Alert archive / Georgia / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1989

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 138, NWS Atlanta, GA

July 25, 1989Gilmer County, Georgia

NWS Atlanta, GA issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Jul 25, 1989, 6:57 PM EDT for Gilmer County, Georgia. It was in force for 33 min. 1 report 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
Jul 25, 1989, 6:57 PM EDT (22:57 UTC)
Expired
Jul 25, 1989, 7:30 PM EDT
In force
33 min
Issued by
NWS Atlanta, GA
Area
Whole counties

County Gilmer County, GA

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
Jul 25, 7:03 PM EDTThunderstorm Wind 0Gilmer, GA

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

Athens Municipal, GA (KAHN), launched 12:00Z, 11.0 hours before the alert went out and 134 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, Athens Municipal, GA at 12:00Z on 1989-07-25Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 760 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 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, Athens Municipal, GA at 12:00Z on 1989-07-25The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 11 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
760 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-63 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1077 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
19 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
11 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
27 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.1

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
TTAA00 KATL 252259
SVRATL
GAC123-252330-
 
BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ATLANTA GA
657 PM EDT TUE JUL 25 1989
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN ATLANTA HAS ISSUED A
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL  730 PM EDT
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING COUNTY...
 
IN NORTHWEST GEORGIA
          ...GILMER
 
AT 700 PM WEATHER SERVICE RADAR SHOWED A THUNDERSTORM ABOUT 5 MILES
SOUTH OF ELLIJAY IN GILMER COUNTY MOVING WEST AT 15 MPH.
 
WITHIN THE LAST HOUR SIMILAR STORMS HAVE PRODUCED HAIL..DAMAGING WINDS
AND FREQUENT LIGHTNING.
 
IF YOU ARE CAUGHT OUTSIDE...SEEK SHELTER FROM THE WEATHER IN A
STRONG BUILDING.  DAMAGING WIND...LARGE HAIL...VERY HEIAVY RAIN...
AND DEADLY LIGHTNING ARE ALL POSSIBLE IN SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS.
STAY INSIDE AWAY FROM WINDOWS UNTIL THE STORM HAS PASSED.

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, Jul 25, 4:43 PM EDT, 2 hours 14 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT AND RADAR SUMMARY
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ATHENS GA
440 PM EDT TUE JUL 25 1989

...THUNDERSTORMS SOME WITH VERY HEAVY RAIN AND GUSTY WINDS...
FREQUENT LIGHTNING AND POSSIBLE SMALL HAIL DEVELOPING OVER
PARTS OF NORTHEAST GEORGIA...

AT 430 PM EDT IN NORTHEAST GEORGIA THE STRONGEST THUNDERSTORMS WERE
LOCATED OVER CLEVELAND IN WHITE COUNTY AND FROM JEFFERSON SOUTH
TO AROUND MADISON GEORGIA. MOVEMENT SOUTHWEST AT 15 MILES AN HOUR.

PEOPLE ACROSS NORTHEAST GEORGIA SHOULD BE ALERT FOR THESE THUNDERSTORMS
AND OTHERS WHICH MAY DEVELOP IN THE NEXT FEW HOURS.

ELSEWHERE SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS WITH VERY HEAVY RAIN AND GUSTY WINDS
WERE OCCURRING ACROSS NORTH AND CENTRAL GEORGIA EAST INTO THE WESTERN
CAROLINAS. THE STRONGEST THUNDERSTORMS WERE LOCATED JUST EAST OF WRENS
GEORGIA AND JUST WEST OF ASHEVILLE NORTH CAROLINA. MOVEMENT SOUTHWEST
AT 15 MILES AN HOUR.
Special weather statement, Jul 25, 5:39 PM EDT, 1 hour 18 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT AND RADAR SUMMARY
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ATHENS GA
535 PM EDT TUE JUL 25 1989

...THUNDERSTORMS SOME WITH VERY HEAVY RAIN AND GUSTY WINDS...
FREQUENT LIGHTNING AND POSSIBLE SMALL HAIL CONTINUED TO OVER
PARTS OF NORTHEAST GEORGIA...

AT 530 PM EDT IN NORTHEAST GEORGIA THE STRONGEST THUNDERSTORMS WERE
LOCATED JUST WEST OF DAHLONEGA IN LUMPKIN COUNTY AND FROM JUST WEST
OF WINDER IN BARROW COUNTY SOUTH THROUGH NEWTON COUNTY AND OVER THE
EXTREME NORTHEAST CORNER OF GEORGIA 20 MILES EAST OF CLAYTON. MOVEMENT
SOUTHWEST AT 15 MILES AN HOUR.

PEOPLE ACROSS NORTHEAST GEORGIA SHOULD BE ALERT FOR THESE THUNDERSTORMS
AND OTHERS WHICH MAY DEVELOP IN THE NEXT FEW HOURS.

ELSEWHERE SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS WITH VERY HEAVY RAIN AND GUSTY WINDS
WERE OCCURRING ACROSS MUCH OF GEORGIA EAST INTO THE WESTERN CAROLINAS.
THE STRONGEST THUNDERSTORM WAS LOCATED JUST 10 MILES SOUTHEAST OF
GREENWOOD SOUTH CAROLINA. MOVEMENT SOUTHWEST AT 15 MILES AN HOUR.
Special weather statement, Jul 25, 5:53 PM EDT, 1 hour 4 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ATLANTA GA
555 PM EDT TUE JUL 25 1989

        ...THUNDERSTORMS OVER NORTHWEST GEORGIA...

AT 550 WEATHER SERVICE RADAR SHOWED TWO AREAS OF THUNDERSTORMS OVER
NORTHWEST GEORGIA.

ONE WAS IN A NARROW LINE ABOUT 10 MILES WIDE EXTENDING FROM NEAR MONROE
IN WALTON COUNTY SOUTH TO MANSFIELD IN NEWTON COUNTY. THE LINE WAS MOVING
WEST NEAR 20 MPH AND WILL MOVE INTO THE EASTERN PART OF ATLANTA DURING
THE NEXT HOUR.

OTHER STORMS WERE 10 MILES SOUTHWEST OF DAHLONEGA IN LUMPKIN COUNTY.
THESE STORMS WERE MOVING SOUTHWEST NEAR 20 MPH AND WILL EFFECT DAWSON
AND FORSYTH COUNTIES WITHIN THE NEXT HOUR.

THESE STORMS MAY BE ACCOMPAMIED BY BRIEF HEAVY RAIN...STRONG GUSTY WINDS
AND FREQUENT LIGHTNING.

FURTHER DEVELOPMENT OF THUNDERSTORMS IS POSSIBLE OVER NORTHWEST GEORGIA
UNTIL AFTER SUNSET.

STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO OR YOUR LOCAL TV OR RADIO STATIONS FOR
LATER UPDATES ON THESE STORMS.

The office that day

Everything else NWS Atlanta, GA issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jul 25, 4:12 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFFCJefferson48 min
Jul 25, 4:54 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFFCBurke, Richmond51 min
Jul 25, 6:16 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFFCButts, Henry44 min
Jul 25, 6:53 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFFCCobb, Fulton37 min
Jul 25, 7:22 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFFCBartow, Cherokee, Gordon, Pickens53 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Georgia, 1989Every severe thunderstorm warning in 1989

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.