Alert archive / Georgia / Tornado Watches in 2003
Tornado Watch 270
The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at May 6, 2003, 12:30 PM CDT for 28 counties in Alabama; 65 counties in Georgia; 5 counties in South Carolina. It was in force for 7 hr.
The area
The outline as issued.
The facts
- Issued
- May 6, 2003, 12:30 PM CDT (17:30 UTC)
- Expired
- May 6, 2003, 7:00 PM CDT
- In force
- 7 hr
- Issued by
- the Storm Prediction Center
All 98 counties
Bibb County, AL, Blount County, AL, Calhoun County, AL, Chambers County, AL, Cherokee County, AL, Chilton County, AL, Clay County, AL, Cleburne County, AL, Coosa County, AL, Cullman County, AL, DeKalb County, AL, Etowah County, AL, Fayette County, AL, Greene County, AL, Hale County, AL, Jefferson County, AL, Lamar County, AL, Marion County, AL, Marshall County, AL, Pickens County, AL, Randolph County, AL, Shelby County, AL, St. Clair County, AL, Talladega County, AL, Tallapoosa County, AL, Tuscaloosa County, AL, Walker County, AL, Winston County, AL, Baldwin County, GA, Banks County, GA, Barrow County, GA, Bartow County, GA, Burke County, GA, Butts County, GA, Carroll County, GA, Chattooga County, GA, Cherokee County, GA, Clarke County, GA, Clayton County, GA, Cobb County, GA, Columbia County, GA, Coweta County, GA, Dawson County, GA, DeKalb County, GA, Douglas County, GA, Elbert County, GA, Fayette County, GA, Floyd County, GA, Forsyth County, GA, Franklin County, GA, Fulton County, GA, Glascock County, GA, Gordon County, GA, Greene County, GA, Gwinnett County, GA, Habersham County, GA, Hall County, GA, Hancock County, GA, Haralson County, GA, Hart County, GA, Heard County, GA, Henry County, GA, Jackson County, GA, Jasper County, GA, Jefferson County, GA, Jones County, GA, Lamar County, GA, Lincoln County, GA, Lumpkin County, GA, Madison County, GA, McDuffie County, GA, Meriwether County, GA, Monroe County, GA, Morgan County, GA, Newton County, GA, Oconee County, GA, Oglethorpe County, GA, Paulding County, GA, Pickens County, GA, Pike County, GA, Polk County, GA, Putnam County, GA, Richmond County, GA, Rockdale County, GA, Spalding County, GA, Stephens County, GA, Taliaferro County, GA, Troup County, GA, Upson County, GA, Walton County, GA, Warren County, GA, Washington County, GA, Wilkes County, GA, Abbeville County, SC, Anderson County, SC, Greenwood County, SC, Laurens County, SC, McCormick County, SC
The radar
The Birmingham radar (KBMX), 115 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 17:33 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
53 tornado, severe thunderstorm and flash flood warnings for its counties while it was in force.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 6, 12:31 PM CDT | Tornado Warning | FFC | Banks, Hall, Jackson | 29 min |
| May 6, 12:34 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | FFC | Gwinnett | 41 min |
| May 6, 12:42 PM CDT | Tornado Warning | GSP | Franklin | 33 min |
| May 6, 12:50 PM CDT | Tornado Warning | FFC | Barrow, Jackson | 25 min |
| May 6, 12:54 PM CDT | Tornado Warning | FFC | Madison | 36 min |
| May 6, 1:02 PM CDT | Flash Flood Warning | FFC | Cobb, Fulton, Gwinnett | 3 hr |
| May 6, 1:04 PM CDT | Tornado Warning | GSP | Elbert, Hart | 56 min |
| May 6, 1:07 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | FFC | Cobb, DeKalb, Fulton, Gwinnett | 38 min |
| May 6, 1:08 PM CDT | Flash Flood Warning | HUN | Marshall | 5 hr |
| May 6, 1:09 PM CDT | Tornado Warning | FFC | Cobb, DeKalb, Fulton | 36 min |
| May 6, 1:13 PM CDT | Tornado Warning | FFC | Jackson | 17 min |
| May 6, 1:21 PM CDT | Flash Flood Warning | FFC | Paulding | 3 hr |
| May 6, 1:23 PM CDT | Tornado Warning | FFC | Madison | 37 min |
| May 6, 1:25 PM CDT | Tornado Warning | FFC | Gwinnett | 35 min |
| May 6, 1:28 PM CDT | Tornado Warning | FFC | Clarke, Oglethorpe | 32 min |
| May 6, 1:30 PM CDT | Flash Flood Warning | FFC | Polk | 3 hr |
| May 6, 1:31 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | GSP | Anderson | 29 min |
| May 6, 1:35 PM CDT | Tornado Warning | GSP | Abbeville | 55 min |
| May 6, 1:42 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Talladega | 48 min |
