Alert archive / Tennessee / Tornado Watches in 2003
Tornado Watch 245
The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at May 5, 2003, 4:15 AM EDT for Cherokee County, Graham County, North Carolina; 31 counties in Tennessee. It was in force for 6 hr.
The area
The outline as issued.
The facts
- Issued
- May 5, 2003, 4:15 AM EDT (08:15 UTC)
- Expired
- May 5, 2003, 10:00 AM EDT
- In force
- 6 hr
- Issued by
- the Storm Prediction Center
All 33 counties
Cherokee County, NC, Graham County, NC, Anderson County, TN, Bledsoe County, TN, Blount County, TN, Bradley County, TN, Campbell County, TN, Claiborne County, TN, Cumberland County, TN, Fentress County, TN, Grainger County, TN, Grundy County, TN, Hamblen County, TN, Hamilton County, TN, Hancock County, TN, Jefferson County, TN, Knox County, TN, Loudon County, TN, Marion County, TN, McMinn County, TN, Meigs County, TN, Monroe County, TN, Morgan County, TN, Pickett County, TN, Polk County, TN, Rhea County, TN, Roane County, TN, Scott County, TN, Sequatchie County, TN, Sevier County, TN, Union County, TN, Van Buren County, TN, White County, TN
The radar
The Northeast Alabama radar (KHTX), 137 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 08:19 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
22 tornado, severe thunderstorm and flash flood warnings for its counties while it was in force.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 5, 4:33 AM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | OHX | Cumberland, Putnam | 42 min |
| May 5, 5:08 AM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | OHX | Van Buren, Warren | 52 min |
| May 5, 5:12 AM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | OHX | Cumberland | 33 min |
| May 5, 5:27 AM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MRX | Morgan | 48 min |
| May 5, 5:31 AM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MRX | Bledsoe, Sequatchie | 44 min |
| May 5, 5:33 AM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MRX | Morgan | 42 min |
| May 5, 5:36 AM EDT | Flash Flood Warning | OHX | Cumberland, White | 3 hr |
| May 5, 5:44 AM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MRX | Marion | 46 min |
| May 5, 5:58 AM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MRX | Hamilton, Meigs, Rhea | 47 min |
| May 5, 6:31 AM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MRX | Marion | 14 min |
| May 5, 6:45 AM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MRX | Hamilton | 30 min |
| May 5, 8:24 AM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | OHX | Cumberland | 51 min |
| May 5, 8:32 AM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MRX | Morgan | 43 min |
| May 5, 8:32 AM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | OHX | Fentress | 28 min |
| May 5, 8:33 AM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | OHX | Fentress | 27 min |
| May 5, 9:01 AM EDT | Tornado Warning | OHX | Grundy | 14 min |
| May 5, 9:10 AM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MRX | Marion, Sequatchie | 35 min |
| May 5, 9:13 AM EDT | Tornado Warning | OHX | Franklin, Grundy | 42 min |
| May 5, 9:26 AM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MRX | Bledsoe, Hamilton, Rhea | 19 min |
| May 5, 9:36 AM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MRX | Meigs | 24 min |
| May 5, 9:44 AM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MRX | Bradley, Hamilton, McMinn | 31 min |
| May 5, 9:49 AM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | MRX | Marion | 41 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
Nashville Metro, TN (KBNA), launched 00:00Z, 8.3 hours before the alert went out and 168 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
- 117 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -162 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 1192 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 55 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 293 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 530 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 0.5
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000
WWUS20 KWNS 050812
SEL5
SPC WW 050815
NCZ000-TNZ000-051400-
URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 245
NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
415 AM EDT MON MAY 5 2003
THE NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF
FAR WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA
EAST TENNESSEE
EFFECTIVE THIS MONDAY MORNING FROM 415 AM UNTIL 1000 AM EDT.
