Alert archive / North Carolina / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2002
Severe Thunderstorm Warning 192, NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC
NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Jul 3, 2002, 5:48 PM EDT for Mecklenburg County, North Carolina. It was in force for 57 min. 4 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
- Jul 3, 2002, 5:48 PM EDT (21:48 UTC)
- Expired
- Jul 3, 2002, 6:45 PM EDT
- In force
- 57 min
- Issued by
- NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC
- Area
- Whole counties
County Mecklenburg County, NC
The radar
The Greer radar (KGSP), 133 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 21:50 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 3, 5:56 PM EDT | Thunderstorm Wind 50 E | Charlotte, NC | A tree was blown on a car. Several traffic lights and signs were damaged. |
| Jul 3, 6:07 PM EDT | Thunderstorm Wind 50 E | Charlotte, NC | Trees were blown down onto an apartment complex, resulting in evacuation of some units. |
| Jul 3, 6:07 PM EDT | Hail 0.75 | Charlotte, NC | |
| Jul 3, 6:25 PM EDT | Hail 0.75 | Charlotte, 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 watch it was issued in
The SPC watch in force over the same counties when this warning went out.
| Issued | Product | Office | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 3, 2:00 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Watch | SPC | 6 hr |
The nearest sounding before it
Greensboro/Hi Pt, NC (KGSO), launched 12:00Z, 9.8 hours before the alert went out and 125 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.
- Mixed-layer CAPE
- 429 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -175 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 1263 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 9 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 5 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 39 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 0.0
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000 WUUS52 KGSP 032148 SVRGSP NCC119-032245- BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC 547 PM EDT WED JUL 3 2002 THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG HAS ISSUED A * SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR... MECKLENBURG COUNTY IN THE PIEDMONT OF NORTH CAROLINA * UNTIL 645 PM EDT * AT 547 PM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR INDICATED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM 8 MILES SOUTHWEST OF CONCORD...OR ABOUT 4 MILES NORTHEAST OF NEWELL...MOVING WEST AT 10 MPH. * THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WILL BE NEAR... NEWELL AT 600 PM. CROFT AT 635 PM. HUNTERSVILLE AT 645 PM. PEOPLE IN THE PATH OF THIS SEVERE THUNDERSTORM SHOULD BE ALERT FOR LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS. FREQUENT LIGHTNING AND LOCALLY HEAVY RAIN CAN OCCUR WITH ANY THUNDERSTORM. $$ TOMKO/LAMB
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.
NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at Jul 3, 3:45 PM EDT, 2 hours 3 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Jul 3, 3:45 PM EDT, 2 hours 3 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC 345 PM EDT WED JUL 3 2002 WATCH BOX IS FILLING IN NICELY WITH CONVECTION ATTM. WENT CAT POPS MTNS...LIKELY FOOTHILLS AND CHANCE IN THE PIEDMONT FOR THIS EVENING. CONVECTION IS DEVELOPING IN AN AREA OF LLVL MOISTURE CONVERGENCE WHICH EXTENDS FROM CENTRAL VA SW TO THE UPSTATE. THIS IS IN RESPONSE TO UPPER LOW OVER EASTERN NC WHICH HAS HELPED TO SHARPEN SFC TROF OVER THE REGION. SUSPECT THAT CONVECTION OVER VA WL CONTINUE TO FILL IN ALONG THE LEE TROF AND EVENTUALLY START MOVING MORE RAPIDLY TO THE SW AS H5 WINDS INCREASE AT LITTLE BY 00 UTC. EVEN IF THE MCS SCENARIO DOES NOT PAN OUT...CONVECTION FIRED FOR SEVERAL HOURS LAST NGHT ON OUTFLOW BNDRYS...AND EXPECT SIMILAR BEHAVIOR TNGT. JULY 4TH REALLY DOESN/T LOOK MUCH DIFFERENT FROM TDA. WL START W/40 POPS IN THE MTNS AND THE FOOTHILLS AND 30S FARTHER EAST...BUT WOULDN/T BE SURPRISED IF WE HAVE TO UP THE POPS AGAIN IN THE AFTN. ON FRI SFC FRONT WL FALL ACROSS THE NRN HALF OF THE CWA. UPPER SUPPORT IS STILL WEAK...AND WE ARE UNDER NVA UNTIL THE EARLY EVENING...BUT MOISTURE POOLING ALONG THE FRONT SHOULD BE SUFFICIENT FOR MORE SCT TSRA. EXTENDED... SUN...AVN KEEPS SFC BOUNDARY WITHIN THE CWA WITH SUBZERO LIS AND HOT AND HUMID AIRMASS IN PLACE. BELIEVE THAT THERE WILL BE SOME TS IN THE CWA BUT QUESTION REMAINS ABOUT FRONTAL PLACEMENT AS AVN IS CHANGING WITH EACH RUN. HEIGHTS FALL ON MON BRINGING SOME UPPER SUPPORT AND WILL INTRODUCE CHC POPS FOR CONVECTION. TUES FROPA BEGINS TO TAKE PLACE WITH AVN BACKING OFF OF CAA IT WAS ADVERTISING ON THE 02.00Z RUN. FRONT HAS A HARD TIME MOVING SOUTH AND IS STILL IN THE AREA WED AND WILL EXTEND POPS INTO WEDS. LITTLE CHANGE IN TEMPS WILL TREND WED TEMPS DOWN A CLICK FROM TUES VALUES. FCSTID = GSP 70 93 70 93 / 50 30 30 30 AND 70 93 70 93 / 40 30 30 30 CLT 67 93 68 93 / 50 30 30 40 HKY 68 91 69 92 / 60 30 30 40 AVL 66 87 66 89 / 80 40 40 40 .GSP... GA...NONE. NC...NONE. SC...NONE. MCAVOY/NED
