Alert archive / Georgia / Tornado Warnings in 1999

Tornado Warning 9, NWS Charleston, SC

April 15, 1999Effingham County, Screven County, Georgia

NWS Charleston, SC issued this tornado warning at Apr 15, 1999, 3:29 PM EDT for Effingham County, Screven County, Georgia. It was in force for 46 min. 3 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
Apr 15, 1999, 3:29 PM EDT (19:29 UTC)
Expired
Apr 15, 1999, 4:15 PM EDT
In force
46 min
Issued by
NWS Charleston, SC
Area
Whole counties

Counties Effingham County, GA, Screven County, GA

The radar

The Charleston,SC radar (KCLX), 42 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 19:17 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

TimeReportWhereRemark
Apr 15, 3:39 PM EDTHail 1Newington, GADime to quarter sized hail covered the ground for a couple of hours.
Apr 15, 3:55 PM EDTThunderstorm Wind 50Springfield, GAPower lines down.
Apr 15, 4:10 PM EDTThunderstorm Wind 50Clyo, GAPower lines down.

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

Charleston AFB, SC (KCHS), launched 12:00Z, 7.5 hours before the alert went out and 143 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, Charleston AFB, SC at 12:00Z on 1999-04-15Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 148 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Charleston AFB, SC at 12:00Z on 1999-04-15The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 286 square meters per square second.19395878Sfc1 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
148 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-103 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
695 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
70 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
286 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
347 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.6

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

999 
WFUS1 KCHS 151930 RRA
TORCHS
GAC103-251-152015-

BULLETIN...EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLESTON SC
329 PM EDT THU APR 15 1999

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN CHARLESTON HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  NORTHERN EFFINGHAM COUNTY IN SOUTHEASTERN GEORGIA
  SOUTHERN SCREVEN COUNTY IN SOUTHEASTERN GEORGIA

* UNTIL 415 PM EDT

* AT 330 PM... NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  TORNADO IN EASTERN BULLOCH COUNTY NEAR HIGHWAY 24 EAST OF
  STATESBORO...MOVING EAST-NORTHEAST AT 35 MPH.

* THE TORNADO IS EXPECTED TO BE NEAR...
  OLIVER AT 345 PM
  SHAWNEE AT 355 PM
  CLYO AT 410 PM

ABANDON MOBILE HOMES GO IN A NEARBY STURDY BUILDING. AS A LAST
RESORT LIE FLAT IN A DITCH AND COVER YOUR HEAD.

SLB/TJR

The office that day

Everything else NWS Charleston, SC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Apr 15, 12:40 PM EDTTornado WarningCHSCandler35 min
Apr 15, 1:00 PM EDTTornado WarningCHSBulloch45 min
Apr 15, 1:18 PM EDTTornado WarningCHSScreven47 min
Apr 15, 2:35 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCHSCandler30 min
Apr 15, 2:54 PM EDTTornado WarningCHSCandler31 min
Apr 15, 3:00 PM EDTTornado WarningCHSBulloch30 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Georgia, 1999Every tornado warning in 1999Tornadoes in 1999

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.