Alert archive / North Carolina / Tornado Warnings in 2003
Tornado Warning 15, NWS Wakefield, VA
NWS Wakefield, VA issued this tornado warning at May 9, 2003, 5:42 PM EDT for Chowan County, North Carolina. It was in force for 38 min. No storm report in the archive falls inside the area while it was in force.
The area
The outline as issued.
The facts
- Issued
- May 9, 2003, 5:42 PM EDT (21:42 UTC)
- Expired
- May 9, 2003, 6:20 PM EDT
- In force
- 38 min
- Issued by
- NWS Wakefield, VA
- Area
- Counties, with a storm outline in the text
County Chowan County, NC
The radar
The Norfolk radar (KAKQ), 115 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 21:44 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.
Did it verify
Not verified. The Iowa Environmental Mesonet's Cow found no qualifying storm report inside this tornado warning while it was in force. That is not proof nothing happened: reports are thin where few people live.
Cow counts a report within 15 km of the polygon while the warning was in force: a tornado for a tornado warning; hail of 1 inch or more, a gust of 58 mph or more or wind damage for a severe thunderstorm warning; a flash flood report for a flash flood warning.
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 9, 4:15 PM EDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | 6 hr |
The nearest sounding before it
Newport, NC (KMHX), launched 12:00Z, 9.7 hours before the alert went out and 146 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
- 1522 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -53 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 1058 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 40 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 36 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 86 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- -0.2
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
153
WFUS51 KAKQ 092142
TORAKQ
NCC041-092220-
BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WAKEFIELD VA
542 PM EDT FRI MAY 9 2003
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN WAKEFIELD HAS ISSUED A
* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
CHOWAN COUNTY IN NORTHEAST NORTH CAROLINA
* UNTIL 620 PM EDT
* AT 542 PM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WITH A POSSIBLE TORNADO 14 MILES WEST OF
ARROWHEAD BEACH...MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 45 MPH.
* THE STORM PRODUCING THE TORNADO WILL REACH...
ARROWHEAD BEACH AND MILL CROSSROADS AROUND 555 PM,
VALHALLA AND ROCKYHOCK AROUND 600 PM,
MACEDONIA AND HANCOCK AROUND 605 PM,
EDENTON AROUND 610 PM,
CAPE COLONY AND SAINT JOHNS AROUND 615 PM.
TAKE COVER IN A BASEMENT OR AN INTERIOR ROOM ON THE LOWEST FLOOR.
VEHICLES AND MOBILE HOMES SHOULD BE ABANDONED FOR STURDIER SHELTER.
LAT...LON 3602 7646 3604 7643 3607 7646 3607 7652
3624 7668 3622 7670
$$What forecasters said that day
The local office's own words before this tornado warning went out, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
NWS Wakefield, VA wrote its last area forecast discussion before this tornado warning went out at May 9, 4:00 PM EDT, 1 hour 42 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, May 9, 4:00 PM EDT, 1 hour 42 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WAKEFIELD, VA 400 PM EDT FRI MAY 9 2003 BUSY AFTERNOON...DEALING WITH SUPERCELLS. IMPRESSIVE GATE TO GATE ROTATION WITH MAIN CELL...AS IT MOVES SEWD. ENVIRONMENTAL SHEAR IMPRESSIVE WITH SW SFC FLOW...AND STRONG NW WINDS ALFT. THIS LINE TO CONTINUE SWD INTO N CAROLINA THIS EVENING. MORE SEVERE WX POSSIBLE TOMORROW AND AGAIN SUNDAY. COLD FRONT TO CLEAR THE AREA SUN NIGHT...SHOULD PUT AN END TO THE SEVERE WEATHER THREAT FINALLY. SOME QUESTIONS IN THE EXTENDED ABOUT RAIN CHANCES DAYS 6 AND 7...NEXT THU AND FRI...BUT WILL LEAVE OUT FOR NOW AS NO MODEL CONSENSUS YET AS TO HOW PROGESSIVE PATTERN WILL BE. FCSTID = 18 SBY 54 79 60 79 / 30 30 30 40 OXB 52 71 60 72 / 30 30 30 40 ECG 61 82 67 88 / 30 30 30 40 ORF 60 82 67 87 / 30 30 30 40 PHF 60 82 66 85 / 30 30 30 40 AKQ 62 84 66 88 / 30 30 30 40 RIC 61 82 64 87 / 30 30 30 40 FVX 62 84 66 88 / 30 30 30 40 .AKQ... MD...NONE. NC...NONE. VA...NONE. REILLY
