Alert archive / North Carolina / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2002

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 59, NWS Morristown, TN

May 2, 2002Cherokee County, Clay County, North Carolina

NWS Morristown, TN issued this severe thunderstorm warning at May 2, 2002, 8:53 PM EDT for Cherokee County, Clay County, North Carolina. It was in force for 37 min. 2 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: May 2, 2002, 8:53 PM EDT (00:53 UTC)
Expired: May 2, 2002, 9:30 PM EDT
In force: 37 min
Issued by: NWS Morristown, TN
Area: Whole counties

Counties Cherokee County, NC, Clay County, NC

The radar

The Knoxville radar (KMRX), 128 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 00:57 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 2, 9:00 PM EDT	Hail 1.75	Hiwasse Dam, NC
May 2, 9:15 PM EDT	Thunderstorm Wind	Murphy, 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
May 2, 8:00 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Watch	SPC	4 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Peachtre/Fal Fld, GA (KFFC), launched 00:00Z, 0.9 hours before the alert went out and 199 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: 977 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -43 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 1462 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 43 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 89 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 173 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.3
Supercell composite: 3.5

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WUUS54 KMRX 030053
SVRMRX
NCC039-043-030130-
/NEW.KMRX.SV.W.0082.030053-030130/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MORRISTOWN TN
853 PM EDT THU MAY 2 2002

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN MORRISTOWN HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  CHEROKEE COUNTY IN SOUTHWEST NORTH CAROLINA
  CLAY COUNTY IN SOUTHWEST NORTH CAROLINA

* UNTIL 930 PM EDT

* AT 852 PM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM 8 MILES SOUTHWEST OF MURPHY...MOVING EAST AT 45
  MPH.

* THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WILL BE NEAR...
  MURPHY AROUND 900 PM EDT
  BRASSTOWN AROUND 905 PM EDT
  HAYESVILLE AROUND 910 PM EDT
  TUSQUITEE AROUND 915 PM EDT
  SHOOTING CREEK AROUND 925 PM EDT

THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM IS CAPABLE OF PRODUCING...
  WINDS UP TO 70 MPH...WHICH COULD PUSH OVER SHALLOW ROOTED TREES...
  AND DAMAGE CHIMNEYS AND TV ANTENNAS.
  HAIL UP TO 1 INCH IN DIAMETER...OR THE SIZE OF QUARTERS.
  VERY HEAVY RAINFALL WHICH MAY CAUSE LOCALIZED FLOODING.

SEEK A STURDY SHELTER IMMEDIATELY $$

LAT...LON 3502 8430 3499 8399 3500 8351 3517 8370
          3514 8412

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 May 2, 3:10 PM EDT, 5 hours 43 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, May 2, 3:10 PM EDT, 5 hours 43 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MORRISTOWN TN
310 PM EDT THU MAY 2 2002

ACTIVE WEATHER PATTERN CONTINUES AS COLD FRONT BARRELS THROUGH THE
FORECAST AREA LATER TODAY AND THEN STALLS OUT NEAR THE TN/GA STATE
LINE. THIS BOUNDARY WILL PROVIDE A FOCUS FOR A CONTINUED THREAT OF
PRECIP ESPECIALLY IN THE SOUTHERN HALF OF THE FORECAST AREA THROUGH
EARLY SATURDAY. A SHORTWAVE WILL APPROACH THE AREA LATE FRIDAY/EARLY
SATURDAY WHICH WILL INDUCE OVER-RUNNING PRECIP OVER THE ENTIRE
FORECAST AREA. THIS FEATURE WILL MOVE RAPIDLY EASTWARD AND BE
ESSENTIALLY OUT OF THE AREA BY MID-DAY SATURDAY. TIME-HEIGHTS SHOW A
DEEP MOISTURE PROFILE FOR EARLY SATURDAY WITH PRECIPITABLE WATER
OVER 1.5 INCHES PROJECTED BY THE MESOETA FORECAST SOUNDINGS.

HAVE TENDED TO FAVOR AVN MOS FOR BOTH TEMPS AND POPS FOR DAYS 1-3.

FCSTID = 23
PRELIMINARY NUMBERS FOLLOW:
CHA   61  70  55  71 /  70  40  70  50
TYS   55  67  50  67 /  70  40  60  40
TRI   50  64  46  61 /  70  20  50  30
OQT   55  67  50  67 /  70  40  60  40

.MRX...
NC...NONE.
TN...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH NUMBER 208 ALL COUNTIES.
VA...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH NUMBER 208 ALL COUNTIES.

LCM

In the hours before

Local storm report, May 2, 7:12 PM EDT, 1 hour 41 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MORRISTOWN, TN
712 PM EDT THU MAY 2 2002

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

0702 PM    ROCKWOOD                  TN   WIND DAMAGE
05/02/02   ROANE                          TREES DOWN. REPORTED BY
                                          SPOTTERS

DAE

Local storm report, May 2, 7:36 PM EDT, 1 hour 17 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MORRISTOWN, TN
736 PM EDT THU MAY 2 2002

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

0728 PM    2 SE MARYVILLE            TN   65 MPH TSTM WIND GUST
05/02/02   BLOUNT                         REPORTED BY SPOTTER.

DAE

Local storm report, May 2, 7:38 PM EDT, 1 hour 15 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MORRISTOWN, TN
738 PM EDT THU MAY 2 2002

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

0730 PM    DANDRIDGE                 TN   WIND DAMAGE
05/02/02   JEFFERSON                      TREES DOWN. REPORTED BY
                                          SPOTTER.

DAE

Local storm report, May 2, 8:11 PM EDT, 42 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MORRISTOWN, TN
811 PM EDT THU MAY 2 2002

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

0739 PM    GREENBACK                 TN   WIND DAMAGE
05/02/02   LOUDON                         TREES DOWN. REPORTED BY
                                          DISPATCH.

DAE

Local storm report, May 2, 8:35 PM EDT, 18 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MORRISTOWN, TN
835 PM EDT THU MAY 2 2002

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

0735 PM    COUNTYWIDE                TN   WIND DAMAGE
05/02/02   MCMINN                         TREES DOWN. REPORTED BY
                                          DISPATCH.

DAE

Local storm report, May 2, 8:40 PM EDT, 13 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MORRISTOWN, TN
840 PM EDT THU MAY 2 2002

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

0745 PM    MADISONVILLE              TN   WIND DAMAGE
05/02/02   MONROE                         TREES DOWN. REPORTED BY
                                          DISPATCH.

DAE

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in North 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.