Alert archive / West Virginia / Tornado Watches in 2002
Tornado Watch 168
The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at Apr 28, 2002, 1:30 PM EDT for 4 states. It was in force for 4 hr.
The area
The outline as issued.
The facts
- Issued
- Apr 28, 2002, 1:30 PM EDT (17:30 UTC)
- Expired
- Apr 28, 2002, 5:00 PM EDT
- In force
- 4 hr
- Issued by
- the Storm Prediction Center
All 56 counties
Harlan County, KY, Letcher County, KY, Martin County, KY, Pike County, KY, Allegany County, MD, Garrett County, MD, Bland County, VA, Buchanan County, VA, City of Bristol, VA, City of Norton, VA, Dickenson County, VA, Lee County, VA, Russell County, VA, Scott County, VA, Smyth County, VA, Tazewell County, VA, Washington County, VA, Wise County, VA, Barbour County, WV, Boone County, WV, Braxton County, WV, Calhoun County, WV, Clay County, WV, Doddridge County, WV, Fayette County, WV, Gilmer County, WV, Grant County, WV, Greenbrier County, WV, Harrison County, WV, Kanawha County, WV, Lewis County, WV, Lincoln County, WV, Logan County, WV, Marion County, WV, McDowell County, WV, Mercer County, WV, Mineral County, WV, Mingo County, WV, Monongalia County, WV, Monroe County, WV, Nicholas County, WV, Pocahontas County, WV, Preston County, WV, Raleigh County, WV, Randolph County, WV, Ritchie County, WV, Roane County, WV, Summers County, WV, Taylor County, WV, Tucker County, WV, Tyler County, WV, Upshur County, WV, Webster County, WV, Wetzel County, WV, Wirt County, WV, Wyoming County, WV
Warnings issued inside it
26 tornado, severe thunderstorm and flash flood warnings for its counties while it was in force.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 28, 1:33 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | RLX | Boone, Logan | 42 min |
| Apr 28, 1:35 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | JKL | Martin | 35 min |
| Apr 28, 1:44 PM EDT | Tornado Warning | JKL | Martin | 41 min |
| Apr 28, 1:55 PM EDT | Tornado Warning | RLX | Mingo | 35 min |
| Apr 28, 2:05 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | RLX | Raleigh | 55 min |
| Apr 28, 2:36 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | RLX | Wyoming | 39 min |
| Apr 28, 2:43 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | RNK | Summers | 47 min |
| Apr 28, 2:47 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | JKL | Harlan | 28 min |
| Apr 28, 2:56 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MRX | Lee | 49 min |
| Apr 28, 2:58 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | JKL | Floyd, Pike | 32 min |
| Apr 28, 3:01 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | RNK | Mercer | 44 min |
| Apr 28, 3:03 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | JKL | Martin | 27 min |
| Apr 28, 3:06 PM EDT | Tornado Warning | MRX | Lee | 24 min |
| Apr 28, 3:07 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | RNK | Monroe | 38 min |
| Apr 28, 3:19 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MRX | Scott | 41 min |
| Apr 28, 3:42 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | PBZ | Tucker | 63 min |
| Apr 28, 3:43 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | RNK | Monroe | 47 min |
| Apr 28, 3:45 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MRX | Washington, City of Bristol | 45 min |
| Apr 28, 3:45 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | RNK | Mercer | 45 min |
| Apr 28, 3:57 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | RLX | Harrison | 33 min |
| Apr 28, 4:05 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | LWX | Grant, Hardy | 40 min |
| Apr 28, 4:25 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | RLX | Braxton, Gilmer | 50 min |
| Apr 28, 4:29 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | RLX | Barbour | 46 min |
| Apr 28, 4:44 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | RLX | Lewis, Upshur | 31 min |
| Apr 28, 4:55 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | PBZ | Tucker | 65 min |
| Apr 28, 4:55 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | RLX | Randolph | 65 min |
The nearest sounding before it
Roanoke, VA (KRNK), launched 12:00Z, 5.5 hours before the alert went out and 197 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
- 17 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -448 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 642 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 54 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 370 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 435 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 0.0
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000 WWUS20 KWNS 281728 SEL8 SPC WW 281721 KYZ000-MDZ000-VAZ000-WVZ000-282100- URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 168 STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK 121 PM EDT SUN APR 28 2002 THE STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A TORNADO WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF EASTERN KENTUCKY WESTERN MARYLAND PANHANDLE WESTERN VIRGINIA WEST VIRGINIA EFFECTIVE THIS SUNDAY AFTERNOON FROM 130 PM UNTIL 500 PM EDT. ...THIS IS A PARTICULARLY DANGEROUS SITUATION... DAMAGING TORNADOES...LARGE HAIL TO 2 INCHES IN DIAMETER... THUNDERSTORM WIND GUSTS TO 70 MPH...AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE IN THESE AREAS. THE TORNADO WATCH AREA IS ALONG AND 60 STATUTE MILES EAST AND WEST OF A LINE FROM 60 MILES SOUTH OF PIKEVILLE KENTUCKY TO 15 MILES EAST NORTHEAST OF MORGANTOWN WEST VIRGINIA. REMEMBER...A TORNADO WATCH MEANS CONDITIONS ARE FAVORABLE FOR TORNADOES AND SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS IN AND CLOSE TO THE WATCH AREA. PERSONS IN THESE AREAS SHOULD BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR THREATENING WEATHER CONDITIONS AND LISTEN FOR LATER STATEMENTS AND POSSIBLE WARNINGS. OTHER WATCH INFORMATION... CONTINUE...WW 166...WW 167... DISCUSSION...EASTWARD MOVING SHORTWAVE TROUGH WILL AID IN SEVERE THUNDERSTORM INITIATION EWD INTO THE AREA. AIR MASS WILL DESTABILIZE TO NEAR 2500 J/KG MLCAPE AND STRONG LOW LEVEL SHEAR INDICATES TORNADOES ...SOME STRONG...ARE LIKELY WITH CONVECTION. AVIATION...TORNADOES AND A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH HAIL SURFACE AND ALOFT TO 2 INCHES. EXTREME TURBULENCE AND SURFACE WIND GUSTS TO 60 KNOTS. A FEW CUMULONIMBI WITH MAXIMUM TOPS TO 500. MEAN STORM MOTION VECTOR 26040. ...IMY 394,0783 363,0812 363,0833 394,0804
SPC that day
Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 27, 11:00 PM EDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | Ballard, Caldwell, Calloway, Carlisle, Christian, Crittenden and 12 more | 5 hr |
| Apr 28, 1:00 AM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Watch | SPC | Anderson, Boone, Carroll, Franklin, Gallatin, Henry and 7 more | 5 hr |
| Apr 28, 3:00 AM EDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | Ballard, Breckinridge, Butler, Caldwell, Calloway, Carlisle and 32 more | 5 hr |
| Apr 28, 6:15 AM EDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | Adair, Allen, Barren, Boyle, Breathitt, Casey and 26 more | 4 hr |
| Apr 28, 11:45 AM EDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | Boone, Bracken, Campbell, Carroll, Gallatin, Grant and 7 more | 5 hr |
| Apr 28, 12:30 PM EDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | Adair, Allen, Anderson, Barren, Bath, Bourbon and 76 more | 5 hr |
| Apr 28, 5:00 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Watch | SPC | Floyd, Harlan, Knott, Letcher, Martin, Pike | 4 hr |
| Apr 28, 5:00 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Watch | SPC | Floyd, Harlan, Knott, Letcher, Martin, Pike | 4 hr |
| Apr 28, 3:30 PM EDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | Baltimore, Carroll, Frederick, Harford, Howard, Montgomery and 3 more | 6 hr |
| Apr 28, 6:00 PM EDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | Calvert, Caroline, Cecil, Dorchester, Kent, Queen Anne's and 5 more | 4 hr |
| Apr 28, 2:15 PM EDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | City of Bristol | 5 hr |
| Apr 28, 6:45 PM EDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | City of Danville | 3 hr |
| Apr 28, 2:30 PM EDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | Marshall | 6 hr |
Nearby
Tornado Watches in West Virginia, 2002Tornado Watches in Virginia, 2002Tornado Watches in Kentucky, 2002Every tornado watch 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; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive.