Alert archive / Virginia / Tornado Watches in 1997

Tornado Watch 646

July 24, 199725 counties in North Carolina; 26 counties in Virginia

The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at Jul 24, 1997, 8:00 AM EDT for 25 counties in North Carolina; 26 counties in Virginia. It was in force for 6 hr.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
Jul 24, 1997, 8:00 AM EDT (12:00 UTC)
Expired
Jul 24, 1997, 2:00 PM EDT
In force
6 hr
Issued by
the Storm Prediction Center
All 51 counties

Beaufort County, NC, Bertie County, NC, Camden County, NC, Chowan County, NC, Currituck County, NC, Edgecombe County, NC, Franklin County, NC, Gates County, NC, Greene County, NC, Halifax County, NC, Harnett County, NC, Hertford County, NC, Johnston County, NC, Martin County, NC, Nash County, NC, Northampton County, NC, Pasquotank County, NC, Perquimans County, NC, Pitt County, NC, Vance County, NC, Wake County, NC, Warren County, NC, Washington County, NC, Wayne County, NC, Wilson County, NC, Brunswick County, VA, Charles City County, VA, City of Chesapeake, VA, City of Colonial Heights, VA, City of Emporia, VA, City of Franklin, VA, City of Hampton, VA, City of Hopewell, VA, City of Newport News, VA, City of Norfolk, VA, City of Petersburg, VA, City of Poquoson, VA, City of Portsmouth, VA, City of Suffolk, VA, City of Virginia Beach, VA, City of Williamsburg, VA, Dinwiddie County, VA, Greensville County, VA, Isle of Wight County, VA, James City County, VA, Northampton County, VA, Prince George County, VA, Southampton County, VA, Surry County, VA, Sussex County, VA, York County, VA

Warnings issued inside it

10 tornado, severe thunderstorm and flash flood warnings for its counties while it was in force.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jul 24, 8:05 AM EDTFlash Flood WarningRAHFranklin, Granville, Vance3 hr
Jul 24, 8:05 AM EDTFlash Flood WarningRAHWarren3 hr
Jul 24, 9:26 AM EDTFlash Flood WarningRAHEdgecombe, Halifax, Nash, Wilson3 hr
Jul 24, 10:10 AM EDTFlash Flood WarningRAHWake8 hr
Jul 24, 11:39 AM EDTFlash Flood WarningRAHEdgecombe, Nash, Wilson2 hr
Jul 24, 11:39 AM EDTFlash Flood WarningRAHHalifax2 hr
Jul 24, 12:21 PM EDTTornado WarningAKQBertie39 min
Jul 24, 1:19 PM EDTTornado WarningAKQCity of Chesapeake, City of Norfolk31 min
Jul 24, 1:21 PM EDTTornado WarningAKQIsle of Wight, City of Suffolk34 min
Jul 24, 2:00 PM EDTTornado WarningAKQCity of Virginia Beach35 min

The nearest sounding before it

Newport, NC (KMHX), launched 12:00Z, 0.0 hours before the alert went out and 163 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-pSkew-T log-p diagram, Newport, NC at 12:00Z on 1997-07-24Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 2835 joules per kilogram.LCLEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°0°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Newport, NC at 12:00Z on 1997-07-24The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 83 square meters per square second.193958Sfc1 km3 km6 km9 kmRMLM
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
2835 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
0 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
547 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
17 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
83 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
69 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.

754 
WWUS9 KMKC 241152
SEL6  
MKC WW 241152
NCZ000-VAZ000-241800-

BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 646
STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
752 AM EDT THU JUL 24 1997

THE STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF

   NORTHERN AND EASTERN NORTH CAROLINA                     
   SOUTHEAST VIRGINIA                           
   AND ADJACENT COASTAL WATERS

EFFECTIVE THIS THURSDAY MORNING AND AFTERNOON FROM 800 AM UNTIL 200
PM EDT.

TORNADOES...HAIL TO 1 INCHES IN DIAMETER...THUNDERSTORM WIND GUSTS
TO 70 MPH...AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE IN THESE AREAS.

THE TORNADO WATCH AREA IS ALONG AND 70 STATUTE MILES EAST AND WEST
OF A LINE FROM 10 MILES SOUTH SOUTHEAST OF GOLDSBORO NORTH CAROLINA
TO 35 MILES NORTH NORTHWEST OF NORFOLK VIRGINIA.

REMEMBER...A TORNADO WATCH MEANS CONDITIONS ARE FAVORABLE FOR
TORNADOES AND SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS IN AND CLOSE TO THE WATCH AREA. 
PERSONS IN THESE AREAS SHOULD BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR THREATENING
WEATHER CONDITIONS AND LISTEN FOR LATER STATEMENTS AND POSSIBLE
WARNINGS.

OTHER WATCH INFORMATION...  CONTINUE...WW 643...

DISCUSSION...POTENTIAL FOR ISOLATED TORNADOES AND THUNDERSTORMS
WITH DAMAGING WINDS WILL CONTINUE THIS MORNING AS REMNANTS OF
DANNY CONTINUE MOVING NORTHEASTWARD.  RALEIGH VWP...NEAR CENTER
OF CIRCULATION...SHOWS VERY STRONG /55 KTS/ FLOW JUST OFF THE
SURFACE...WITH BACKING OF LOW LEVEL WINDS IN THE PAST HOUR.  POPE
AFB REPORTED GUSTS 46 KTS WITH THUNDER IN THE PAST HOUR.  SURFACE
DEWPOINTS AHEAD OF SYSTEM REMAIN AOA 75F.

AVIATION...TORNADOES AND A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH HAIL
SURFACE AND ALOFT TO 1 INCHES.  EXTREME TURBULENCE AND SURFACE WIND
GUSTS TO 60 KNOTS.  A FEW CUMULONIMBI WITH MAXIMUM TOPS TO 500. 
MEAN STORM MOTION VECTOR 24025.


...CORFIDI

351,0790 372,0774 372,0750 351,0763

SPC that day

Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jul 24, 2:30 AM EDTTornado WatchSPCAnson, Bladen, Brunswick, Columbus, Craven, Cumberland and 22 more6 hr

Nearby

Tornado Watches in Virginia, 1997Tornado Watches in North Carolina, 1997Every tornado watch 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; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive.