Alert archive / Georgia / Tornado Warnings in 2002

Tornado Warning 4, NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC

April 28, 2002Franklin County, Georgia; Oconee County, South Carolina

NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC issued this tornado warning at Apr 28, 2002, 9:29 PM EDT for Franklin County, Georgia; Oconee County, South Carolina. It was in force for 31 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 28, 2002, 9:29 PM EDT (01:29 UTC)
Expired
Apr 28, 2002, 10:00 PM EDT
In force
31 min
Issued by
NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC
Area
Whole counties

Counties Franklin County, GA, Oconee County, SC

What was reported inside it

TimeReportWhereRemark
Apr 28, 9:30 PM EDTThunderstorm Wind 50 EKeowee, SCLarge plastic covers were blown off of a greenhouse.
Apr 28, 9:30 PM EDTThunderstorm Wind 65 EMadison, SCNumerous trees and power lines were reported down. In addition, gutters were reportedly torn off of some homes.
Apr 28, 9:30 PM EDTHail 3Madison, SCWidespread damage to buildings and vehicles was reported.

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
Apr 28, 9:00 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPC4 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Peachtre/Fal Fld, GA (KFFC), launched 00:00Z, 1.5 hours before the alert went out and 182 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 00:00Z on 2002-04-29Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1915 joules per kilogram.LCLEL10008507005003002001001 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, Peachtre/Fal Fld, GA at 00:00Z on 2002-04-29The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 141 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
1915 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-3 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1206 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
42 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
141 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
196 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
1.3
Supercell composite
7.2

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WFUS52 KGSP 290129
TORGSP
GAC119-SCC073-290200-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC
929 PM EDT SUN APR 28 2002

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  NORTHEASTERN FRANKLIN COUNTY IN NORTHEAST GEORGIA
  SOUTHEASTERN OCONEE COUNTY IN UPSTATE SOUTH CAROLINA

* UNTIL 1000 PM EDT.

* AT 929 PM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR INDICATED A
  THUNDERSTORM WITH A DEVELOPING TORNADO 11 MILES EAST OF TOCCOA...OR
  ABOUT 6 MILES NORTH OF WHITWORTH...MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 35 MPH.

* THE TORNADO WILL BE NEAR...
  WHITWORTH AT 930 PM EDT.
  LAVONIA AT 935 PM EDT.
  FAIR PLAY AT 940 PM EDT.
  TOWNVILLE AT 945 PM EDT.

A FUNNEL CLOUD WAS REPORTED OVER LAKE HARTWELL WITH THIS STORM.

THIS TORNADO WARNING REPLACES THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING WHICH
WAS IN EFFECT FOR THE SAME AREA. GO TO A BASEMENT OR SMALL INTERIOR
ROOM ON THE LOWEST FLOOR

$$
MCAVOY

The office that day

Everything else NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Apr 28, 8:38 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGSPRabun37 min
Apr 28, 9:01 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGSPStephens44 min
Apr 28, 9:36 PM EDTTornado WarningGSPHart39 min
Apr 28, 10:04 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGSPAbbeville41 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Georgia, 2002Tornado Warnings in South Carolina, 2002Every tornado warning in 2002Tornadoes 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.