Alert archive / North Carolina / Tornado Warnings in 1998

Tornado Warning 37, NWS Raleigh, NC

June 16, 1998Vance County, North Carolina

NWS Raleigh, NC issued this tornado warning at Jun 16, 1998, 5:42 PM EDT for Vance County, North Carolina. It was in force for 18 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
Jun 16, 1998, 5:42 PM EDT (21:42 UTC)
Expired
Jun 16, 1998, 6:00 PM EDT
In force
18 min
Issued by
NWS Raleigh, NC
Area
Whole counties

County Vance County, NC

What was reported inside it

TimeReportWhereRemark
Jun 16, 5:45 PM EDTThunderstorm Wind 50Townsville, NCThunderstorm wind knocked down several trees along Highway 39 in Townsville.

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.

IssuedProductOfficeLasted
Jun 16, 4:15 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPC6 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Roanoke, VA (KRNK), launched 12:00Z, 9.7 hours before the alert went out and 134 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, Roanoke, VA at 12:00Z on 1998-06-16Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 121 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, Roanoke, VA at 12:00Z on 1998-06-16The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 92 square meters per square second.1939587897117Sfc1 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
121 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-77 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
914 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
43 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
92 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
108 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.1

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
TTAA00 KRDU 162142 RRA
TORRDU
NCC181-162200-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RALEIGH NC
542 PM EDT TUE JUN 16 1998

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN RALEIGH HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  NORTHERN VANCE COUNTY

* UNTIL 600 PM EDT

* AT 540 PM EDT... NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED
  A TORNADO 3 MILES SOUTHWEST OF TOWNSVILLE... MOVING NORTHEAST NEAR
  30 MPH.

* THE TORNADO IS EXPECTED TO BE NEAR...
  TOWNSVILLE BY 545 PM
  KERR LAKE NORTHEAST OF TOWNSVILLE BY 555 PM

GO TO THE BASEMENT OR A SMALL INTERIOR ROOM ON THE LOWEST FLOOR!

RFG

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.

In the hours before

Local storm report, Jun 16, 4:10 PM EDT, 1 hour 32 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RALEIGH NC
410 PM EDT TUE JUN 16 1998

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

0400 PM    WINSTON SALEM             NC   WIND DAMAGE
06/16/98   FORSYTH                        TREES DOWN ON POWER LINES
                                          NEAR CITY LIMITS NE SECTOR
                                          OF WINSTON SALEM...
                                          REPORTED BY SHERIFFS
                                          OFFICE.
Local storm report, Jun 16, 5:24 PM EDT, 18 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RALEIGH NC
524 PM EDT TUE JUN 16 1998

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

0510 PM    ROXBORO                   NC   WIND DAMAGE
06/16/98   PERSON                         TREES DOWN IN ROXBORO
                                          REPORTED BY POLICE DEPT.

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jun 16, 3:33 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningRAHDavidson47 min
Jun 16, 3:47 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningRAHForsyth33 min
Jun 16, 4:09 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningRAHGuilford51 min
Jun 16, 4:58 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningRAHPerson47 min
Jun 16, 5:08 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningRAHGranville22 min
Jun 16, 5:13 PM EDTTornado WarningRAHGranville32 min
Jun 16, 5:18 PM EDTTornado WarningRAHGranville27 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in North 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.