Alert archive / South Carolina / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2003

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 8, NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC

February 22, 2003Greenville County, South Carolina

NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Feb 22, 2003, 9:19 PM EST for Greenville County, South Carolina. It was in force for 26 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
Feb 22, 2003, 9:19 PM EST (02:19 UTC)
Expired
Feb 22, 2003, 9:45 PM EST
In force
26 min
Issued by
NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

County Greenville County, SC

Did it verify

Not verified. The Iowa Environmental Mesonet's Cow found no qualifying storm report inside this severe thunderstorm 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 nearest sounding before it

Peachtre/Fal Fld, GA (KFFC), launched 00:00Z, 2.3 hours before the alert went out and 257 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, Peachtre/Fal Fld, GA at 00:00Z on 2003-02-23Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 260 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km-30°-20°-10°0°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Peachtre/Fal Fld, GA at 00:00Z on 2003-02-23The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 107 square meters per square second.1939587897117136156Sfc1 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
260 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-9 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
783 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
92 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
107 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
103 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.1
Supercell composite
0.6

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

331 
WUUS52 KGSP 230219
SVRGSP
SCC045-230245-

BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC
918 PM EST SAT FEB 22 2003

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  CENTRAL GREENVILLE COUNTY IN UPSTATE SOUTH CAROLINA

* UNTIL 945 PM EST

* AT 918 PM EST...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR INDICATED A SEVERE
  THUNDERSTORM 10 MILES SOUTHWEST OF GREENVILLE...OR ABOUT 5 MILES
  NORTHWEST OF PIEDMONT...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 45 MPH.

* THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WILL BE NEAR...
  GREENVILLE AT 925 PM EST.
  MAULDIN AT 925 PM EST.
  TAYLORS AT 930 PM EST.
  GREER AT 940 PM EST.

SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WINDS CAN REACH SPEEDS OF 60 TO 100 MPH. THESE
WINDS BLOW DOWN TREES...POWER LINES...AND SEVERELY DAMAGE MOBILE
HOMES AND SOMETIMES BUILDINGS. VERY LARGE OR WIND-DRIVEN HAIL CAN
INJURE ANYONE CAUGHT OUTSIDE.

LAT...LON 3492 8251 3467 8247 3480 8219 3512 8227

$$
JONES/MCAVOY

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before this severe thunderstorm warning went out, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at Feb 22, 8:35 PM EST, 44 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Feb 22, 8:35 PM EST, 44 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC
835 PM EST SAT FEB 22 2003

UPDATED TO ISSUE FLOOD WATCH FOR ALL REMAINING COUNTIES IN THE
CWFA...INCREASED CHANCE OF RAIN...AND REMOVED DENSE FOG ADVISORY FOR
ALL BUT THE NORTHERN FOOTHILLS. MORE WHEN UPPER AIR ANALYSIS IS
COMPLETE.

FCSTID =   44
GSP   43  57  37  60 /  80  10  20  20
AND   44  59  36  61 /  80   0  20  20
CLT   45  60  37  59 /  80   0  20  20
HKY   41  54  35  55 /  80  10  20  20
AVL   40  50  33  55 /  80  10  20  20

.GSP...
GA...FLOOD WATCH FOR TONIGHT FOR ZONES GAZ010...GAZ017>018...
GAZ026...GAZ028>029.
NC...FLOOD WATCH FOR TONIGHT FOR ZONES
NCZ033>037...NCZ048>059...NCZ062>072...NCZ082.
WIND ADVISORY FOR LATE TONIGHT FOR ZONES NCZ033...NCZ048>050.
DENSE FOG ADVISORY FOR THIS EVENING FOR ZONES NCZ034>054-055.
SC...FLOOD WATCH FOR TONIGHT FOR ZONES SCZ001>014...SCZ019.