TORNADOES...HAIL TO 1 INCH IN DIAMETER...THUNDERSTORM WIND GUSTS
TO 55 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 55 MILES NORTH OF KNOXVILLE TENNESSEE TO 10 MILES
EAST SOUTHEAST OF CHATTANOOGA TENNESSEE.
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 240...WW 241...WW 242...WW
243...WW 244...
DISCUSSION...MIDDLE TENNESSEE CONVECTIVE SYSTEM EXPECTED TO CONTINUE
EWD INTO E TN THROUGH MID MORNING. STRONG LOW LEVEL VEERING
PROFILES AND MODEST LOW LEVEL AIR MASS RECOVERY EXPECTED TO MAINTAIN
THREAT FOR ISOLATED TORNADOES...ESPECIALLY IN WRN PART OF WATCH.
DAMAGING WIND AND MARGINALLY SEVERE HAIL EXPECTED TO BE THE PRIMARY
THREATS IN NRN AREAS.
AVIATION...TORNADOES AND A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH HAIL
SURFACE AND ALOFT TO 1 INCH. EXTREME TURBULENCE AND SURFACE WIND
GUSTS TO 50 KNOTS. A FEW CUMULONIMBI WITH MAXIMUM TOPS TO 500.
MEAN STORM MOTION VECTOR 26040.
...CORFIDI
363,0825 345,0835 345,0860 363,0850SPC that day
Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 5, 7:07 AM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Cherokee, Clay, Graham | 83 min |
| May 5, 9:50 AM EDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | Cherokee, Clay, Graham, Swain | 6 hr |
| May 5, 1:52 PM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Cherokee, Clay, Graham, Swain | 113 min |
| May 5, 3:13 PM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Cherokee, Clay, Graham, Swain | 62 min |
| May 4, 8:34 PM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Benton, Carroll, Chester, Crockett, Decatur, Dyer and 20 more | 116 min |
| May 4, 10:26 PM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Benton, Carroll, Chester, Crockett, Decatur, Dyer and 19 more | 2 hr |
| May 5, 12:37 AM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Bedford, Cannon, Cheatham, Clay, Coffee, Davidson and 29 more | 23 min |
| May 5, 12:45 AM EDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | Bedford, Cannon, Cheatham, Clay, Coffee, Davidson and 30 more | 5 hr |
| May 5, 2:20 AM EDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | Benton, Carroll, Chester, Crockett, Decatur, Dyer and 19 more | 6 hr |
| May 5, 3:31 AM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Anderson, Bedford, Bledsoe, Blount, Campbell, Cannon and 42 more | 89 min |
| May 5, 5:18 AM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Bedford, Benton, Cannon, Carroll, Cheatham, Chester and 47 more | 57 min |
| May 5, 5:55 AM EDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | Bedford, Benton, Cannon, Carroll, Cheatham, Chester and 50 more | 6 hr |
| May 5, 8:11 AM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Bedford, Benton, Cannon, Carroll, Cheatham, Chester and 49 more | 2 hr |
| May 5, 10:05 AM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Bedford, Benton, Cannon, Carroll, Cheatham, Chester and 42 more | 115 min |
| May 5, 10:35 AM EDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | Bedford, Benton, Cannon, Carroll, Cheatham, Chester and 48 more | 5 hr |
| May 5, 12:06 PM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Bedford, Benton, Cannon, Carroll, Cheatham, Chester and 43 more | 114 min |
| May 5, 12:59 PM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Pickett | 61 min |
| May 5, 3:35 PM EDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | Bedford, Benton, Cannon, Carroll, Cheatham, Chester and 52 more | 7 hr |
| May 5, 6:18 PM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Dyer, Lake, Lauderdale | 117 min |
| May 5, 6:40 PM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Chester, Fayette, Franklin, Giles, Hardeman, Hardin and 7 more | 2 hr |
Nearby
Tornado Watches in Tennessee, 2003Tornado Watches in North Carolina, 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.