Alert archive / North Carolina / Tornado Warnings in 1998

Tornado Warning 28, NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC

April 19, 1998Cabarrus County, Rowan County, North Carolina

NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC issued this tornado warning at Apr 19, 1998, 4:13 PM EDT for Cabarrus County, Rowan County, North Carolina. It was in force for 32 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: Apr 19, 1998, 4:13 PM EDT (20:13 UTC)
Expired: Apr 19, 1998, 4:45 PM EDT
In force: 32 min
Issued by: NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC
Area: Whole counties

Counties Cabarrus County, NC, Rowan County, NC

The radar

The Greer radar (KGSP), 168 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 20:16 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
Apr 19, 4:20 PM EDT	Thunderstorm Wind 50	Concord, NC

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
Apr 19, 3:00 PM EDT	Tornado Watch	SPC	6 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Greensboro/Hi Pt, NC (KGSO), launched 12:00Z, 8.2 hours before the alert went out and 85 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: 499 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 76 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 408 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 462 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.

470 
WFUS1 KGSP 192014 RRA
TORGSP
NCC025-159-192045-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC
413 PM EDT SUN APR 19 1998

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC HAS
ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  NORTH CENTRAL CABARRUS COUNTY IN NORTH CAROLINA
  ROWAN COUNTY IN NORTH CAROLINA

* UNTIL 445 PM EDT

* AT 415 PM... NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR INDICATED A
  DEVELOPING TORNADO 12 MILES NORTHWEST OF CONCORD... MOVING
  NORTHEAST AT 45 MPH.

* THE TORNADO IS EXPECTED TO BE NEAR...
  KANNAPOLIS BY 435 PM

IF YOU ARE IN THE PATH OF A TORNADO...THE SAFEST PLACE IN A HOME OR
BUSINESS IS AN INTERIOR ROOM ON THE LOWEST FLOOR POSSIBLE. STAY AWAY
FROM DOORS AND WINDOWS.

JAT

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before this tornado warning went out, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC wrote its last area forecast discussion before this tornado warning went out at Apr 19, 1:58 PM EDT, 2 hours 15 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Apr 19, 1:58 PM EDT, 2 hours 15 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE/SPARTANBURG, SC
158 PM EDT SUN APR 19 1998

ALL: DECREASING CLOUDS TONIGHT. MOSTLY SUNNY MON. MOSTLY CLEAR
     MON NIGHT. INCREASING CLOUDS TUE WITH SLIGHT CHANCE SHOWERS
     NC MOUNTAINS. TEMPERATURES/POPS FWC/FAN COMPROMISE.

DRIER AIRMASS TO MOVE ACROSS AREA OVERNIGHT. SOME MOISTURE RECOVERY
TAKES PLACE LATE MON AS A WEAK IMPULSE APPROACHES. A SHORTWAVE
APPROACHES LATE TUE IN NW FLOW ACCOMPANIED BY MORE SUBSTANTIAL
MOISTURE. PRECIPITAITON WITH SYSTEM SHOULD JUST REACH MOUNTAINS
LATE TUE AFTERNOON.

AVL   42/64/40/64   1002
CLT   50/71/48/70   100-
GSP   45/70/45/68   -001

JAT

In the hours before

Local storm report, Apr 19, 3:11 PM EDT, 1 hour 2 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE SPARTANBURG SC
311 PM EDT SUN APR 19 1998

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

235 PM     WATERLOO                  SC   TORNADO
04/19/98   LAURENS                        FIRE DEPARTMENT REPORTED
                                          TORNADO ON THE GROUND ON
                                          INDIAN MOUND ROAD NEAR
                                          LAURENS. A LARGE TREE WAS
                                          REPORTED ON A HOUSE ON
                                          TIDE QUARTER ROAD NEAR
                                          WATERLOO.

NEAL

Local storm report, Apr 19, 3:11 PM EDT, 1 hour 2 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE SPARTANBURG SC
311 PM EDT SUN APR 19 1998

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

235 PM     WATERLOO                  SC   TORNADO
04/19/98   LAURENS                        FIRE DEPARTMENT REPORTED
                                          TORNADO ON THE GROUND ON
                                          INDIAN MOUND ROAD NEAR
                                          LAURENS. A LARGE TREE WAS
                                          REPORTED ON A HOUSE ON
                                          TIDE QUARTER ROAD NEAR
                                          WATERLOO.

NEAL

Local storm report, Apr 19, 3:26 PM EDT, 47 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE SPARTANBURG SC
326 PM EDT SUN APR 19 1998

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

315 PM     2 N DALLAS                NC   OTHER
04/19/98   GASTON                         VOLUNTEER FIREMAN REPORTED
                                          TWIN FUNNEL CLOUDS

NEAL

Local storm report, Apr 19, 4:10 PM EDT, 3 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE SPARTANBURG SC
410 PM EDT SUN APR 19 1998

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

330 PM     W OF CLOVER               SC   TORNADO
04/19/98   YORK                           COUNTY COMMS REPORTS BARN
                                          DOWN AND TRUCK FLIPPED
                                          OVER ON GREENLEA\F RD

JONES

Local storm report, Apr 19, 4:10 PM EDT, 3 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE SPARTANBURG SC
410 PM EDT SUN APR 19 1998

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

330 PM     W OF CLOVER               SC   TORNADO
04/19/98   YORK                           COUNTY COMMS REPORTS BARN
                                          DOWN AND TRUCK FLIPPED
                                          OVER ON GREENLEA\F RD

JONES

The office that day

Everything else NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Apr 19, 10:37 AM EDT	Flash Flood Warning	GSP	Jackson	3 hr
Apr 19, 12:31 PM EDT	Flash Flood Warning	GSP	Henderson	3 hr
Apr 19, 3:03 PM EDT	Tornado Warning	GSP	Gaston, Lincoln	17 min
Apr 19, 3:19 PM EDT	Tornado Warning	GSP	Lincoln	31 min
Apr 19, 3:36 PM EDT	Tornado Warning	GSP	Gaston	29 min
Apr 19, 4:05 PM EDT	Tornado Warning	GSP	Mecklenburg	30 min
Apr 19, 4:58 PM EDT	Tornado Warning	GSP	Union	47 min

Nearby

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