Alert archive / South Carolina / Tornado Warnings in 1998

Tornado Warning 11, NWS Charleston, SC

May 7, 1998Colleton County, South Carolina

NWS Charleston, SC issued this tornado warning at May 7, 1998, 4:34 PM EDT for Colleton County, South Carolina. It was in force for 46 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
May 7, 1998, 4:34 PM EDT (20:34 UTC)
Expired
May 7, 1998, 5:20 PM EDT
In force
46 min
Issued by
NWS Charleston, SC
Area
Whole counties

County Colleton County, SC

What was reported inside it

TimeReportWhereRemark
May 7, 4:40 PM EDTThunderstorm Wind 50Green Pond, SCTrees 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 12:00Z, 8.6 hours before the alert went out and 61 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, Charleston AFB, SC at 12:00Z on 1998-05-07Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 280 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 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, Charleston AFB, SC at 12:00Z on 1998-05-07The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 94 square meters per square second.19395878Sfc1 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
280 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-25 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
931 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
32 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
94 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
126 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.1
Supercell composite
1.4

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

162 
WFUS1 KCHS 072033 RRA
TORCHS
SCC029-072120-

BULLETIN...EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLESTON SC
434 PM EDT THU MAY 7 1998

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN CHARLESTON HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  SOUTH CENTRAL COLLETON COUNTY IN SOUTH CAROLINA

* UNTIL 520 PM EDT

* AT 430 PM... NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  TORNADO 5 MILES NORTH OF HY 17 NEAR STATE ROUTE 26 IN
  SOUTHERN COLLETON COUNTY...MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 20 MPH.

* THE TORNADO WILL BE NEAR GREEN POND BY 440 PM.

ABANDON MOBILE HOMES GO IN A NEARBY STURDY BUILDING. AS A LAST
RESORT LIE FLAT IN A DITCH AND COVER YOUR HEAD.


IF YOU ARE CAUGHT OUTSIDE...SEEK SAFETY IN A NEARBY STURDY
BUILDING. AS A LAST RESORT... SEEK REFUGE IN A CULVERT...
DITCH OR LOW SPOT AND COVER YOUR HEAD WITH YOUR HANDS. BEWARE
THE THREAT OF RISING WATER.

SLB/JS

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 7, 1:50 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCHSAllendale45 min
May 7, 2:40 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCHSAllendale, Hampton45 min
May 7, 3:27 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCHSHampton48 min
May 7, 4:20 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCHSColleton60 min
May 7, 5:15 PM EDTTornado WarningCHSCharleston45 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in South Carolina, 1998Every tornado warning in 1998Tornadoes 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.