Alert archive / Tennessee / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2002

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 229, NWS Morristown, TN

August 24, 2002Carter County, Johnson County, Tennessee

NWS Morristown, TN issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Aug 24, 2002, 3:33 PM EDT for Carter County, Johnson County, Tennessee. It was in force for 42 min. 1 report 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
Aug 24, 2002, 3:33 PM EDT (19:33 UTC)
Expired
Aug 24, 2002, 4:15 PM EDT
In force
42 min
Issued by
NWS Morristown, TN
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

Counties Carter County, TN, Johnson County, TN

The radar

The Knoxville radar (KMRX), 129 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 19:36 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
Aug 24, 3:55 PM EDTThunderstorm WindMountain City, TN

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.

Did it verify

Not verified. The Iowa Environmental Mesonet's Cow found no qualifying storm report inside this severe thunderstorm warning while it was in force. That is not proof nothing happened: reports are thin where few people live.

Cow counts a report within 15 km of the polygon while the warning was in force: a tornado for a tornado warning; hail of 1 inch or more, a gust of 58 mph or more or wind damage for a severe thunderstorm warning; a flash flood report for a flash flood warning.

The nearest sounding before it

Greensboro/Hi Pt, NC (KGSO), launched 12:00Z, 7.6 hours before the alert went out and 190 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, Greensboro/Hi Pt, NC at 12:00Z on 2002-08-24Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 681 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, Greensboro/Hi Pt, NC at 12:00Z on 2002-08-24The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 9 square meters per square second.1939Sfc1 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
681 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-81 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1533 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
26 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
9 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
4 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.1

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

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 Morristown, TN wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at Aug 24, 3:00 PM EDT, 33 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Aug 24, 3:00 PM EDT, 33 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MORRISTOWN TN
300 PM EDT SAT AUG 24 2002

THE FOLLOWING ARE ALL THE FORECAST DISCUSSIONS FROM THE PAST 24
HOURS...WITH THE MOST RECENT ON TOP. THIS PROVIDES A HISTORY OF THE
DEVELOPMENT OF THE CURRENT FORECAST.
********************************************************************
EVENING FORECAST DISCUSSION (UPDATE)
915 PM EDT SAT AUG 24 2002

MOST OF THE SHOWERS HAVE DIMINISHED OVER THE FORECAST AREA SO HAVE
UPDATED FORECAST TO REFLECT THIS CHANGE.  AVN MODEL SHOWS CURRENT
PRECIP OVER MIDDLE AND WEST TENNESSEE MAY IMPACT THE SOUTHERN VALLEY
LATER TONIGHT...SO HAVE LEFT CHANCE PRECIPITATION IN SOUTHEAST
TENNESSEE AND SOUTHWEST NORTH CAROLINA COUNTIES.

NO OTHER CHANGES.

********************************************************************
AFTERNOON FORECAST DISCUSSION
300 PM EDT SAT AUG 24 2002

CURRENT SURFACE ANALYSIS SHOWS A WEAK COLD FRONT ALONG THE OHIO AND
MID MISSISSIPPI VALLEYS...WITH AREA RADARS SHOWING SCATTERED TSTORMS
ACROSS THE FORECAST AREA. SOUNDINGS INDICATE THAT THE LOCAL AIRMASS
IS VERY MOIST (PRECIPITABLE WATER VALUES NEAR 2 INCHES) AND
MODERATELY UNSTABLE (LIFTED INDICES NEAR -6 AND CAPES AROUND 3500
J/KG). THUS...WILL PLAN TO CONTINUE A MENTION OF SCATTERED TSTORMS
OVERNIGHT AS THIS FRONT SLOWLY MOVES INTO THE AREA. MODELS ARE NOW
INDICATING THAT THIS FRONT WILL NOT MAKE IT THROUGH THE FORECAST AREA
UNTIL TOMORROW NIGHT...WHERE IT WILL LIKELY BECOME STATIONARY ALONG
THE SPINE OF THE APPALACHIANS. THUS...WILL INTRODUCE A MENTION OF
TSTORMS EVERYWHERE TOMORROW. AN UPPER-LEVEL LOW IS EXPECTED TO THEN
DEVELOP SUNDAY NIGHT ACROSS THE TN VALLEY...WHICH WILL HELP DEVELOP A
SURFACE LOW ALONG THIS STATIONARY FRONT ON MONDAY.

IN THE EXTENDED...MODELS INDICATE THAT THE UPPER-LEVEL AND SURFACE
LOWS WILL LINGER ACROSS THE TN VALLEY THROUGH THE REST OF THE WEEK.
THUS...WILL INCLUDE A MENTION OF SHOWERS AND TSTORMS EVERY DAY FROM
TUESDAY THROUGH SATURDAY. EXPECT MAINLY AFTERNOON AND EVENING
ACTIVITY...BUT WILL NOT MENTION THIS IN THE ZONES SINCE CONVECTION
COULD FORM ANY TIME DURING THE DAY OR NIGHT.

