Alert archive / North Carolina / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1989

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 48, NWS Raleigh, NC

April 29, 1989Durham County, Wake County, North Carolina

NWS Raleigh, NC issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Apr 29, 1989, 10:39 PM EDT for Durham County, Wake County, North Carolina. It was in force for 36 min.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued: Apr 29, 1989, 10:39 PM EDT (02:39 UTC)
Expired: Apr 29, 1989, 11:15 PM EDT
In force: 36 min
Issued by: NWS Raleigh, NC
Area: Whole counties

Counties Durham County, NC, Wake 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

Greensboro/Hi Pt, NC (KGSO), launched 00:00Z, 2.7 hours before the alert went out and 104 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: 496 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -7 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 766 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 39 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 192 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 365 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.5
Supercell composite: 4.2

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

The text of this product is not in the archive. The NWS text archive before 2002 is incomplete.

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, Apr 29, 4:51 PM EDT, 5 hours 48 minutes before

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RALEIGH/DURHAM, NC
445 PM EDT SAT APR 29 1989

AT 440 PM WEATHER RADAR SHOWED THUNDERSTORMS OVER THE CENTRAL AND
NORTHERN COASTAL PLAIN...PIEDMONT AND SAND HILLS OF NORTH CAROLINA.
THERE WERE FOUR AREAS OF STRONG STORMS.  IN THE NORTHERN COASTAL PLAIN
STRONG STORMS WERE IN A BAND FROM JUST EAST OF WINDSOR NORTH OF AHOSKIE.
ANOTHER AREA IN THE CENTRAL COASTAL PLAIN WAS BETWEEN GOLDSBORO KINSTON
FARMVILLE AND GREENVILLE.

IN THE SANDHILLS MORE STRONG STORMS WERE JUST SOUTHWEST OF SOUTHERN
PINES AND BETWEEN FORT BRAGG AND LILLINGTON.

IN THE NORTHEAST PIEDMONT STRONG STORMS WERE IN AN AREA FROM PITTSBORO
NORTHEAST THROUGH CHAPEL HILL DURHAM AND CREEDMOOR. MORE STORMS WERE IN
EASTERN WAKE COUNTY.

THE STORMS WERE MOVING TO THE NORTHEAST AT AROUND 35 MPH. THESE STORMS
MAY PRODUCE HAIL AND STRONG GUSTY WINDS. FREQUENT LIGHTNING AND LOCALLY
HEAVY RAIN CAN OCCUR WITH ANY THUNDERSTORM. MOORE COUNTY COMMUNICATIONS
REPORTED MARBLE SIZE HAIL AT PINE BLUFF AT 435PM EDT. THREE QUARTER
INCH SIZE HAIL WAS REPORTED AT THE KINSTON AIRPORT 346PM EDT.

LISTEN TO LOCAL RADIO..TELEVISION..OR WEATHER RADIO FOR LATER
STATEMENTS OR POSSIBLE WARNINGS.

HLW

Local storm report, Apr 29, 5:07 PM EDT, 5 hours 32 minutes before

STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE  GREENSBORO NC
 505 PM EDT SAT APR 29 1989

ATTN SELS...
 TIME                       EVENT
BETWEEN 400 PM EDT          TREES DOWN IN EAST CENTRAL ALAMANCE COUNTY
AND 430 PM EDT              ONE LARGE ENOUGH TO DOWN POWER LINES AND
                            DAMAGE ROAD REPORTED BY ALAMANCE COUNTY
                            SHERIFF. REPORT RECEIVED AT 430 PM EDT.

GR

Special weather statement, Apr 29, 6:55 PM EDT, 3 hours 44 minutes before

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENSBORO NC
655 PM EDT SAT APR 29 1989

...STRONG THUNDERSTORMS OVER WESTERN PART OF THE NORTHWEST PIEDMONT...

AT 650 PM A BAND OF THUNDERSTORMS EXTENDED FROM SOUTHERN SURRY COUNTY
TO CENTRAL IREDELL COUNTY. A FEW OF THESE STORM CONTAIN VERY HEAVY
DOWNPOURS AND STRONG GUSTY WINDS. THE HEAVIEST STORMS WERE IN EASTERN
YADKIN AND CENTRAL IREDELL COUNTY JUST SOUTHWEST OF STATESVILLE.

MOVEMENT WAS TO THE NORTHEAST AT 25 MILES PER HOUR.

PERSONS IN THE PATH OF THE STORMS SHOULD KEEP WATCH
AND SEEK SHELTER IF THE STORM APPROACHES YOUR AREA.

GR

Local storm report, Apr 29, 7:14 PM EDT, 3 hours 25 minutes before

STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RALEIGH/DURHAM, NC
714 PM EDT SAT APR 29 1989

TIME           EVENT
 426 PM EDT    HAM OPERATOR REPORTED MARBLE SIZE HAIL AT HILLSBOROUGH.

 450 PM EDT    SOUTH OF GARNER(WILLIAMS CROSSROADS) STRONG WINDS
               ESTIMATED 50-60 MPH. UTILITY BUILDING BLOWN AWAY.

 500 PM EDT    MOTH BALL SIZE HAIL IN SCOTLAND NECK...EASTERN
               HALIFAX COUNTY. REPORTED BY COUNTY SHERIFF'S
               DEPARTMENT.

 504 PM EDT    11/2 INCH HAIL AT KINSTON AT FORESTRY SERVICE STATION.

 624 PM EDT    TORNADO REPORTED AT HAM'S CROSSROADS IN PITT COUNTY...
               THREE BUILDINGS DESTROYED...PACK HOUSE DESTROYED AND
               HOG FARM...NO INJURIES...TREES UPROOTED

 650 PM EDT    GOLF BALL SIZE HAIL IN AYDEN IN PITT COUNTY.

RA

The office that day

Everything else NWS Raleigh, NC issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Apr 29, 8:07 PM EDT	Flash Flood Warning	RAH	Greene, Pitt	68 min
Apr 30, 12:16 AM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	RAH	Johnston	44 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in North Carolina, 1989 Every 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; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive.