Alert archive / North Carolina / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1998

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 59, NWS Raleigh, NC

May 1, 1998Franklin County, North Carolina

NWS Raleigh, NC issued this severe thunderstorm warning at May 1, 1998, 8:24 PM EDT for Franklin County, North Carolina. It was in force for 51 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 1, 1998, 8:24 PM EDT (00:24 UTC)
Expired: May 1, 1998, 9:15 PM EDT
In force: 51 min
Issued by: NWS Raleigh, NC
Area: Whole counties

County Franklin County, NC

What was reported inside it

Time	Report	Where	Remark
May 1, 8:45 PM EDT	Hail 0.75	Louisburg, 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 nearest sounding before it

Greensboro/Hi Pt, NC (KGSO), launched 00:00Z, 0.4 hours before the alert went out and 145 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: 169 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -14 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 751 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 21 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 55 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 20 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.

000 
TTAA00 KRDU 020026
SVRRDU
NCC069-020115-

BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RALEIGH NC
824 PM EDT FRI MAY 1 1998

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN RALEIGH HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  FRANKLIN COUNTY

* UNTIL 915 PM EDT

* AT 825 PM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM JUST NORTH OF FRANKLINTON... MOVING EAST-
  NORTHEAST AT 20 MPH.

* THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WILL BE NEAR...
  KATESVILLE BY 845 PM
  LOUISBURG BY 855 PM

DAMAGING WINDS AND LARGE HAIL ARE LIKELY. GO INSIDE A STURDY
BUILDING AND STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS!

GH

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, May 1, 6:03 PM EDT, 2 hours 21 minutes before

NCZ007>011-021>028-038>043-073>078-083>086-088>089-021200-

SEVERE WEATHER OUTLOOK FOR CENTRAL NORTH CAROLINA
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RALEIGH NC
603 PM EDT FRI MAY 1 1998

...SLIGHT RISK OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS OVER CENTRAL NORTH CAROLINA
   FOR TONIGHT...

(THE SEVERE WEATHER OUTLOOK FOR CENTRAL NORTH CAROLINA APPLIES ONLY TO
THE COUNTIES LISTED AT THE END OF TEXT.)

THERE IS A SLIGHT RISK OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH LARGE HAIL
AND DAMAGING WINDS OVERNIGHT. THE MAIN THREAT FROM SEVERE STORMS
WILL BE LARGE HAIL AND SUDDEN STRONG DOWNBURST WINDS.

THE COMBINATION OF A COLD FRONT OVER WEST-CENTRAL NORTH CAROLINA
AND A WARM FRONT EAST-WEST ACROSS THE NORTHERN TIER OF THE STATE
WILL PROVIDE THE FOCUS FOR THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT OVER NIGHT.
ADDITIONALLY...WARM MOIST UNSTABLE AIR ALONG AND SOUTH OF THESE
BOUNDARIES WILL AID IN THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT...SOME POSSIBLY
REACHING SEVERE LIMITS.

SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS CURRENTLY IN STANDBY MODE. PLEASE RELAY
ANY REPORTS YOU RECEIVE.

STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO FOR ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS OR POSSIBLE
WATCHES AND WARNINGS.

RA
*********************************************************************

ALAMANCE          ANSON              CHATHAM            CUMBERLAND
DAVIDSON          DURHAM             EDGECOMBE          FORSYTH
FRANKLIN          GRANVILLE          GUILFORD           HALIFAX
HARNETT           HOKE               JOHNSTON           LEE
MONTGOMERY        MOORE              NASH               ORANGE
PERSON            RANDOLPH           RICHMOND           SAMPSON
SCOTLAND          STANLY             VANCE              WAKE
WARREN            WAYNE              WILSON

Local storm report, May 1, 7:35 PM EDT, 49 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RALEIGH NC
735 PM EDT FRI MAY 01 1998

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

0630 PM    LEXINGTON                 NC   .75 INCH HAIL
05/01/98   DAVIDSON                       SKYWARN OBSERVER REPORTED
                                          DIME SIZE HAIL 5 MILES
                                          SOUTH OF LEXINGTON

Local storm report, May 1, 7:42 PM EDT, 42 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RALEIGH NC
742 PM EDT FRI MAY 01 1998

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

0648 PM    MONTICELLO                NC   .75 INCH HAIL
05/01/98   GUILFORD                       GUILFORD COUNTY SHERIFF
                                          DEPARTMENT REPORTED DIME
                                          SIZE HAIL NEAR MONTICELLO
                                          IN EXTREME NORTHWEST
                                          GUILFORD COUNTY.

Local storm report, May 1, 7:49 PM EDT, 35 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RALEIGH NC
749 PM EDT FRI MAY 01 1998

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

0707 PM    ALTAMAHAW                 NC   1.75 INCH HAIL
05/01/98   ALAMANCE                       ALAMANCE COUNTY SHERIFF
                                          REPORTED GOLFBALL SIZE
                                          HAIL JUST NORTH OF
                                          ALTAMAHAW IN NORTHWEST
                                          ALAMANCE COUNTY.

Local storm report, May 1, 8:13 PM EDT, 11 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RALEIGH/DURHAM NC
813 PM EDT FRI MAY 01 1998

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

0713 PM    UNION RIDGE               NC   1.75 INCH HAIL
05/01/98   ALAMANCE                       SKY WARN OBSERVER REPORTED
                                          GOLFBALL SIZE HAIL IN
                                          UNION RIDGE IN ALAMANCE
                                          COUNTY.

Local storm report, May 1, 8:16 PM EDT, 8 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RALEIGH/DURHAM NC
816 PM EDT FRI MAY 01 1998

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

0803 PM    BUSHY FORK                NC   .88 INCH HAIL
05/01/98   PERSON                         PERSON COUNTY 911 REPORTED
                                          NICKEL SIZE HAIL IN BUSHY
                                          FORK/HURDLE MILLS AREA IN
                                          PERSON COUNTY.

The office that day

Everything else NWS Raleigh, NC issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
May 1, 8:15 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	RAH	Halifax	50 min
May 1, 8:55 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	RAH	Granville	45 min
May 1, 9:23 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	RAH	Warren	32 min
May 1, 9:45 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	RAH	Vance	35 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in North 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.