BURRUS
Hazardous weather outlook, Feb 22, 6:19 AM EST, 15 hours before
GAZ010-017-018-026-028-029-NCZ033>037-048>059-062>072-082-SCZ001>014-
019-221300-

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC
619 AM EST SAT FEB 22 2003

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA...
UPSTATE SOUTH CAROLINA...AND EXTREME NORTHEAST GEORGIA.

.DAY ONE...WIDESPREAD SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WILL AFFECT THE
WESTERN CAROLINAS AND NORTHEAST GEORGIA. SOME OF THE STORMS WILL
LIKELY BE SEVERE...ESPECIALLY LATE THIS MORNING INTO THIS AFTERNOON.
HEAVY RAINFALL COULD ALSO PRODUCE ISOLATED FLASH FLOODING. WINDS
WILL REMAIN STRONG AFTER THE PRECIPIATION ENDS TONIGHT...ESPECIALLY
ACROSS THE MOUNTAINS. FOR MORE INFORMATION...SEE CAESPSGSP.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...

NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL LIKELY BE NEEDED BY EARLY AFTERNOON...
ESPECIALLY ALONG THE I-85 CORRIDOR.

LANE

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Feb 22, 5:12 PM EST, 4 hours 7 minutes before
GAZ010-017-NCZ033-048>053-058-059-062>065-SCZ001>003-230015-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC
512 PM EST SAT FEB 22 2003

SCATTERED...STRONG...THUNDERSTORMS WILL CONTINUE TO DEVELOP OVER THE
MOUNTAINS OF THE WESTERN CAROLINAS...AND NORTHEAST GEORGIA...THROUGH
THE EVENING HOURS. THE STORMS WILL RACE NORTHEAST AT AROUND 50 MPH.
HAIL UP TO A HALF INCH IN DIAMETER...AND WINDS OF 40 TO 50
MPH...WILL ACCOMPANY THE STRONGER STORMS.

MCAVOY
Special weather statement, Feb 22, 7:35 PM EST, 1 hour 44 minutes before
GAZ018-026-028-029-NCZ033>037-048>050-052>057-064>072-082-SCZ001>014-
019-230330-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC
735 PM EST SAT FEB 22 2003

...STRONG THUNDERSTORMS WITH VERY HEAVY RAIN DEVELOPING OVER THE
WESTERN CAROLINAS AND NORTHEAST GEORGIA...

A STATIONARY FRONT RUNNING ROUGHLY ALONG INTERSTATE 85 THROUGH THE
NORTH CAROLINA PIEDMONT...AND UPSTATE SOUTH CAROLINA...WILL SERVE AS
THE FOCUSING MECHANISM FOR STRONG THUNDERSTORMS OVER THE NEXT
SEVERAL HOURS. THESE STORMS WILL RACE TO THE NORTHEAST AT AROUND 50
MPH. HOWEVER...SEVERAL STORMS WILL AFFECT THE SAME AREA...IN AN
EFFECT KNOWN AS TRAINING. THIS WILL RESULT IN SOME AREAS SEEING 1 TO
2 INCHES OF RAIN IN A SHORT PERIOD OF TIME.

THE STRONGER STORMS WILL ALSO PRODUCE FREQUENT CLOUD TO GROUND
LIGHTNING...40 TO 50 MPH WINDS AND HAIL UP TO A HALF INCH IN
DIAMETER.

IN THE NORTH CAROLINA MOUNTAINS...A LINE OF STRONG THUNDERSTORMS
WILL PRODUCE TORRENTIAL RAIN...FREQUENT CLOUD TO GROUND LIGHTNING
AND SMALL HAIL ALONG AND EAST OF A LINE FROM BREVARD TO BUNCOMBE AND
BAKERSVILLE.

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WILL CONTINUE TO MONITOR THE PROGRESS OF
THIS DEVELOPING WEATHER SITUATION.

MCAVOY

The office that day

Everything else NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Feb 22, 9:00 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningGSPAnderson45 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in South Carolina, 2003Every severe thunderstorm warning 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.