Alert archive / North Carolina / Tornado Warnings in 1996
Tornado Warning 1, NWS Raleigh, NC
NWS Raleigh, NC issued this tornado warning at Mar 15, 1996, 3:26 PM EST for Sampson County, North Carolina. It was in force for 34 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
- Mar 15, 1996, 3:26 PM EST (20:26 UTC)
- Expired
- Mar 15, 1996, 4:00 PM EST
- In force
- 34 min
- Issued by
- NWS Raleigh, NC
- Area
- Whole counties
County Sampson County, NC
What was reported inside it
| Time | Report | Where | Remark |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 15, 3:40 PM EST | Hail 0.75 | Newton Grove, 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.
The nearest sounding before it
Newport, NC (KMHX), launched 12:00Z, 8.4 hours before the alert went out and 138 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
- 0 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- No buoyant parcel
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 1379 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 39 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 118 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 167 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 KRDU 152030 TORRDU NCC163-152100- BULLETIN - EBS ACTIVATION REQUESTED TORNADO WARNING NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RALEIGH/DURHAM NC 326 PM EST FRI MAR 15 1996 THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN RALEIGH/DURHAM HAS ISSUED A TORNADO WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 400 PM EST FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATION... IN SOUTHEAST NORTH CAROLINA ...NORTHERN SAMPSON COUNTY AT 325 PM A TORNADO WAS REPORTED BY THE PUBLIC OVER NORTHERN SAMPSON COUNTY NEAR HIGHWAY 55 MOVING EAST. THE STORM WAS 20 MILES WEST OF NEWTON GROVE. PEOPLE NEAR THE PATH OF THIS STORM SHOULD ACT NOW TO PROTECT THEIR LIVES. GO TO THE LOWEST FLOOR...A SMALL INTERIOR ROOM OR CLOSET. COVER YOUR HEAD. STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS. GET OUT OF MOBILE HO MES AND VEHICLES AND INTO A STURDY BUILDING OR A DITCH. REPORT DAMAGE TO EMERGENCY OFFICIALS FOR RELAY TO THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE.
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, Mar 15, 1:55 PM EST, 1 hour 31 minutes before
NCZALL-152030- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RALEIGH/DURHAM, NC 155 PM EST FRI MAR 15 1996 ...A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 8 PM FOR AREAS EAST OF A LINE FROM HENDERSON TO SILER CITY TO WADESBORO... AT 155 PM DOPPLER RADAR AT THE RALEIGH WEATHER OFFICE SHOWED A LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS EXTENDING NORTHEAST FROM MONTGOMERY COUNTY TO HALIFAX COUNTY. THE STRONGEST THUNDERSTORMS WERE IN MONTGOMERY...MOORE..FRANKLIN AND NASH COUNTIES. THE THUNDERSTORMS WERE MOVING TO THE EAST/NORTHEAST AT 40 MILES AN HOUR. LISTEN TO LOCAL RADIO..TV..OR WEATHER RADIO FOR LATER STATEMENTS OR POSSIBLE WARNINGS. RHJ/1857Z
Special weather statement, Mar 15, 1:59 PM EST, 1 hour 27 minutes before
NCZALL-152030- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RALEIGH/DURHAM, NC 155 PM EST FRI MAR 15 1996 ...A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 8 PM FOR AREAS EAST OF A LINE FROM HENDERSON TO SILER CITY TO WADESBORO... AT 155 PM DOPPLER RADAR AT THE RALEIGH WEATHER OFFICE SHOWED A LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS EXTENDING NORTHEAST FROM MONTGOMERY COUNTY TO HALIFAX COUNTY. THE STRONGEST THUNDERSTORMS WERE IN MONTGOMERY...MOORE..FRANKLI N AND NASH COUNTIES. THE THUNDERSTORMS WERE MOVING TO THE EAST/NORTHEAST AT 40 MILES AN HOUR. LISTEN TO LOCAL RADIO..TV..OR WEATHER RADIO FOR LATER STATEMENTS OR POSSIBLE WARNINGS. RHJ/1857Z
Special weather statement, Mar 15, 2:35 PM EST, 51 minutes before
