Alert archive / Georgia / Tornado Watches in 2003

Tornado Watch 171

April 25, 200357 counties in Georgia

The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at Apr 25, 2003, 6:00 PM EDT for 57 counties in Georgia. It was in force for 5 hr.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
Apr 25, 2003, 6:00 PM EDT (22:00 UTC)
Expired
Apr 25, 2003, 11:00 PM EDT
In force
5 hr
Issued by
the Storm Prediction Center
All 57 counties

Barrow County, GA, Bartow County, GA, Bibb County, GA, Butts County, GA, Carroll County, GA, Catoosa County, GA, Chattahoochee County, GA, Cherokee County, GA, Clayton County, GA, Cobb County, GA, Coweta County, GA, Crawford County, GA, Dawson County, GA, DeKalb County, GA, Dooly County, GA, Douglas County, GA, Fannin County, GA, Fayette County, GA, Forsyth County, GA, Fulton County, GA, Gilmer County, GA, Gordon County, GA, Gwinnett County, GA, Hall County, GA, Harris County, GA, Henry County, GA, Houston County, GA, Jasper County, GA, Jones County, GA, Lamar County, GA, Lumpkin County, GA, Macon County, GA, Marion County, GA, Meriwether County, GA, Monroe County, GA, Murray County, GA, Muscogee County, GA, Newton County, GA, Paulding County, GA, Peach County, GA, Pickens County, GA, Pike County, GA, Rockdale County, GA, Schley County, GA, Spalding County, GA, Stewart County, GA, Sumter County, GA, Talbot County, GA, Taylor County, GA, Towns County, GA, Troup County, GA, Union County, GA, Upson County, GA, Walton County, GA, Webster County, GA, White County, GA, Whitfield County, GA

The radar

The Atlanta radar (KFFC), 59 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 21:59 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
Apr 25, 6:10 PM EDTTornado WarningFFCPaulding, Polk35 min
Apr 25, 6:20 PM EDTTornado WarningFFCCobb25 min
Apr 25, 6:43 PM EDTTornado WarningFFCCobb, Paulding32 min
Apr 25, 7:10 PM EDTTornado WarningFFCCobb, DeKalb, Fulton35 min
Apr 25, 7:15 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFFCChattahoochee30 min
Apr 25, 7:36 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFFCGwinnett24 min
Apr 25, 7:45 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFFCDeKalb30 min
Apr 25, 7:56 PM EDTTornado WarningFFCStewart34 min
Apr 25, 7:59 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFFCMarion16 min
Apr 25, 8:31 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFFCStewart, Webster44 min
Apr 25, 9:01 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFFCMarion14 min
Apr 25, 9:13 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFFCSchley, Sumter32 min
Apr 25, 9:16 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFFCCatoosa, Webster29 min
Apr 25, 9:32 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFFCSumter43 min
Apr 25, 9:39 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFFCDooly, Macon66 min
Apr 25, 10:11 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFFCDooly34 min

Discussions around it

SPC mesoscale discussions over the same counties from four hours before the watch to its end.

The nearest sounding before it

Peachtre/Fal Fld, GA (KFFC), launched 12:00Z, 10.0 hours before the alert went out and 55 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 12:00Z on 2003-04-25Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 0 joules per kilogram.LCL10008507005003002001001 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, Peachtre/Fal Fld, GA at 12:00Z on 2003-04-25The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 257 square meters per square second.19395878Sfc1 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
0 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL
939 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
43 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
257 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
476 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WWUS20 KWNS 252157
SEL1  
SPC WW 252200
GAZ000-260300-

URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 171 
NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK 
600 PM EDT FRI APR 25 2003

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

       NORTHERN AND CENTRAL GEORGIA

EFFECTIVE THIS FRIDAY EVENING FROM 600 PM UNTIL 
1100 PM EDT.

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 45 STATUTE MILES EITHER SIDE
OF A LINE FROM 95 MILES NORTH OF ATLANTA GEORGIA TO 55 MILES
SOUTHEAST OF COLUMBUS GEORGIA.

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 166...WW 167...WW 168...WW
169...WW 170...


DISCUSSION...ENVIRONMENT HAS DESTABILIZED QUICKLY AND STRONG SHEAR
IS FAVORABLE FOR TORNADOES FOR THE NEXT SEVERAL HOURS.

AVIATION...TORDADOES 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 26035.


...IMY

350,0833 315,0833 315,0850 345,0851

SPC that day

Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Apr 25, 7:05 AM EDTTornado WatchSPCDecatur, Grady, Seminole6 hr
Apr 25, 8:41 AM EDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCDecatur, Seminole94 min
Apr 25, 10:22 AM EDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAtkinson, Ben Hill, Berrien, Brooks, Clinch, Coffee and 10 more113 min
Apr 25, 11:45 AM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCAppling, Atkinson, Bacon, Berrien, Brantley, Brooks and 20 more5 hr
Apr 25, 1:01 PM EDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBrantley, Bryan, Camden, Charlton, Chatham, Glynn and 6 more119 min
Apr 25, 1:45 PM EDTTornado WatchSPCCatoosa, Chattooga, Dade, Floyd, Walker5 hr
Apr 25, 4:08 PM EDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCCarroll, Chattahoochee, Clayton, Cobb, Coweta, Douglas and 17 more2 hr

Nearby

Tornado Watches in Georgia, 2003Every tornado watch 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.