| May 6, 1:48 PM CDT | Flash Flood Warning | FFC | Barrow, Jackson, Madison | 3 hr |
| May 6, 1:48 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | FFC | Walton | 27 min |
| May 6, 1:55 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | CAE | McCormick | 50 min |
| May 6, 2:00 PM CDT | Tornado Warning | FFC | Oglethorpe | 30 min |
| May 6, 2:04 PM CDT | Flash Flood Warning | FFC | Clarke, Oconee, Oglethorpe, Walton, Wilkes | 3 hr |
| May 6, 2:08 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | GSP | Greenwood | 52 min |
| May 6, 2:15 PM CDT | Tornado Warning | FFC | Wilkes | 30 min |
| May 6, 2:18 PM CDT | Tornado Warning | CAE | McCormick | 27 min |
| May 6, 2:21 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | GSP | Laurens, Spartanburg | 39 min |
| May 6, 2:23 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | CAE | Lincoln | 37 min |
| May 6, 2:28 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | FFC | Greene, Oconee, Oglethorpe | 47 min |
| May 6, 2:29 PM CDT | Flash Flood Warning | FFC | DeKalb | 3 hr |
| May 6, 2:35 PM CDT | Tornado Warning | CAE | Lincoln | 25 min |
| May 6, 2:39 PM CDT | Flash Flood Warning | FFC | Douglas | 3 hr |
| May 6, 2:49 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | FFC | Taliaferro, Wilkes | 41 min |
| May 6, 2:54 PM CDT | Flash Flood Warning | FFC | Fulton | 2 hr |
| May 6, 2:57 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | CAE | McCormick | 48 min |
| May 6, 3:03 PM CDT | Tornado Warning | FFC | Wilkes | 42 min |
| May 6, 3:21 PM CDT | Flash Flood Warning | FFC | Rockdale | 3 hr |
| May 6, 3:22 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Randolph | 23 min |
| May 6, 3:26 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | FFC | Warren | 34 min |
| May 6, 3:27 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | FFC | Fayette, Fulton | 28 min |
| May 6, 3:29 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | CAE | McDuffie | 46 min |
| May 6, 3:32 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | FFC | Heard | 28 min |
| May 6, 3:40 PM CDT | Flash Flood Warning | FFC | Clayton, Greene, Henry, Morgan, Newton | 65 min |
| May 6, 3:55 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | CAE | Columbia | 50 min |
| May 6, 4:12 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | FFC | Coweta, Heard | 33 min |
| May 6, 4:19 PM CDT | Flash Flood Warning | FFC | DeKalb, Fulton | 6 hr |
| May 6, 4:28 PM CDT | Flash Flood Warning | FFC | Cobb | 6 hr |
| May 6, 5:06 PM CDT | Flash Flood Warning | FFC | Carroll, Douglas, Haralson, Paulding | 84 min |
| May 6, 5:40 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | FFC | Lamar, Pike | 35 min |
| May 6, 5:48 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | FFC | Meriwether | 22 min |
| May 6, 5:59 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Pickens, Tuscaloosa | 61 min |
| May 6, 6:56 PM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | BMX | Tuscaloosa | 34 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
Birmingham, AL (KBMX), launched 12:00Z, 5.5 hours before the alert went out and 115 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
- 1558 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -8 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 599 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 68 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 287 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 375 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 3.3
- Supercell composite
- 12.2
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000
WWUS20 KWNS 061732
SEL0
SPC WW 061730
ALZ000-GAZ000-SCZ000-070000-
URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 270
NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
130 PM EDT TUE MAY 6 2003
THE NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF
NORTHERN AND CENTRAL ALABAMA
NORTHERN AND CENTRAL GEORGIA
NORTHWEST SOUTH CAROLINA
EFFECTIVE THIS TUESDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING FROM 130 PM UNTIL 800
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 60 STATUTE MILES NORTH AND
SOUTH OF A LINE FROM 35 MILES NORTH OF AUGUSTA GEORGIA TO 45 MILES
WEST NORTHWEST OF TUSCALOOSA ALABAMA.
