Alert archive / North Carolina / Tornado Watches in 2003
Tornado Watch 452
The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at May 31, 2003, 8:05 PM EDT for 31 counties in North Carolina; 4 counties in South Carolina. It was in force for 3 hr.
The area
The outline as issued.
The facts
- Issued
- May 31, 2003, 8:05 PM EDT (00:05 UTC)
- Expired
- May 31, 2003, 11:00 PM EDT
- In force
- 3 hr
- Issued by
- the Storm Prediction Center
All 35 counties
Beaufort County, NC, Bertie County, NC, Bladen County, NC, Camden County, NC, Carteret County, NC, Chowan County, NC, Craven County, NC, Cumberland County, NC, Currituck County, NC, Dare County, NC, Duplin County, NC, Greene County, NC, Hoke County, NC, Hyde County, NC, Johnston County, NC, Jones County, NC, Lenoir County, NC, Martin County, NC, Onslow County, NC, Pamlico County, NC, Pasquotank County, NC, Pender County, NC, Perquimans County, NC, Pitt County, NC, Robeson County, NC, Sampson County, NC, Scotland County, NC, Tyrrell County, NC, Washington County, NC, Wayne County, NC, Wilson County, NC, Darlington County, SC, Dillon County, SC, Kershaw County, SC, Marlboro County, SC
The radar
The Morehead City radar (KMHX), 73 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 00:07 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
1 tornado, severe thunderstorm and flash flood warnings for its counties while it was in force.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 31, 8:42 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | ILM | New Hanover, Pender | 48 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
Greensboro/Hi Pt, NC (KGSO), launched 00:00Z, 0.1 hours before the alert went out and 240 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
- 16 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -32 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 1767 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 57 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 13 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 30 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 0.0
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000
WWUS20 KWNS 010004
SEL2
SPC WW 010005
NCZ000-SCZ000-VAZ000-CWZ000-010300-
URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 452
NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
805 PM EDT SAT MAY 31 2003
THE NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF
EASTERN NORTH CAROLINA
EASTERN SOUTH CAROLINA
EXTREME SOUTHEAST VIRGINIA
COASTAL WATERS
EFFECTIVE THIS SATURDAY EVENING FROM 805 PM UNTIL 1100 PM EDT.
TORNADOES...HAIL TO 1 INCH IN DIAMETER...THUNDERSTORM WIND GUSTS
TO 70 MPH...AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE IN THESE AREAS.
THE TORNADO WATCH AREA IS ALONG AND 105 STATUTE MILES EAST AND
WEST OF A LINE FROM 100 MILES EAST NORTHEAST OF ELIZABETH CITY
NORTH CAROLINA TO 45 MILES SOUTH OF FAYETTEVILLE NORTH CAROLINA.
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 448...TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 449...TORNADO WATCH NUMBER
450. WATCH NUMBER 448 449 450 WILL NOT BE IN EFFECT AFTER 805 PM
EDT. CONTINUE...WW 451...
DISCUSSION...THREAT FOR SEVERE WEATHER EXPECTED TO CONTINUE FOR A
FEW MORE HOURS ALONG PORTIONS OF THE ATLANTIC COASTAL PLAIN...WHERE
STRONG LARGE SCALE ASCENT WILL CONTINUE SEWD AHEAD OF DEEPENING
UPPER TROUGH.
AVIATION...TORNADOES AND A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH HAIL
SURFACE AND ALOFT TO 1 INCH. EXTREME TURBULENCE AND SURFACE WIND
GUSTS TO 60 KNOTS. A FEW CUMULONIMBI WITH MAXIMUM TOPS TO 450.
MEAN STORM MOTION VECTOR 27040.
...CORFIDI
364,0723 341,0770 341,0804 364,0762SPC that day
Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 31, 9:57 PM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Brunswick, Carteret, Columbus, Dare, Hyde, New Hanover and 4 more | 63 min |
Nearby
Tornado Watches in North Carolina, 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.