Alert archive / Georgia / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1997

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 246, NWS Atlanta, GA

May 9, 1997Bibb County, Twiggs County, Georgia

NWS Atlanta, GA issued this severe thunderstorm warning at May 9, 1997, 5:04 PM EDT for Bibb County, Twiggs County, Georgia. It was in force for 41 min. 2 reports 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: May 9, 1997, 5:04 PM EDT (21:04 UTC)
Expired: May 9, 1997, 5:45 PM EDT
In force: 41 min
Issued by: NWS Atlanta, GA
Area: Whole counties

Counties Bibb County, GA, Twiggs County, GA

What was reported inside it

Time	Report	Where	Remark
May 9, 5:04 PM EDT	Thunderstorm Wind	Macon, GA	Trees were downed in six different locations across Bibb County.
May 9, 5:15 PM EDT	Hail 1	Dry Branch, GA	Dime to quarter sized hail reported.

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 watch it was issued in

The SPC watch in force over the same counties when this warning went out.

Issued	Product	Office	Lasted
May 9, 12:45 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Watch	SPC	5 hr
May 9, 4:15 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Watch	SPC	6 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Peachtre/Fal Fld, GA (KFFC), launched 12:00Z, 9.1 hours before the alert went out and 112 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: 0 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL: 910 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 38 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 28 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 63 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.0
Supercell composite: 0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
TTAA00 KATL 092105 RRA
SVRATL
GAC021-289-092145-
 
BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PEACHTREE CITY GA
504 PM EDT FRI MAY 9 1997
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN PEACHTREE CITY HAS ISSUED A
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL  545 PM EDT
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS...
 
IN CENTRAL GEORGIA
 
   ...BIBB COUNTY...TWIGGS COUNTY
 
AT 504 PM EDT DOPPLER RADAR SHOWED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM OVER THE CITY
OF MACON MOVING TO THE EAST-SOUTHEAST AT 30 MPH.
 
SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS PRODUCE DAMAGING WIND IN EXCESS OF 55
MPH...DESTRUCTIVE HAIL...DEADLY LIGHTNING...AND VERY HEAVY RAIN.
FOR YOUR PROTECTION MOVE TO AN INTERIOR ROOM ON THE LOWEST FLOOR
OF YOUR HOME OR BUSINESS.  HEAVY RAINS FLOOD ROADS QUICKLY SO
DON'T DRIVE INTO AREAS WHERE WATER COVERS THE ROAD.
 
IF YOU EXPERIENCE STORM DAMAGE TO STRUCTURES OR TREES...OR HAIL THE
SIZE OF DIMES OR LARGER...PLEASE REPORT IT TO THE NATIONAL WEATHER
SERVICE BY CALLING 770-486-8535.

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

Local storm report, May 9, 4:52 PM EDT, 12 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PEACHTREE CITY GA
352 PM EST FRI MAY 9 1997

TIME(EST)  .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

410PM PM   BARBESVILLE               GA   1.00 inch hail
5/9/97     LAMAR                          NICKLE TO QUARTER SIZE HAIL
                                          IN BARNESVILLE.

Local storm report, May 9, 4:53 PM EDT, 11 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PEACHTREE CITY GA
348 PM EST FRI MAY 9 1997

TIME(EST)  .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

X436PM PM   THOMASTON                 GA   0.75 inch hail
5/9/97     UPSON                          DIME SIZE HAIL REPORTED IN
                                          THOMASTON.

Local storm report, May 9, 4:55 PM EDT, 9 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PEACHTREE CITY GA
355 PM EST FRI MAY 9 1997

TIME(EST)  .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

4 EDT PM   ZEBULON                   GA   WIND DAMAGE
5/9/97     PIKE                           SEVERAL TREES DOWN.

Local storm report, May 9, 4:56 PM EDT, 8 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PEACHTREE CITY GA
352 PM EST FRI MAY 9 1997

TIME(EST)  .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

\410PM PM   BARBESVILLE               GA   1.00 inch hail
5/9/97     LAMAR                          NICKLE TO QUARTER SIZE HAIL
                                          IN BARNESVILLE.

Local storm report, May 9, 5:00 PM EDT, 4 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT...CORRECTION...
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PEACHTREE CITY GA
500 PM EDT FRI MAY 9 1997

TIME(EST)  .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

436 PM     THOMASTON                 GA   0.75 INCH HAIL
5/9/97     UPSON                          DIME SIZE HAIL REPORTED IN
                                          THOMASTON.

410 PM     BARBESVILLE               GA   1.00 INCH HAIL
5/9/97     LAMAR                          NICKLE TO QUARTER SIZE HAIL
                                          IN BARNESVILLE.

Local storm report, May 9, 5:02 PM EDT, 2 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT...CORRECTION...
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PEACHTREE CITY GA
500 PM EDT FRI MAY 9 1997

TIME(EST)  .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

436 PM     THOMASTON                 GA   0.75 INCH HAIL
5/9/97     UPSON                          DIME SIZE HAIL REPORTED IN
                                          THOMASTON.

410 PM     BARBESVILLE               GA   1.00 INCHx HAIL
5/9/97     LAMAR                          NICKLE TO QUARTER SIZE HAIL
                                          IN BARNESVILLE.

The office that day

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

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
May 9, 3:04 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FFC	Heard, Meriwether, Troup	41 min
May 9, 3:45 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FFC	Meriwether, Pike	45 min
May 9, 3:54 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FFC	Troup	36 min
May 9, 3:58 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FFC	Lamar	32 min
May 9, 4:09 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FFC	Upson	51 min
May 9, 4:25 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FFC	Monroe	35 min
May 9, 4:38 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FFC	Jones	37 min
May 9, 5:22 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FFC	Wilkinson	38 min
May 9, 5:53 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FFC	Johnson, Laurens	37 min
May 9, 6:04 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FFC	Marion	26 min
May 9, 6:07 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FFC	Schley	38 min
May 9, 6:33 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FFC	Macon	27 min
May 9, 6:50 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FFC	Dooly	25 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Georgia, 1997 Every severe thunderstorm warning in 1997

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.