Hazardous weather outlook, May 9, 5:30 AM EDT, 12 hours 12 minutes before
MDZ021>025-NCZ012>017-030>032-102-VAZ048-049-060>100-091600- HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WAKEFIELD VA 530 AM EDT FRI MAY 09 2003 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR CENTRAL AND EASTERN VIRGINIA... NORTHEAST NORTH CAROLINA AND THE LOWER MARYLAND EASTERN SHORE. .DAY ONE...TODAY SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED THIS AFTERNOON. SOME THUNDERSTORMS MAY BECOME SEVERE WITH LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS. SEE SPSAKQ AND SWODY1 FOR FURTHER DETAILS. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN... SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS ARE POSSIBLE SATURDAY. SOME THUNDERSTORMS MAY BECOME SEVERE WITH LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS. SEE SWODY2 FOR FURTHER DETAILS. .SPOTTER CALL TO ACTION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT ANTICIPATED. 07 THIS PRODUCT...ALONG WITH OTHER WATCHES...WARNINGS...ADVISORIES...AND STATEMENTS ISSUED BY THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OFFICE IN WAKEFIELD, VA CAN BE FOUND ON THE INTERNET AT THE FOLLOWING (LOWER CASE): HTTP://WWW.ERH.NOAA.GOV/AKQ.
In the hours before
Local storm report, May 9, 4:52 PM EDT, 50 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WAKEFIELD VA
0452 PM EDT FRI MAY 09 2003
TIME(EDT) .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE ...EVENT/REMARKS...
....COUNTY LOCATION....
0430 PM JARRATT VA FX TORNADO
05/09/03 SUSSEX POSSIBLE TOUCHDOWN ON I95
NORTH OF JARRATT
MPRLocal storm report, May 9, 4:52 PM EDT, 50 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT...CORRECTED FOR TIME OF EVENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WAKEFIELD VA
0452 PM EDT FRI MAY 09 2003
TIME(EDT) .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE ...EVENT/REMARKS...
....COUNTY LOCATION....
0445 PM JARRATT VA FX TORNADO
05/09/03 SUSSEX POSSIBLE TOUCHDOWN ON I95
NORTH OF JARRATT
MPRLocal storm report, May 9, 5:03 PM EDT, 39 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WAKEFIELD VA
0503 PM EDT FRI MAY 09 2003
TIME(EDT) .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE ...EVENT/REMARKS...
....COUNTY LOCATION....
0453 PM DREWRYVILLE VA 75 MPH WIND GUST
05/09/03 SOUTHAMPTON
0453 PM DREWRYVILLE VA 1.75 IN HAIL
05/09/03 SOUTHAMPTON GOLF BALL HAIL COVERING
GROUND.
MPRLocal storm report, May 9, 5:08 PM EDT, 34 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WAKEFIELD VA
0508 PM EDT FRI MAY 09 2003
TIME(EDT) .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE ...EVENT/REMARKS...
....COUNTY LOCATION....
0453 PM SPAINVILLE VA WIND DAMAGE
05/09/03 NOTTOWAY ROOF BLOWN OFF ROCKY HILL
CHURCH ON RT 153. NUMEROUS
TREES DOWN.
MPRLocal storm report, May 9, 5:16 PM EDT, 26 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WAKEFIELD VA
0516 PM EDT FRI MAY 09 2003
TIME(EDT) .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE ...EVENT/REMARKS...
....COUNTY LOCATION....
0512 PM BOYKINS VA 1.75 IN HAIL
05/09/03 SOUTHAMPTON
MPRLocal storm report, May 9, 5:41 PM EDT, 1 minute before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WAKEFIELD VA
0541 PM EDT FRI MAY 09 2003
TIME(EDT) .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE ...EVENT/REMARKS...
....COUNTY LOCATION....
0535 PM BUFFALO JUNCTION VA 1.75 IN HAIL
05/09/03 MECKLENBURG
MPRThe office that day
Everything else NWS Wakefield, VA issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 9, 4:57 PM EDT | Tornado Warning | AKQ | Hertford, Northampton | 38 min |
| May 9, 5:33 PM EDT | Tornado Warning | AKQ | Bertie | 42 min |
Nearby
Tornado Warnings in North Carolina, 2003Every tornado warning in 2003Tornadoes in 2003
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.