Alert archive / North Carolina / Tornado Warnings in 1987

Tornado Warning 2, NWS Newport/Morehead City, NC

June 3, 1987Bertie County, Martin County, North Carolina

NWS Newport/Morehead City, NC issued this tornado warning at Jun 3, 1987, 8:50 PM EDT for Bertie County, Martin County, North Carolina. It was in force for 50 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
Jun 3, 1987, 8:50 PM EDT (00:50 UTC)
Expired
Jun 3, 1987, 9:40 PM EDT
In force
50 min
Issued by
NWS Newport/Morehead City, NC
Area
Whole counties

Counties Bertie County, NC, Martin County, NC

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

TimeReportWhereRemark
Jun 3, 8:50 PM EDTThunderstorm Wind 0Martin, NC
Jun 3, 8:50 PM EDTThunderstorm Wind 0Bertie, NC

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

Cape Hatteras, NC (KHAT), launched 00:00Z, 0.8 hours before the alert went out and 158 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.

Skew-T log-pSkew-T log-p diagram, Cape Hatteras, NC at 00:00Z on 1987-06-04Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 0 joules per kilogram.LCL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°0°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Cape Hatteras, NC at 00:00Z on 1987-06-04The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 60 square meters per square second.1939Sfc1 km3 km6 km9 kmRMLM
The wind turning with height, colored by layer: ground to 1 km, 1 to 3 km, 3 to 6 km, 6 to 10 km.
Mixed-layer CAPE
0 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL
NaN m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
24 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
60 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
151 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.5

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.

000 
TTAA00 KHAT 040050
TORHAT
NCC117-015-041-040140-
 
BULLETIN - EBS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CAPE HATTERAS NC
850 PM EDT WED JUN 3 1987
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED A 
TORNADO WARNING
EFFECTIVE UNTIL 940 PM EDT FOR THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES OF
 
NORTH CAROLINA... NORTH CENTRAL MARTIN... NORTHERN BERTIE... CHOWAN      
                                                                         
AT 840 PM EDT...RADAR INDICATED SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS NORTHERN 
BERTIE...NORTHERN CHOWAN...AND WESTERN MARTIN COUNTIES. SHERIFFS 
DEPTMENT AT EDENTON REPORT A FUNNEL CLOUD NEAR THE CHOWAN RIVER BRIDGE. 
RESIDENTS OF THESE COUNTIES TAKE COVER NOW." 
 
 
CACCIAPAGLIA

The office that day

Everything else NWS Newport/Morehead City, NC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jun 3, 8:25 PM EDTTornado WarningMHXGates, Hertford35 min
Jun 3, 8:50 PM EDTTornado WarningMHXChowan50 min
Jun 4, 4:08 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMHXHyde42 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in North Carolina, 1987Every tornado warning in 1987Tornadoes 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.