Alert archive / South Carolina / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1998

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 131, NWS Columbia, SC

June 16, 1998Lexington County, Richland County, South Carolina

NWS Columbia, SC issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Jun 16, 1998, 4:01 AM EDT for Lexington County, Richland County, South Carolina. It was in force for 44 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: Jun 16, 1998, 4:01 AM EDT (08:01 UTC)
Expired: Jun 16, 1998, 4:45 AM EDT
In force: 44 min
Issued by: NWS Columbia, SC
Area: Whole counties

Counties Lexington County, SC, Richland County, SC

The radar

The Columbia radar (KCAE), 3 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 08:03 UTC, the scan nearest the moment this went out.

Open the radar archive at this moment

The archived warnings, watches and discussions in force at that minute are drawn over the scan, this one among them.

What was reported inside it

Time	Report	Where	Remark
Jun 16, 4:10 AM EDT	Thunderstorm Wind 50	Columbia, SC	Sheriff reported large limbs down in Friars Gate.
Jun 16, 4:15 AM EDT	Thunderstorm Wind 50	Batesburg, SC	Sheriff reported powerlines down.

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

Charleston AFB, SC (KCHS), launched 00:00Z, 8.0 hours before the alert went out and 155 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: 2677 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -9 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 1237 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 34 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 120 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 189 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 1.9
Supercell composite: 14.2

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

642 
WUUS1 KCAE 160804 RRA
SVRCAE
SCC063-079-160845-

BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE COLUMBIA SC
401 AM EDT TUE JUN 16 1998

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN COLUMBIA SC HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  NORTHERN LEXINGTON COUNTY IN SOUTH CAROLINA
  WESTERN RICHLAND COUNTY IN SOUTH CAROLINA

* UNTIL 445 AM EDT 

* AT 356 AM NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED...DAMAGING 
  WINDS ASSOCIATED WITH A BAND OF SHOWERS...FROM SALUDA TO RIDGE 
  SPRINGS...MOVING EASTNORTHEAST AT 50 MPH.

* THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WILL BE NEAR...
  CHAPIN AT 410 AM
  IRMO AT 415 AM
  BLYTHEWOOD AT 435 AM

THIS IS A DANGEROUS STORM...TAKE COVER IMMEDIATELY IF YOU ARE IN 
ITS PATH. INTENSE SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS CAN CAUSE AS MUCH DAMAGE 
AS SOME TORNADOES.

RCC

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, Jun 16, 3:14 AM EDT, 47 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE COLUMBIA SC
314 AM EDT TUE JUN 16 1998

TIME (EDT) .....CITY LOCATION....... ST   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           .....COUNTY LOCATION.....

245 AM     THOMSON                   GA   WIND DAMAGE
06/16/98   MCDUFFIE                       TREES DOWN IN THOMSON AND
                                          DEARING. REPORTED BY
                                          SHERIFF.

255 AM     5 S LINCOLNTON            GA   WIND DAMAGE
06/16/98   LINCOLN                        TREES DOWN FROM PUBLIC IN
                                          SOUTHERN LINCOLN COUNTY.

255 AM     2 W LEAN                  GA   WIND DAMAGE
06/16/98   COLUMBIA                       TREES DOWN ON HIGHWAY 150
                                          AT MISTLETOE STATE PARK.
                                          REPORTED BY SPOTTER.

RCC

The office that day

Everything else NWS Columbia, SC issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Jun 16, 3:26 AM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	CAE	Newberry, Saluda	49 min
Jun 16, 3:30 AM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	CAE	Newberry, Saluda	45 min
Jun 16, 4:12 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	CAE	Clarendon	63 min
Jun 16, 4:55 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	CAE	Edgefield	35 min
Jun 16, 5:00 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	CAE	Aiken	60 min
Jun 16, 5:54 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	CAE	Barnwell	36 min
Jun 16, 5:57 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	CAE	Orangeburg	63 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in South Carolina, 1998 Every severe thunderstorm warning in 1998

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; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.