AS FOR TEMPS...WILL TREND TOWARD THE WARMER NGM AND ETA NUMBERS
THROUGH THE FORECAST PERIOD...SINCE BREAKS IN CLOUD COVER EXPECTED
WITH ONLY SCATTERED CONVECTION. TEMPS LOOK TO RETURN TO MORE SEASONAL
LEVELS FOR NEXT WEEK.

THE FOLLOWING NUMBERS ARE PRELIMINARY AND FOR COORDINATION ONLY:

CHA   72  88  68  86 /  30  40  30  40
TYS   70  87  66  84 /  30  30  30  40
TRI   66  85  63  82 /  30  20  30  40
OQT   70  87  66  84 /  30  30  30  40

.MRX...
NC...NONE.
TN...NONE.
VA...NONE.

DMG

*********************************************************************
LATE MORNING FORECAST DISCUSSION (UPDATE)
950 AM EDT SAT AUG 24 2002

NO UPDATES PLANNED THIS MORNING.  SHOWERS HAVE DISSIPATED ACROSS THE
CWA...BUT STILL EXPECTING SCATTERED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS TO
REDEVELOP THIS AFTERNOON WITH AN UNSTABLE ATMOSPHERE AND A FEW
SHORTWAVES MOVING THROUGH.  COLD FRONT NOT EXPECTED UNTIL THIS
EVENING.  POPS AND TEMPERATURES LOOK GOOD.

GH

*********************************************************************
EARLY MORNING FORECAST DISCUSSION
315 AM EDT SAT AUG 24 2002

MODELS CONTINUE TO ADVERTISE A SIGNIFICANT LONG WAVE PATTERN CHANGE
OVER THE NEXT FEW DAYS AS THE PERSISTENT UPPER RIDGE OVER THE
SOUTHEASTERN CONUS GIVES WAY TO A TROUGH. THIS TRANSITION WILL CAUSE
AN INCREASE IN POPS OVER OUR FORECAST AREA AS A COLD FRONT APPROACHES
LATE SATURDAY. HAVE CONTINUED WITH THE ONGOING CHANCE POPS IN THE
FIRST PERIOD. AN UPPER LEVEL CLOSED LOW IS PROJECTED TO DEVELOP OVER
THE SOUTHERN APPALACHIAN REGION BE EARLY MONDAY. LOWERING HEIGHTS
ASSOCIATED WITH THIS TRANSITION SUGGESTS THAT THE SIGNIFICANTLY ABOVE
CLIMATOLOGY TEMPS WILL COME TO AN END ALSO...AT LEAST TEMPORARILY.

MODEL TIME HEIGHTS SHOW MID AND UPPER LEVELS DRYING OUT CONSIDERABLY
BY LATE SATURDAY. THEREFORE...EXPECT PRECIP TO GENERALLY END BY THE
SECOND PERIOD. THUS...TEND TO FAVOR LOWER NGM MOS POPS THROUGH THE
REMAINDER OF THE NEAR TERM.

ONCE AGAIN...GUIDANCE TEMPS ARE GENERALLY CLOSE AND APPEAR
REASONABLE. HAVE NOT STRAYED VERY FAR FROM THOSE NUMBERS.

PRELIMINARY TEMPS AND POPS FOLLOW FOR COORDINATION:

CHA   92  72  91  70 /  40  20  10  10
TYS   89  69  88  68 /  50  20  10  10
TRI   85  65  84  62 /  50  20  10  10
OQT   89  69  87  67 /  50  20  10  10

LCM

*********************************************************************

In the hours before

Local storm report, Aug 24, 3:30 PM EDT, 3 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MORRISTOWN TN
330 PM EDT SAT AUG 24 2002

TIME(EDT)  .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE  ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

0325 PM    JOHNSON CITY              TN   WIND DAMAGE
08/24/02   WASHINGTON                     A FEW TREES DOWN ACROSS
                                          THE SOUTHERN HALF OF
                                          JOHNSON CITY.  REPORTED
                                          BY WASHINGTON COUNTY 911.

The office that day

Everything else NWS Morristown, TN issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Aug 24, 2:02 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMRXRoane28 min
Aug 24, 2:18 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMRXBlount42 min
Aug 24, 3:16 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMRXWashington29 min
Aug 24, 3:22 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMRXSullivan23 min
Aug 24, 3:38 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMRXUnicoi37 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Tennessee, 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.