NCZALL-152200- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RALEIGH NC 235 PM EST FRI MAR 15 1996 ...A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 8:00 PM FOR AREAS EAST OF A LINE FROM HENDERSON TO SILER CITY TO WADESBORO... AT 230 PM DOPPLER RADAR AT THE RALEIGH WEATHER OFFICE SHOWED A LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS EXTENDING NORTHEAST FROM RICHMOND COUNTY TO HALIFAX COUNTY. THE STRONGEST THUNDERSTORMS WERE IN MOORE...LEE...HARNETT...NASH... EDGECOMBE...AND HALIFAX COUNTIES. THE THUNDERSTORMS WERE MOVING TO THE EAST/NORTHEAST AT 40 MILES AN HOUR. THE THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE ACCOMPANIED BY STRONG WINDS...HEAVY DOWNPOURS AND DANGEROUS LIGHTING. THERE HAVE BEEN REPORTS OF SMALL HAIL WITH THESE THUNDERSTORMS. THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WILL CONTINUE TO CLOSELY MONITOR THIS SITUATION. STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO...TV OR RADIO FOR THE LATEST INFORMATION. RHJ/1938Z
Special weather statement, Mar 15, 2:41 PM EST, 45 minutes before
NCZALL-152200- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RALEIGH NC 235 PM EST FRI MAR 15 1996 ...A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 8:00 PM FOR AREAS EAST OF A LINE FROM HENDERSON TO SILER CITY TO WADESBORO... AT 230 PM DOPPLER RADAR AT THE RALEIGH WEATHER OFFICE SHOWED A LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS EXTENDING NORTHEAST FROM RICHMOND COUNTY TO HALIFAX COUNTY. THE STRONGEST THUNDERSTORMS WERE IN MOORE...LEE...HARNETT...NASH... EDGECOMBE...AND HALIFAX COUNTIES. THE THUNDERSTORMS WERE MOVING TO THE EAST/NORTHEAST AT 40 MILES AN HOUR. THE THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE ACCOMPANIED BY STRONG WINDS...HEAVY DOWNPOURS AND DANGEROUS LIGHTING. THERE HAVE BEEN REPORTS OF SMALL HAIL WITH THESE THUNDERSTORMS. THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WILL CONTINUE TO CLOSELY MONITOR THIS SITUATION. STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO...TV OR RADIO FOR THE LATEST INFORMATION. RHJ/1938Z
Special weather statement, Mar 15, 3:15 PM EST, 11 minutes before
NCZALL-152130- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RALEIGH NC 315 PM EST FRI MAR 15 1996 ...A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 8:00 P.M. FOR AREAS EAST OF A LINE FROM HENDERSON TO SILER CITY TO WADESBORO... AT 305 PM DOPPLER RADAR AT THE RALEIGH WEATHER OFFICE SHOWED A LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS EXTENDING NORTHEAST FROM HOKE COUNTY TO SOUTHEAST WAKE COUNTY...EAST TO EDGECOMBE COUNTY. THE STRONGEST THUNDERSTORMS WERE IN NORTHEAST HOKE COUNTY... ALONG THE CUMBERLAND/HARNETT COUNTY LINE... IN WESTERN JOHNSTON COUNTY... AND EDGECOMBE COUNTIES. THE THUNDERSTORMS WERE MOVING TO THE EAST/NORTHEAST AT 40 MILES AN HOUR. THE THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE ACCOMPANIED BY STRONG WINDS...HEAVY DOWNPOURS AND DANGEROUS LIGHTING. THERE HAVE BEEN REPORTS OF HALF INCH (MOTHBALL SIZE) HAIL WITH THESE THUNDERSTORMS. THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WILL CONTINUE TO CLOSELY MONITOR THIS SITUATION. STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO...TV OR RADIO FOR THE LATEST INFORMATION. RHJ/2018Z
Special weather statement, Mar 15, 3:19 PM EST, 7 minutes before
NCZALL-152130- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RALEIGH NC 315 PM EST FRI MAR 15 1996 ...A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 8:00 P.M. FOR AREAS EAST OF A LINE FROM HENDERSON TO SILER CITY TO WADESBORO... AT 305 PM DOPPLER RADAR AT THE RALEIGH WEATHER OFFICE SHOWED A LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS EXTENDING NORTHEAST FROM HOKE COUNTY TO SOUTHEAST WAKE COUNTY...EAST TO EDGECOMBE COUNTY. THE STRONGEST THUNDERSTORMS WERE IN NORTHEAST HOKE COUNTY... ALONG THE CUMBERLAND/HARNETT COUNTY LINE... IN WESTERN JOHNSTON COUNTY... AND EDGECOMBE COUNTIES. THE THUNDERSTORMS WERE MOVING TO THE EAST/NORTHEAST AT 40 MILES AN HOUR. THE THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE ACCOMPANIED BY STRONG WINDS...HEAVY DOWNPOURS AND DANGEROUS LIGHTING. THERE HAVE BEEN REPORTS OF HALF INCH (MOTHBALL SIZE) HAIL WITH THESE THUNDERSTORMS. THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WILL CONTINUE TO CLOSELY MONITOR THIS SITUATION. STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO...TV OR RADIO FOR THE LATEST INFORMATION. RHJ/2018Z
Nearby
Tornado Warnings in North Carolina, 1996Every tornado warning in 1996Tornadoes in 1996
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.