Alert archive / North Carolina / Tornado Watches in 2002

Tornado Watch 762

November 11, 200228 counties in North Carolina; Horry County, Marion County, Williamsburg County, South Carolina

The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at Nov 11, 2002, 10:00 AM EST for 28 counties in North Carolina; Horry County, Marion County, Williamsburg County, South Carolina. It was in force for 5 hr.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
Nov 11, 2002, 10:00 AM EST (15:00 UTC)
Expired
Nov 11, 2002, 3:00 PM EST
In force
5 hr
Issued by
the Storm Prediction Center
All 31 counties

Beaufort County, NC, Bertie County, NC, Bladen County, NC, Brunswick County, NC, Camden County, NC, Chowan County, NC, Columbus County, NC, Craven County, NC, Currituck County, NC, Duplin County, NC, Gates County, NC, Greene County, NC, Hertford County, NC, Hyde County, NC, Jones County, NC, Lenoir County, NC, Martin County, NC, New Hanover County, NC, Onslow County, NC, Pamlico County, NC, Pasquotank County, NC, Pender County, NC, Perquimans County, NC, Pitt County, NC, Sampson County, NC, Tyrrell County, NC, Washington County, NC, Wayne County, NC, Horry County, SC, Marion County, SC, Williamsburg County, SC

The radar

The Wilmington radar (KLTX), 86 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 15:03 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.

Warnings issued inside it

16 tornado, severe thunderstorm and flash flood warnings for its counties while it was in force.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Nov 11, 10:19 AM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningRAHSampson41 min
Nov 11, 10:35 AM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningRAHWayne40 min
Nov 11, 10:49 AM ESTTornado WarningRAHWayne26 min
Nov 11, 10:52 AM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMHXGreene, Lenoir38 min
Nov 11, 10:58 AM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMHXDuplin62 min
Nov 11, 10:58 AM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningRAHSampson32 min
Nov 11, 11:11 AM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMHXPitt49 min
Nov 11, 11:18 AM ESTTornado WarningRAHWayne12 min
Nov 11, 11:18 AM ESTTornado WarningRAHWayne12 min
Nov 11, 11:33 AM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMHXLenoir57 min
Nov 11, 11:35 AM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMHXMartin55 min
Nov 11, 11:57 AM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMHXCraven, Duplin, Jones, Onslow63 min
Nov 11, 12:02 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningAKQBertie43 min
Nov 11, 12:13 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMHXWashington47 min
Nov 11, 12:19 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningILMPender31 min
Nov 11, 1:11 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningAKQCamden, Currituck49 min

The nearest sounding before it

Newport, NC (KMHX), launched 12:00Z, 3.0 hours before the alert went out and 108 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, Newport, NC at 12:00Z on 2002-11-11Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1290 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, Newport, NC at 12:00Z on 2002-11-11The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 126 square meters per square second.193958Sfc1 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
1290 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-12 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
599 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
28 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
126 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
114 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.5
Supercell composite
4.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WWUS20 KWNS 111501
SEL2  
SPC WW 111500
NCZ000-SCZ000-CWZ000-112000-

URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 762
STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
1000 AM EST MON NOV 11 2002

THE STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF

EASTERN NORTH CAROLINA AND THE OUTER BANKS                    
NORTHEAST SOUTH CAROLINA                     
ADJACENT COASTAL WATERS                     

EFFECTIVE THIS MONDAY MORNING AND AFTERNOON FROM 1000 AM UNTIL 300
PM EST.

TORNADOES...HAIL TO 1 INCH 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 20 MILES SOUTHWEST OF MYRTLE BEACH SOUTH CAROLINA TO
25 MILES NORTHEAST OF ELIZABETH CITY NORTH CAROLINA.

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 758...WW 759...WW
760...WW 761...

DISCUSSION...SQUALL LINE WITH EMBEDDED LARGE SCALE BOW ECHOES WILL
MOVE ENEWD AT 45-50 KT ACROSS NE SC AND ERN NC THE NEXT FEW HOURS
WITH A CONTINUED THREAT OF DAMAGING WINDS.  IN ADDITION...BOUNDARY
LAYER DEW POINTS IN THE LOW 70S AND STRONG LOW-LEVEL WIND FIELDS
MAY ALSO SUPPORT A COUPLE OF TORNADOES.


AVIATION...TORNADOES AND A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH HAIL
SURFACE AND ALOFT TO 1 INCH...EXTREME TURBULENCE AND SURFACE WIND
GUSTS TO 60 KNOTS.  A FEW CUMULONIMBI WITH MAXIMUM TOPS TO 450. 
MEAN STORM MOTION VECTOR 25045.


...THOMPSON

363,0744 332,0780 332,0801 363,0765

SPC that day

Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Nov 10, 10:45 PM ESTTornado WatchSPCCherokee, Clay, Graham, Haywood, Jackson, Macon and 2 more5 hr
Nov 11, 1:10 AM ESTTornado WatchSPCAlexander, Alleghany, Ashe, Avery, Buncombe, Burke and 26 more6 hr
Nov 11, 5:40 AM ESTTornado WatchSPCRobeson, Scotland5 hr
Nov 11, 6:35 AM ESTTornado WatchSPCAlamance, Cabarrus, Caswell, Chatham, Cumberland, Davidson and 34 more4 hr
Nov 10, 11:05 PM ESTTornado WatchSPCAbbeville, Anderson, Greenville, Laurens, Oconee, Pickens and 3 more6 hr
Nov 11, 3:30 AM ESTTornado WatchSPCAbbeville, Anderson, Chester, Edgefield, Fairfield, Greenville and 9 more6 hr
Nov 11, 11:05 AM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCAllendale, Bamberg, Barnwell, Beaufort, Berkeley, Charleston and 6 more6 hr

Nearby

Tornado 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; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.