In the hours before
Special weather statement, Jul 3, 12:15 PM EDT, 5 hours 33 minutes before
GAZ010-017-018-026-028-029-NCZ033>037-048>059-062>072-082-SCZ001>014- 019-032300- SEVERE WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC 1215 PM EDT WED JUL 3 2002 ...SCATTERED SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH LOCALLY HEAVY RAIN TO DEVELOP OVER THE REGION AGAIN THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING... SIMILAR TO THE PAST COUPLE DAYS...A MOIST LOW LEVEL AIRMASS...AND A DRIER...COOLER AIRMASS ALOFT...WILL RESULT IN THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT THIS AFTERNOON OVER THE WESTERN CAROLINAS AND NORTHEAST GEORGIA. SOME OF THESE THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE CAPABLE OF PRODUCING DAMAGING WINDS AND HAIL UP TO ONE INCH IN DIAMETER. WHILE THE ATMOSPHERE IS A LITTLE MORE STABLE TODAY...AN UPPER LEVEL LOW WILL CROSS THE REGION FROM THE EAST DURING THE LATE AFTERNOON AND EARLY EVENING. THIS WILL HELP TO ORGANIZE THE STORMS AND ENHANCE THE POTENTIAL FOR DAMAGING WINDS...ESPECIALLY IN THE MOUNTAINS AND FOOTHILLS OF NORTH CAROLINA WHERE THE INSTABILITY WILL BE GREATER. THE STORMS WILL ONCE AGAIN BE SLOW MOVING. THE POTENTIAL EXISTS FOR SOME OF THE STRONGER STORMS TO PRODUCE LOCALLY HEAVY RAIN. AS PARTS OF THE MOUNTAINS AND FOOTHILLS HAVE SEEN SEVERAL INCHES OF RAIN OVER THE PAST WEEK...THE POTENTIAL FOR ISOLATED FLASH FLOODING WILL BE A LITTLE HIGHER THAN IT HAS BEEN OVER THE PAST FEW DAYS. SPOTTER GROUPS SHOULD BE PREPARED TO ACTIVATE QUICKLY LATE THIS AFTERNOON AND THIS EVENING. DISPATCHERS SHOULD ENSURE COUNTY EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT OFFICIALS ARE AWARE OF THIS INFORMATION. FOR ADDITIONAL WEATHER INFORMATION...CHECK OUR WEB SITE AT HTTP://WWW.NWS.NOAA.GOV/ER/GSP MCAVOY
Local storm report, Jul 3, 4:36 PM EDT, 1 hour 12 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE SPARTANBURG SC
436 PM EDT WED JUL 03 2002
TIME(EDT) .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE ...EVENT/REMARKS...
....COUNTY LOCATION....
421 PM 1 W ROCK HILL SC WIND DAMAGE
07/03/02 YORK SEVERAL TREES DOWN ON
SALUDA RD AND STRAIGHT
RD. ALSO PEA SIZE HAIL.
REPORTED BY YORK EOC.
420 PM CHESTER SC WIND DAMAGE
07/03/02 CHESTER TREE DOWN ON HWY 97 NEAR
HOSPITAL. REPORTED BY
CHESTER EC.
LAMBLocal storm report, Jul 3, 5:27 PM EDT, 21 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE SPARTANBURG SC
527 PM EDT WED JUL 03 2002
TIME(EDT) .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE ...EVENT/REMARKS...
....COUNTY LOCATION....
520 PM LOCKHART SC WIND DAMAGE
07/03/02 UNION TREES DOWN INCLUDING ONE
ON A HOUSE. REPORTED BY
EOC.
MCAVOYLocal storm report, Jul 3, 5:36 PM EDT, 12 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE SPARTANBURG SC
536 PM EDT WED JUL 03 2002
TIME(EDT) .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE ...EVENT/REMARKS...
....COUNTY LOCATION....
528 PM 3 N WATERLOO SC .88 INCH HAIL
07/03/02 LAURENS REPORTED BY COUNTY
COMMUNICATIONS CENTER.
MCAVOYLocal storm report, Jul 3, 5:42 PM EDT, 6 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE SPARTANBURG SC
542 PM EDT WED JUL 03 2002
TIME(EDT) .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE ...EVENT/REMARKS...
....COUNTY LOCATION....
539 PM FOREST CITY NC .75 INCH HAIL
07/03/02 RUTHERFORD SKYWARN SPOTTER REPORTED
DIME-SIZED HAIL AND WIND
GUSTS ESTIMATED AT 50 MPH
IN DOWNTOWN FOREST CITY.
BURRUSThe office that day
Everything else NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 2, 8:17 PM EDT | Flash Flood Warning | GSP | Avery | 118 min |
| Jul 2, 8:32 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | GSP | Davie | 58 min |
| Jul 3, 6:03 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | GSP | Cabarrus | 57 min |
| Jul 3, 6:47 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | GSP | Mecklenburg | 58 min |
| Jul 3, 6:55 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | GSP | Cleveland, Gaston | 65 min |
| Jul 3, 7:18 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | GSP | Lincoln | 57 min |
| Jul 3, 7:58 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | GSP | Cleveland | 62 min |
Nearby
Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in North Carolina, 2002Every 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.