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...THIS TORNADO WATCH REPLACES TORNADO
WATCH NUMBER 263...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH NUMBER 267. WATCH
NUMBER 263 267 WILL NOT BE IN EFFECT AFTER 130 PM EDT.
CONTINUE...WW 266...WW 268...WW 269...
DISCUSSION...LINE OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS INCLUDING EMBEDDED
SUPERCELLS WILL CONTINUE MOVING ENEWD INTO WRN SC AND CENTRAL/ERN GA
OVER THE NEXT FEW HOURS. IN ADDITION...OUTFLOW BOUNDARY REMAINS
WELL DEFINED INTO NWRN AL. AIR MASS SOUTH OF THIS BOUNDARY AND
AHEAD OF ONGOING LINE OF STORMS IS BECOMING VERY UNSTABLE AND WEAKLY
CAPPED. ANY CONVECTION WHICH CAN DEVELOP NEAR THIS BOUNDARY WILL
CERTAINLY BECOME SUPERCELLULAR GIVEN THE STRONG LOW AND DEEP LAYER
SHEAR IN PLACE...WITH AN ATTENDANT THREAT OF A FEW TORNADOES.
AVIATION...TORNADOES 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 28030.
...EVANS
330,0815 323,0882 342,0882 344,0815SPC that day
Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 5, 7:53 PM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Blount, Calhoun, Cherokee, Clay, Cleburne, Colbert and 20 more | 2 hr |
| May 5, 9:05 PM CDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | Bibb, Blount, Calhoun, Chambers, Cherokee, Clay and 17 more | 7 hr |
| May 5, 10:27 PM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Blount, Calhoun, Cherokee, Cleburne, Cullman, DeKalb and 12 more | 2 hr |
| May 6, 1:26 AM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Blount, Calhoun, Chambers, Cherokee, Clay, Cleburne and 17 more | 3 hr |
| May 6, 1:50 AM CDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | Blount, Calhoun, Cherokee, Cleburne, Colbert, Cullman and 14 more | 6 hr |
| May 6, 5:06 AM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Blount, Calhoun, Cherokee, Cleburne, Colbert, Cullman and 9 more | 3 hr |
| May 6, 7:40 AM CDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | Blount, Calhoun, Cherokee, Cleburne, Colbert, Cullman and 16 more | 5 hr |
| May 6, 10:26 AM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Blount, Calhoun, Cherokee, Cleburne, Colbert, Cullman and 15 more | 2 hr |
| May 6, 12:15 PM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Bibb, Blount, Calhoun, Cherokee, Clay, Cleburne and 18 more | 90 min |
| May 6, 3:41 PM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Bibb, Blount, Calhoun, Chambers, Cherokee, Chilton and 20 more | 2 hr |
| May 6, 5:48 PM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Bibb, Chilton, Coosa, Greene, Hale, Jefferson and 5 more | 3 hr |
| May 5, 8:30 PM CDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | Baldwin, Barrow, Bibb, Butts, Carroll, Clarke and 43 more | 8 hr |
| May 6, 12:55 AM CDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | Burke, Columbia, Jefferson, Lincoln, McDuffie, Richmond | 6 hr |
| May 6, 1:53 AM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Baldwin, Barrow, Butts, Carroll, Clarke, Clayton and 40 more | 2 hr |
| May 6, 5:23 AM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Burke, Columbia, Jefferson, McDuffie, Richmond | 2 hr |
| May 6, 9:45 AM CDT | Severe Thunderstorm Watch | SPC | Banks, Barrow, Bartow, Carroll, Catoosa, Chattooga and 41 more | 5 hr |
| May 6, 1:18 PM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Effingham, Screven | 117 min |
| May 5, 10:05 PM CDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Aiken, Berkeley, Calhoun, Chester, Chesterfield, Clarendon and 17 more | 3 hr |
| May 6, 1:40 PM CDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | Aiken, Allendale, Bamberg, Barnwell, Berkeley, Calhoun and 20 more | 5 hr |
Nearby
Tornado Watches in Georgia, 2003Tornado Watches in Alabama, 2003Tornado Watches in South 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.