Alert archive / Georgia / Tornado Watches in 1998

Tornado Watch 241

April 17, 199870 counties in Georgia; Robeson County, North Carolina; 32 counties in South Carolina

The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at Apr 17, 1998, 8:00 AM EDT for 70 counties in Georgia; Robeson County, North Carolina; 32 counties in South Carolina. It was in force for 6 hr.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
Apr 17, 1998, 8:00 AM EDT (12:00 UTC)
Expired
Apr 17, 1998, 2:00 PM EDT
In force
6 hr
Issued by
the Storm Prediction Center
All 103 counties

Baldwin County, GA, Bibb County, GA, Bleckley County, GA, Bulloch County, GA, Burke County, GA, Butts County, GA, Candler County, GA, Clarke County, GA, Clayton County, GA, Columbia County, GA, Crawford County, GA, Crisp County, GA, DeKalb County, GA, Dodge County, GA, Dooly County, GA, Effingham County, GA, Emanuel County, GA, Evans County, GA, Fayette County, GA, Fulton County, GA, Glascock County, GA, Greene County, GA, Hancock County, GA, Henry County, GA, Houston County, GA, Jasper County, GA, Jefferson County, GA, Jenkins County, GA, Johnson County, GA, Jones County, GA, Lamar County, GA, Laurens County, GA, Lee County, GA, Lincoln County, GA, Macon County, GA, Marion County, GA, McDuffie County, GA, Monroe County, GA, Montgomery County, GA, Morgan County, GA, Newton County, GA, Oconee County, GA, Oglethorpe County, GA, Peach County, GA, Pike County, GA, Pulaski County, GA, Putnam County, GA, Richmond County, GA, Rockdale County, GA, Schley County, GA, Screven County, GA, Spalding County, GA, Sumter County, GA, Talbot County, GA, Taliaferro County, GA, Taylor County, GA, Telfair County, GA, Terrell County, GA, Toombs County, GA, Treutlen County, GA, Twiggs County, GA, Upson County, GA, Walton County, GA, Warren County, GA, Washington County, GA, Webster County, GA, Wheeler County, GA, Wilcox County, GA, Wilkes County, GA, Wilkinson County, GA, Robeson County, NC, Aiken County, SC, Allendale County, SC, Bamberg County, SC, Barnwell County, SC, Beaufort County, SC, Berkeley County, SC, Calhoun County, SC, Charleston County, SC, Clarendon County, SC, Colleton County, SC, Darlington County, SC, Dillon County, SC, Dorchester County, SC, Edgefield County, SC, Florence County, SC, Georgetown County, SC, Greenwood County, SC, Hampton County, SC, Horry County, SC, Jasper County, SC, Kershaw County, SC, Lee County, SC, Lexington County, SC, Marion County, SC, Marlboro County, SC, McCormick County, SC, Newberry County, SC, Orangeburg County, SC, Richland County, SC, Saluda County, SC, Sumter County, SC, Williamsburg County, SC

Warnings issued inside it

4 tornado, severe thunderstorm and flash flood warnings for its counties while it was in force.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Apr 17, 8:20 AM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFFCHouston, Peach35 min
Apr 17, 8:34 AM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFFCBleckley, Twiggs36 min
Apr 17, 8:46 AM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCAERichland59 min
Apr 17, 8:47 AM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFFCWilkinson33 min

The nearest sounding before it

Peachtre/Fal Fld, GA (KFFC), launched 12:00Z, 0.0 hours before the alert went out and 202 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, Peachtre/Fal Fld, GA at 12:00Z on 1998-04-17Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1255 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, Peachtre/Fal Fld, GA at 12:00Z on 1998-04-17The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 165 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
1255 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-2 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
526 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
54 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
165 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
227 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
1.8
Supercell composite
6.5

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

913 
WWUS9 KMKC 171142
SEL1  
MKC WW 171142
SCZ000-GAZ000-171800-

BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 241
STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
742 AM EDT FRI APR 17 1998

THE STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF

   SOUTH CAROLINA                     
   GEORGIA                            
   AND ADJACENT COASTAL WATERS

EFFECTIVE THIS FRIDAY MORNING AND AFTERNOON FROM 800 AM UNTIL 200
PM EDT.

TORNADOES...HAIL TO 2 INCHES IN DIAMETER...THUNDERSTORM WIND GUSTS
TO 80 MPH...AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE IN THESE AREAS.

THE TORNADO WATCH AREA IS ALONG AND 75 STATUTE MILES NORTH AND
SOUTH OF A LINE FROM 55 MILES WEST OF MACON GEORGIA TO MYRTLE BEACH
SOUTH CAROLINA.

REMEMBER...A TORNADO WATCH MEANS CONDITIONS ARE FAVORABLE FOR
TORNADOES AND SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS IN AND CLOSE TO THE WATCH AREA. 
PERSONS IN THESE AREAS SHOULD BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR THREATENING
WEATHER CONDITIONS AND LISTEN FOR LATER STATEMENTS AND POSSIBLE
WARNINGS.


DISCUSSION...THUNDERSTORMS ARE INCREASING IN ASSOCIATION WITH A 
SOUTHERN STREAM SHORTWAVE TROUGH. ACTIVITY IS EXPECTED TO INCREASE
IN COVERAGE/INTENSITY AS IT MOVES NEWD ALONG OUTFLOW BOUNDARY FROM
EARLIER CONVECTION. SUFFICIENT DEEP LAYER SHEAR IS PRESENT FOR
SUPERCELL STORMS. 


AVIATION...TORNADOES AND A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH HAIL
SURFACE AND ALOFT TO 2 INCHES.  EXTREME TURBULENCE AND SURFACE WIND
GUSTS TO 70 KNOTS.  A FEW CUMULONIMBI WITH MAXIMUM TOPS TO 450. 
MEAN STORM MOTION VECTOR 25050.


...VESCIO

334,0843 344,0785 323,0785 313,0843

SPC that day

Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Apr 16, 10:15 PM EDTTornado WatchSPCBartow, Carroll, Catoosa, Chattooga, Cherokee, Clayton and 30 more6 hr
Apr 17, 1:30 AM EDTTornado WatchSPCBanks, Barrow, Butts, Clarke, Columbia, Elbert and 24 more6 hr
Apr 17, 7:30 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCBaker, Baldwin, Bibb, Bleckley, Burke, Calhoun and 48 more5 hr
Apr 16, 11:00 PM EDTTornado WatchSPCAlexander, Alleghany, Ashe, Avery, Buncombe, Burke and 34 more6 hr
Apr 17, 7:30 PM EDTTornado WatchSPCAlamance, Bertie, Caswell, Chatham, Durham, Edgecombe and 23 more5 hr

Nearby

Tornado Watches in Georgia, 1998Tornado Watches in South Carolina, 1998Tornado Watches in North Carolina, 1998Every tornado watch 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; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive.