Alert archive / South Carolina / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2002

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 45, NWS Columbia, SC

May 13, 2002Fairfield County, Newberry County, Saluda County, South Carolina

NWS Columbia, SC issued this severe thunderstorm warning at May 13, 2002, 5:45 PM EDT for Fairfield County, Newberry County, Saluda County, South Carolina. It was in force for 45 min. 6 reports came from inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The outline as issued, with what was reported inside it.

The facts

Issued: May 13, 2002, 5:45 PM EDT (21:45 UTC)
Expired: May 13, 2002, 6:30 PM EDT
In force: 45 min
Issued by: NWS Columbia, SC
Area: Counties, with a storm outline in the text

Counties Fairfield County, SC, Newberry County, SC, Saluda County, SC

The radar

The Columbia radar (KCAE), 60 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 21:48 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
May 13, 5:45 PM EDT	Thunderstorm Wind 55 E	Greenwood, SC	Some trees and powerlines were blown down near Lake Greenwood.
May 13, 5:45 PM EDT	Thunderstorm Wind 55 E	Ninety Six, SC	A tree was blown onto a vehicle.
May 13, 6:07 PM EDT	Thunderstorm Wind 60 E	Countywide, SC	Sheriff reported numerous trees down across the county.
May 13, 6:25 PM EDT	Thunderstorm Wind 50 E	Saluda, SC	SKYWARN spotter reported trees down on hwy 39.
May 13, 6:30 PM EDT	Hail 0.75	Winnsboro, SC	Coop observer reported 3/4 inch hail.
May 13, 6:30 PM EDT	Thunderstorm Wind 50 E	Saluda, SC	EOC reported trees down in Saluda.

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
May 13, 1:00 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Watch	SPC	5 hr
May 13, 5:00 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Watch	SPC	5 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Charleston AFB, SC (KCHS), launched 12:00Z, 9.8 hours before the alert went out and 216 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: 1967 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: 0 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 474 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 16 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 9 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 23 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.0
Supercell composite: 1.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WUUS52 KCAE 132145
SVRCAE
SCC039-071-081-132230-

BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE COLUMBIA SC
542 PM EDT MON MAY 13 2002

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
    FAIRFIELD COUNTY IN CENTRAL SOUTH CAROLINA
    NEWBERRY COUNTY IN CENTRAL SOUTH CAROLINA
    SALUDA COUNTY IN CENTRAL SOUTH CAROLINA

* UNTIL 630 PM EDT.

* AT 533 PM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  LINE OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS FROM 17 MILES WEST OF WHITMIRE TO 29
  MILES WEST OF SALUDA..MOVING EAST AT 65 MPH.

* SOME LOCATIONS IN OR NEAR THE PATH OF TH ESE STORMS INCLUDE...
    WHITMIRE.
    NEWBERRY.
    SALUDA.
    PROSPERITY.
    WINNSBORO.

EXPECT WIND GUSTS AROUND 60 MPH AND DAMAGING HAIL WITH THESE 
THUNDERSTORMS.

LAT...LON 3449 8178 3391 8227 3399 8149 3454 8085

RC/JL

The office that day

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

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
May 13, 5:52 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	CAE	McCormick	38 min
May 13, 6:21 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	CAE	Aiken, Edgefield, Fairfield, Lexington, McCormick, Newberry and 2 more	54 min
May 13, 6:31 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	CAE	Lancaster	44 min
May 13, 6:49 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	CAE	Kershaw	41 min
May 13, 7:26 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	CAE	Lee	34 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in South Carolina, 2002 Every severe thunderstorm warning in 2002

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.