Alert archive / North Carolina / Tornado Warnings in 1989
Tornado Warning 6, NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC
NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC issued this tornado warning at Apr 4, 1989, 6:41 PM EDT for Polk County, Rutherford County, North Carolina. It was in force for 34 min.
The area
The counties it named.
The facts
- Issued
- Apr 4, 1989, 6:41 PM EDT (22:41 UTC)
- Expired
- Apr 4, 1989, 7:15 PM EDT
- In force
- 34 min
- Issued by
- NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC
- Area
- Whole counties
Counties Polk County, NC, Rutherford County, NC
The radar
The WSR-88D network and its archive begin in 1991, so there is no radar volume for this alert.
The nearest sounding before it
Athens Municipal, GA (KAHN), launched 12:00Z, 10.7 hours before the alert went out and 193 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
- 30 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -310 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 670 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 42 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 141 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 67 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 KAVL 042244
TORAVL
NCC149-161-042315-
BULLETIN - EBS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ASHEVILLE NC
641 PM EDT TUE APR 4 1989
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN ASHEVILLE HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 715 PM EDT
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES...
IN WEST NORTH CAROLINA
...SOUTHERN POLK...SOUTHERN RUTHERFORD
AT 635 PM EDT POLK COUNTY LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY REPORTED TORNADIC
FORCE WINDS IN COLUMBUS IN POLK COUNTY. RADAR INDICATES THIS STORM IS
MOVING RAPIDLY TOWARD THE EAST AND SHOULD MOVE INTO SOUTHERN
RUTHERFORD COUNTY IN THE NEXT FEW MINUTES.
IF YOU ARE IN THE PATH OF A TORNADO...THE SAFEST PLACE IS A
BASEMENT. GET UNDER A WOKRKBENCH 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.What forecasters said that day
The local office's own words before this tornado 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, Apr 4, 5:17 PM EDT, 1 hour 24 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT...CORRECTION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLOTTE NC 515 PM EST MON APR 04 1989 THE NATIONAL SEVERE STORMS FORECAST CENTER HAS ISSUED A TORNADO WATCH FOR MOST OF CENTRAL AND WESTERN SOUTH CAROLINA AND FOR PORTIONS OF SOUTHWESTERN NORTH CAROLINA...INCLUDING CHARLOTTE AND VICINITY...FROM 5 PM EDT UNTIL 11 PM EDT. THE TORNADO WATCH INCLUDES CHEROKEE...YORK...CHESTER...AND LANCASTER COUNTIES IN SOUTH CAROLINA. IN NORTH CAROLINA THE WATCH INCLUDES CABARRUS...GASTON...CLEVELAND...LINCOLN...UNION...MECKLENBURG...AND CATAWBA COUNTIES AS WELL AS OTHER COUNTIES IN THE MOUNTAINS AND FOOTHILLS. AT 445 PM EDT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR SHOWED A LARGE AREA OF SHOWERS AND SOME THUNDERSTORMS DEVELOPING ALNG THE MOUNTAINS AND FOOTHILLS OF NORTH CAROLINA. HEAVIEST ACTIVITY EXTENDED FROM NORTHWESTERN SOUTH CAROLINA THROUGH CENTRAL GEORGIA...WHERE SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS AND SEVERAL TORNADOES HAVE BEEN REPORTED. THIS IS A VERY DANGEROUS SITUATION WITH THE POSSIBILITY OF VERY DAMAGING TORNADOES...LARGE HAIL...DANGEROUS LIGHTNING AND DAMAGING THUNDERSTORM WINDS. THE NEXT STATEMENT WILL BE ISSUED AROUND 645 PM EDT. ...CORRECTION FOR TIME ERRORS JK
Local storm report, Apr 4, 5:23 PM EDT, 1 hour 18 minutes before
STORM REPORT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREER SC 512 PM EDT TUE APR 4 1989 MARBLE HAIL AND 40 KNOTS IN CLEMSON 515 PM. DIME HAIL ANDERSON AIRPORT 522 PM. WAJ
Special weather statement, Apr 4, 5:53 PM EDT, 48 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ASHEVILLE NC 550 PM EDT TUE APR 04 1989 ...A TORNADO WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR MACON..SWAIN...RUTHERFORD...TRANSYLVANIA..BUNCOMBE..BURKE..MCDOWELL.. HAYWOOD..POLK..AND HENDERSON COUNTIES OF NORTH CAROLINA UNTIL 1100 PM EDT TONIGHT... AT 545 PM EDT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR SHOWED HEAVY THUNDERSTORMS MOVING ACROSS WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA AT AROUND 40 MILES AN HOUR. SOME OF THESE STORMS MAY PRODUCE HEAVY DOWNPOURS..DANGEROUS LIGHTNING.. LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING THUNDERSTORM WINDS. THIS IS A PARTICULARLY DANGEROUS SITUATION WITH THE POSSIBILITY OF VERY DAMAGING TORNADOES. PONDING WATER ON ROADS AND POSSIBLE URBAN FLOODING ARE POSSIBLE IN LOW LYING AND FLOOD PRONE AREAS. MOTORISTS ARE URGED TO USE EXTREME CAUTION SO AS TO AVOID HYDROPLANING. ALSO, PERSONS IN LOW LYING AREAS SHOULD REMAIN ALERT AND BE PREPARED TO SEEK HIGHER GROUND. GRC/OS
Local storm report, Apr 4, 6:00 PM EDT, 41 minutes before
STORM REPORT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREER SC 600 PM EDT TUE APR 4 1989 GMU TOWER REPORTS 50 KNOTS NOW. METERORGIST GREENVILLE ROPER MTOUNTAIN HAIL LARGER THAN DIME WAJ
Local storm report, Apr 4, 6:07 PM EDT, 34 minutes before
STORM REPORT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREER SC 607 PM EDT TUE APR 4 1989 WSO GREER CURRENTLY GUST 62 KNOTS AND 3/4 HAIL. WAJ
Local storm report, Apr 4, 6:20 PM EDT, 21 minutes before
STORM REPORT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREER SC 607 PM EDT TUE APR 4 1989 TORNADO RPTD AT SC 290 AND I85 BY SPARTANBURG CO. POLICE. WAJ
The office that day
Everything else NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 4, 6:54 PM EDT | Tornado Warning | GSP | Cleveland | 51 min |
| Apr 4, 7:08 PM EDT | Tornado Warning | GSP | Gaston | 37 min |
| Apr 4, 7:27 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | GSP | Mecklenburg | 48 min |
Nearby
Tornado Warnings in North Carolina, 1989Every tornado warning in 1989Tornadoes 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; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive.