPIDLY FROM THE SAVANNAH INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT TO ABOUT 15 MILES SOUTH OF SAVANNAH. THE STORMS WERE MOVING TO THE NORTH ABOUT 5 MILES AN HOUR. AS THESE STORMS CONTINUE TO MOVE IN A NORTHERLY DIRESTION ACROSS NORTHERN CHATHAM COUNTY...WIND GUST OF 40 TO 50 MILES AN HOUR ...DANGEROUS LIGHTNING AND SMALL HAIL ARE POSSIBLE. HEAVY DOWNPOURS MAY ALSO OCCUR CAUSING FLOODING OF POOR DRAINAGE AREAS. THERE HAVE BEEN REPORTS OF RAINFALL AMOUNTS OF ABOUT 1 AND QUARTER INCHES OF RAIN IN THE DOWFNTOWN SAVANNAH AREA. HOWEVERE...SAVANNAH P. D. REPORTED STREETS WERE OPEN. AT SAVANNAH INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT IN A THUNDERSTORM WINDS HAVE GUSTED TO 45 MILES AND A VERY HEAVY RAINSHOWER.
Nearby
Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in South Carolina, 1987Every severe thunderstorm warning in 1987
Sources
The product and its follow-ups from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service and Storm Prediction Center text; verification from NCEI's Storm Data; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive.