Alert archive / New Jersey / Tornado Watches in 2002
Tornado Watch 211
The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at May 2, 2002, 3:30 PM EDT for 5 states. It was in force for 6 hr.
The area
The outline as issued.
The facts
- Issued
- May 2, 2002, 3:30 PM EDT (19:30 UTC)
- Expired
- May 2, 2002, 9:00 PM EDT
- In force
- 6 hr
- Issued by
- the Storm Prediction Center
All 43 counties
Kent County, DE, New Castle County, DE, Sussex County, DE, Calvert County, MD, Caroline County, MD, Cecil County, MD, Dorchester County, MD, Kent County, MD, Queen Anne's County, MD, Talbot County, MD, Atlantic County, NJ, Bergen County, NJ, Burlington County, NJ, Camden County, NJ, Cape May County, NJ, Cumberland County, NJ, Essex County, NJ, Gloucester County, NJ, Hudson County, NJ, Hunterdon County, NJ, Mercer County, NJ, Middlesex County, NJ, Monmouth County, NJ, Morris County, NJ, Ocean County, NJ, Passaic County, NJ, Salem County, NJ, Somerset County, NJ, Sussex County, NJ, Union County, NJ, Warren County, NJ, Bronx County, NY, Kings County, NY, New York County, NY, Queens County, NY, Richmond County, NY, Rockland County, NY, Westchester County, NY, Bucks County, PA, Chester County, PA, Delaware County, PA, Montgomery County, PA, Philadelphia County, PA
Warnings issued inside it
4 tornado, severe thunderstorm and flash flood warnings for its counties while it was in force.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 2, 4:58 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | PHI | Cecil | 47 min |
| May 2, 5:21 PM EDT | Tornado Warning | PHI | Cecil | 24 min |
| May 2, 5:44 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | PHI | Cecil | 31 min |
| May 2, 6:06 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | PHI | New Castle | 39 min |
The nearest sounding before it
Wallops Is Stn, VA (KWAL), launched 12:00Z, 7.5 hours before the alert went out and 177 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
- 12 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -90 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 540 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 82 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 408 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 464 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 1.0
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000 WWUS20 KWNS 021920 SEL1 SPC WW 021916 DEZ000-MDZ000-NJZ000-NYZ000-PAZ000-CWZ000-030100- URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 211 STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK 316 PM EDT THU MAY 2 2002 THE STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A TORNADO WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF DELAWARE NORTHEAST MARYLAND NEW JERSEY FAR SOUTHERN NEW YORK EASTERN PENNSYLVANIA COASTAL WATERS EFFECTIVE THIS THURSDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING FROM 330 PM UNTIL 900 PM EDT. TORNADOES...HAIL TO 2 INCHES IN DIAMETER...THUNDERSTORM WIND GUSTS TO 80 MPH...AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE IN THESE AREAS. THE TORNADO WATCH AREA IS ALONG AND 45 STATUTE MILES EAST AND WEST OF A LINE FROM 55 MILES SOUTH SOUTHWEST OF DOVER DELAWARE TO 35 MILES NORTH OF NEWARK NEW JERSEY. 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 207...WW 208...WW 209...WW 210... DISCUSSION...THUNDERSTORMS DEVELOPING ATTM OVER CENTRAL PA AHEAD OF APPROACHING COLD FRONT WILL CONTINUE EWD ACROSS THE MID ATLANTIC COAST THIS EVENING. PRONOUNCED THERMAL GRADIENT INVOF E-W ORIENTED SURFACE FRONT WILL REMAIN NEAR/JUST SOUTH OF THE NYC AREA...WITH MODERATE TO STRONG INSTABILITY TO ITS SOUTH. STRONG SHEAR WILL ENHANCE THE POTENTIAL FOR SUPERCELLS AND TORNADOES WITH THESE STORMS. AVIATION...TORNADOES AND A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH HAIL SURFACE AND ALOFT TO 2 INCHES. EXTREME TURBULENCE AND SURFACE WIND GUSTS TO 70 KNOTS. A FEW CUMULONIMBI WITH MAXIMUM TOPS TO 500. MEAN STORM MOTION VECTOR 27040. ...EVANS 382,0764 411,0750 411,0731 382,0750 WWUS20 KWNS 021920 SEL1 SPC WW 021916 DEZ000-MDZ000-NJZ000-NYZ000-PAZ000-CWZ000-030100- URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 211 STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK 316 PM EDT THU MAY 2 2002 THE STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A TORNADO WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF DELAWARE NORTHEAST MARYLAND NEW JERSEY FAR SOUTHERN NEW YORK EASTERN PENNSYLVANIA COASTAL WATERS EFFECTIVE THIS THURSDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING FROM 330 PM UNTIL 900 PM EDT. TORNADOES...HAIL TO 2 INCHES IN DIAMETER...THUNDERSTORM WIND GUSTS TO 80 MPH...AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE IN THESE AREAS. THE TORNADO WATCH AREA IS ALONG AND 45 STATUTE MILES EAST AND WEST OF A LINE FROM 55 MILES SOUTH SOUTHWEST OF DOVER DELAWARE TO 35 MILES NORTH OF NEWARK NEW JERSEY. 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 207...WW 208...WW 209...WW 210... DISCUSSION...THUNDERSTORMS DEVELOPING ATTM OVER CENTRAL PA AHEAD OF APPROACHING COLD FRONT WILL CONTINUE EWD ACROSS THE MID ATLANTIC COAST THIS EVENING. PRONOUNCED THERMAL GRADIENT INVOF E-W ORIENTED SURFACE FRONT WILL REMAIN NEAR/JUST SOUTH OF THE NYC AREA...WITH MODERATE TO STRONG INSTABILITY TO ITS SOUTH. STRONG SHEAR WILL ENHANCE THE POTENTIAL FOR SUPERCELLS AND TORNADOES WITH THESE STORMS. AVIATION...TORNADOES AND A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH HAIL SURFACE AND ALOFT TO 2 INCHES. EXTREME TURBULENCE AND SURFACE WIND GUSTS TO 70 KNOTS. A FEW CUMULONIMBI WITH MAXIMUM TOPS TO 500. MEAN STORM MOTION VECTOR 27040. ...EVANS 382,0764 411,0750 411,0731 382,0750
SPC that day
Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 2, 2:30 PM EDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | Allegany, Anne Arundel, Baltimore, Carroll, Charles, Frederick and 7 more | 7 hr |
| May 2, 2:45 PM EDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | Saint Mary's, Somerset | 6 hr |
| May 2, 4:30 AM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Watch | SPC | Fayette, Greene, Washington | 4 hr |
Nearby
Tornado Watches in New Jersey, 2002Tornado Watches in Maryland, 2002Tornado Watches in New York, 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.