Alert archive / Georgia / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1998

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 34, NWS Atlanta, GA

February 17, 1998Newton County, Rockdale County, Georgia

NWS Atlanta, GA issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Feb 17, 1998, 8:59 AM EST for Newton County, Rockdale County, Georgia. It was in force for 31 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: Feb 17, 1998, 8:59 AM EST (13:59 UTC)
Expired: Feb 17, 1998, 9:30 AM EST
In force: 31 min
Issued by: NWS Atlanta, GA
Area: Whole counties

Counties Newton County, GA, Rockdale County, GA

What was reported inside it

Time	Report	Where	Remark
Feb 17, 9:05 AM EST	Hail 1.75	Conyers, GA	The public reported quarter to golfball size hail. Winds were estimated at 50 mph. One tree was knocked down.
Feb 17, 9:10 AM EST	Hail 0.88	Covington, GA	The public reported dime to nickel size hail.

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
Feb 17, 6:15 AM EST	Severe Thunderstorm Watch	SPC	6 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Peachtre/Fal Fld, GA (KFFC), launched 12:00Z, 2.0 hours before the alert went out and 58 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: 92 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -90 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 510 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 85 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 626 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 581 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.0
Supercell composite: 1.9

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
TTAA00 KATL 171359 RRA
SVRATL
GAC217-247-171430-
 
BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PEACHTREE CITY GA
859 AM EST TUE FEB 17 1998
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN PEACHTREE CITY HAS ISSUED A
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL  930 AM EST
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS...
 
IN NORTHEAST GEORGIA
 
   ...NEWTON COUNTY
 
IN NORTHWEST GEORGIA
 
   ...ROCKDALE COUNTY
 
AT 8:58 AM NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WAS SHOWING A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM
LOCATED JUST SOUTH OF CONYERS. THIS STORM WAS MOVING NORTHEAST AT 45
MILES AN HOUR.
 
 
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 HA$IL 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

Special weather statement, Feb 17, 3:50 AM EST, 5 hours 9 minutes before

GAZ001>166-170850

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PEACHTREE CITY GA
350 AM EST TUE FEB 17 1998

TORNADO WATCH 41 FOR SOUTHEAST GEORGIA HAS BEEN CANCELLED.
NO SEVERE WEATHER IS OCCURRING IN THIS AREA. SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS
WILL CONTINUE TO MOVE ACROSS THE AREA THROUGH THE REMAINDER OF THE
NIGHT... BUT THESE STORMS ARE NOT EXPECTED TO BE SEVERE.

Local storm report, Feb 17, 6:50 AM EST, 2 hours 9 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PEACHTREE CITY GA
650 AM EST TUE FEB 17 1998

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

0555 AM    I-85 IN COWETA COUNTY     GA   0.25 inch hail
2/17/98    COWETA                         PEA SIZE HAIL

0610 AM    CARROLL COUNTY            GA   0.75 inch hail
2/17/98    CARROLL                        DIME SIZE HAIL

0545 AM    FRANKLIN                  GA   0.75 inch hail
2/17/98    HEARD                          DIME SIZE HAIL

0625 AM    ROCKMART                  GA   0.75 inch hail
2/17/98    POLK                           DIME SIZE HAIL

Local storm report, Feb 17, 6:50 AM EST, 2 hours 9 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PEACHTREE CITY GA
650 AM EST TUE FEB 17 1998

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

0555 AM    I-85 IN COWETA COUNTY     GA   0.25 inch hail
2/17/98    COWETA                         PEA SIZE HAIL

0610 AM    CARROLL COUNTY            GA   0.75 inch hail
2/17/98    CARROLL                        DIME SIZE HAIL

0545 AM    FRANKLIN                  GA   0.75 inch hail
2/17/98    HEARD                          DIME SIZE HAIL

0625 AM    ROCKMART                  GA   0.75 inch hail
2/17/98    POLK                           DIME SIZE HAIL

The office that day

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

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Feb 17, 5:29 AM EST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FFC	Heard	31 min
Feb 17, 5:46 AM EST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FFC	Carroll	29 min
Feb 17, 6:17 AM EST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FFC	Polk	58 min
Feb 17, 7:46 AM EST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FFC	Cobb, Fulton	44 min
Feb 17, 8:17 AM EST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FFC	DeKalb	28 min
Feb 17, 8:27 AM EST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FFC	Clayton, Henry, Rockdale	33 min
Feb 17, 8:27 AM EST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FFC	Gwinnett	33 min
Feb 17, 8:35 AM EST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FFC	Lumpkin	25 min
Feb 17, 8:42 AM EST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FFC	Hall	33 min
Feb 17, 8:44 AM EST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FFC	Spalding	31 min
Feb 17, 8:50 AM EST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FFC	Banks, Jackson	25 min
Feb 17, 8:50 AM EST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FFC	Barrow	25 min
Feb 17, 9:08 AM EST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FFC	Walton	37 min
Feb 17, 10:07 AM EST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FFC	Oglethorpe	38 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Georgia, 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.