Alert archive / Georgia / Tornado Warnings in 1989

Tornado Warning 20, NWS Atlanta, GA

October 1, 1989Barrow County, Walton County, Georgia

NWS Atlanta, GA issued this tornado warning at Oct 1, 1989, 9:27 PM EDT for Barrow County, Walton County, Georgia. It was in force for 48 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: Oct 1, 1989, 9:27 PM EDT (01:27 UTC)
Expired: Oct 1, 1989, 10:15 PM EDT
In force: 48 min
Issued by: NWS Atlanta, GA
Area: Whole counties

Counties Barrow County, GA, Walton 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

Time	Report	Where	Remark
Oct 1, 9:30 PM EDT	Thunderstorm Wind 0	Walton, 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 00:00Z, 1.5 hours before the alert went out and 40 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-p

Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.

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.

Mixed-layer CAPE: 178 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -12 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 548 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 62 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 254 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 393 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.0
Supercell composite: 0.8

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
TTAA00 KAHN 020128
TORAHN
GAC013-297-020215-
 
BULLETIN - EBS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ATHENS GA
927 PM EDT SUN OCT 1 1989
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN ATHENS HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 1015 PM EDT
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES...
 
IN NORTHEAST GEORGIA
          ...BARROW...WALTON
 
AT 920 PM EDT A POSSIBLE TORNADO WAS INDICATED BY RADAR JUST WEST OF
MONROE IN WALTON COUNTY OF NORTHEAST GEORGIA MOVING NORTHEAST AT
25 MILES AN HOUR.
 
IF YOU ARE IN THE PATH OF A TORNADO...THE SAFEST PLACE IS A
BASEMENT.  GET UNDER A WORKBENCH OR PIECE OF STURDY FURNITURE.
IF NO BASEMENT IS AVAILABLE...SEEK SHELTER IN AN INTERIOR ROOM
SUCH AS A CLOSET ON THE LOWEST FLOOR.  USE BLANKETS...PILLOWS...
OR CUSHIONS TO COVER YOUR BODY.  AVOID WINDOWS.

The office that day

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

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Oct 1, 8:52 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FFC	Rockdale	38 min
Oct 1, 8:59 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FFC	Cherokee, Forsyth	46 min
Oct 1, 10:01 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FFC	Clarke, Jackson, Madison	59 min
Oct 1, 10:01 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FFC	Oconee	59 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Georgia, 1989 Every tornado warning in 1989 Tornadoes 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.