Alert archive / Virginia / Tornado Watches in 2002
Tornado Watch 755
The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at Nov 11, 2002, 1:10 AM EST for 5 states. It was in force for 6 hr.
The area
The outline as issued.
The facts
- Issued
- Nov 11, 2002, 1:10 AM EST (06:10 UTC)
- Expired
- Nov 11, 2002, 7:00 AM EST
- In force
- 6 hr
- Issued by
- the Storm Prediction Center
All 74 counties
Alexander County, NC, Alleghany County, NC, Ashe County, NC, Avery County, NC, Buncombe County, NC, Burke County, NC, Cabarrus County, NC, Caldwell County, NC, Catawba County, NC, Cleveland County, NC, Davidson County, NC, Davie County, NC, Forsyth County, NC, Gaston County, NC, Guilford County, NC, Henderson County, NC, Iredell County, NC, Lincoln County, NC, McDowell County, NC, Mecklenburg County, NC, Mitchell County, NC, Polk County, NC, Rockingham County, NC, Rowan County, NC, Rutherford County, NC, Stokes County, NC, Surry County, NC, Transylvania County, NC, Watauga County, NC, Wilkes County, NC, Yadkin County, NC, Yancey County, NC, Cherokee County, SC, York County, SC, Johnson County, TN, Albemarle County, VA, Alleghany County, VA, Amherst County, VA, Appomattox County, VA, Bedford County, VA, Bland County, VA, Botetourt County, VA, Buckingham County, VA, Campbell County, VA, Carroll County, VA, City of Buena Vista, VA, City of Charlottesville, VA, City of Covington, VA, City of Danville, VA, City of Galax, VA, City of Lexington, VA, City of Lynchburg, VA, City of Martinsville, VA, City of Radford, VA, City of Roanoke, VA, City of Salem, VA, Craig County, VA, Floyd County, VA, Fluvanna County, VA, Franklin County, VA, Giles County, VA, Grayson County, VA, Henry County, VA, Montgomery County, VA, Nelson County, VA, Patrick County, VA, Pittsylvania County, VA, Pulaski County, VA, Roanoke County, VA, Rockbridge County, VA, Smyth County, VA, Wythe County, VA, Greenbrier County, WV, Monroe County, WV
Warnings issued inside it
13 tornado, severe thunderstorm and flash flood warnings for its counties while it was in force.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nov 11, 1:38 AM EST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | RNK | Bedford, Franklin | 37 min |
| Nov 11, 2:08 AM EST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | RNK | Smyth | 37 min |
| Nov 11, 2:24 AM EST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | RNK | Wythe | 51 min |
| Nov 11, 2:37 AM EST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | RNK | Buckingham | 23 min |
| Nov 11, 3:01 AM EST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | RNK | Montgomery, Pulaski, City of Radford | 29 min |
| Nov 11, 3:37 AM EST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | RNK | Roanoke, City of Roanoke, City of Salem | 23 min |
| Nov 11, 3:54 AM EST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | RNK | Bedford | 21 min |
| Nov 11, 4:29 AM EST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | RNK | Amherst, Bedford, City of Lynchburg | 31 min |
| Nov 11, 4:52 AM EST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | LWX | Nelson | 23 min |
| Nov 11, 5:36 AM EST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | AKQ | Fluvanna, Louisa | 29 min |
| Nov 11, 6:15 AM EST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | GSP | Cherokee, Union, York | 45 min |
| Nov 11, 6:51 AM EST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | GSP | Mecklenburg, Union | 54 min |
| Nov 11, 6:53 AM EST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | RNK | Campbell, City of Lynchburg | 37 min |
The nearest sounding before it
Greensboro/Hi Pt, NC (KGSO), launched 00:00Z, 6.2 hours before the alert went out and 110 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
- 316 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -64 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 840 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 50 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 276 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 400 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.5
- Supercell composite
- 2.1
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000 WWUS20 KWNS 110608 SEL5 SPC WW 110610 NCZ000-VAZ000-111200- URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 755 STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK 110 AM EST MON NOV 11 2002 THE STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A TORNADO WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA WESTERN VIRGINIA EFFECTIVE THIS MONDAY MORNING FROM 110 AM UNTIL 700 AM EST. TORNADOES...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 70 STATUTE MILES EAST AND WEST OF A LINE FROM 45 MILES SOUTHEAST OF ASHEVILLE NORTH CAROLINA TO 50 MILES NORTH OF LYNCHBURG 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 751...WW 752...WW 753...WW 754... DISCUSSION...SHEAR AND INSTABILITY REMAIN FAVORABLE FOR SUPERCELLS EAST OF THE MOUNTAINS EARLY THIS MORNING. THOUGH ONGOING ACTIVITY IS WEAKENING OVER THE HIGHER TERRAIN OF ERN TN...EXPECT NEW DEVELOPMENT TO SPREAD EWD WITH A THREAT OF TORNADIC SUPERCELLS THROUGH THE REMAINDER OF THE NIGHT INTO WRN AND CENTRAL NC/VA. 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 25040. ...EVANS 345,0831 380,0802 380,0775 345,0804
SPC that day
Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nov 10, 10:45 PM EST | Tornado Watch | SPC | Cherokee, Clay, Graham, Haywood, Jackson, Macon and 2 more | 5 hr |
| Nov 11, 5:40 AM EST | Tornado Watch | SPC | Robeson, Scotland | 5 hr |
| Nov 11, 6:35 AM EST | Tornado Watch | SPC | Alamance, Cabarrus, Caswell, Chatham, Cumberland, Davidson and 34 more | 4 hr |
| Nov 11, 10:00 AM EST | Tornado Watch | SPC | Beaufort, Bertie, Bladen, Brunswick, Camden, Chowan and 22 more | 5 hr |
| Nov 10, 11:05 PM EST | Tornado Watch | SPC | Abbeville, Anderson, Greenville, Laurens, Oconee, Pickens and 3 more | 6 hr |
| Nov 11, 3:30 AM EST | Tornado Watch | SPC | Abbeville, Anderson, Chester, Edgefield, Fairfield, Greenville and 9 more | 6 hr |
| Nov 11, 11:05 AM EST | Severe Thunderstorm Watch | SPC | Allendale, Bamberg, Barnwell, Beaufort, Berkeley, Charleston and 6 more | 6 hr |
| Nov 11, 5:05 AM EST | Tornado Watch | SPC | Amelia, Arlington, Brunswick, Caroline, Charles City, Chesterfield and 37 more | 6 hr |
| Nov 11, 11:00 AM EST | Tornado Watch | SPC | Accomack, Brunswick, Charles City, Chesterfield, Dinwiddie, Essex and 35 more | 4 hr |
Nearby
Tornado Watches in Virginia, 2002Tornado Watches in North Carolina, 2002Tornado Watches in South Carolina, 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.