Alert archive / North Carolina / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2004
Severe Thunderstorm Warning 61, NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC
NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC issued this severe thunderstorm warning at May 30, 2004, 7:40 PM EDT for Polk County, North Carolina. It was in force for 50 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
- May 30, 2004, 7:40 PM EDT (23:40 UTC)
- Expired
- May 30, 2004, 8:30 PM EDT
- In force
- 50 min
- Issued by
- NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC
- Area
- Counties, with a storm outline in the text
County Polk County, NC
The radar
The Greer radar (KGSP), 47 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 23:39 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.
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
Greensboro/Hi Pt, NC (KGSO), launched 12:00Z, 11.7 hours before the alert went out and 221 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
- 708 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -15 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 510 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 30 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 113 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 129 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 1.4
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000
WUUS52 KGSP 302340
SVRGSP
NCC149-310030-
BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC
740 PM EDT SUN MAY 30 2004
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG HAS ISSUED A
* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
POLK COUNTY IN WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA
* UNTIL 830 PM EDT
* AT 740 PM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR INDICATED A SEVERE
THUNDERSTORM 5 MILES SOUTHWEST OF COLUMBUS...OR ABOUT 3 MILES WEST
OF TRYON...MOVING EAST AT 30 MPH.
* THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WILL BE NEAR...
TRYON AROUND 745 PM EDT.
COLUMBUS AROUND 750 PM EDT.
MILL SPRING AROUND 755 PM EDT.
ALTHOUGH TORNADOES HAVE NOT BEEN DETECTED WITH THIS SEVERE
THUNDERSTORM...A TORNADO WATCH IS IN EFFECT. TORNADOES CAN DEVELOP
WITHOUT WARNING FROM A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM.
LAT...LON 3534 8228 3540 8213 3532 8208 3522 8197
3520 8197 3529 8234
$$
RWHWhat 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 May 30, 6:04 PM EDT, 1 hour 36 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, May 30, 6:04 PM EDT, 1 hour 36 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION...UPDATED NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC 604 PM EDT SUN MAY 30 2004 .UPDATE... WILL UPDATE FCST TO INCLUDE TORNADO WATCH 340 UNTIL 11 PM. WILL INCREASE EARLY POP TO LIKELY ACROSS ALL NC COUNTIES XCPT UNION. WILL GO AHEAD AND INCREASE NC/GA MTNS TO 50 GIVEN CURRENT CONDITIONS. NO CHANGES TO ANY OTHER ELEMENTS. && .PREV DISCUSSION... MAIN CONCERN FOR THE SHORT RANGE IS THE POTENTIAL FOR SEVERE WEATHER...MAINLY MONDAY. ALL SIGNS POINT TO LINEAR TYPE MCS MARCHING EASTWARD ACROSS TN DURING THE EARLY MORNING HOURS. THE MCS WILL IN ALL LIKELIHOOD STRETCH SOMEWHERE ACROSS ERN TN...BEARING DOWN ON THE NC MTNS...AT SUNRISE ON MONDAY. THE PROBLEM IS THAT UPPER FORCING AND LOW LEVEL CONVERGENCE WILL WEAKEN AS THE MCS MOVES INTO THE WRN CAROLINAS IN THE 12Z-18Z TIME FRAME. WHAT IS PROBABLE IS THAT MCS WILL STILL HAVE ENUF LEFT TO BRING SOME SEVERE WEATHER...MAINLY DAMAGING WINDS...INTO THE NC MTNS IN THE MORNING...BEFORE IT RUNS OUT OF GAS CROSSING THE MOUNTAINS. FOR THAT REASON...WILL GO WITH CATEGORICAL/LIKELY POP IN THE MOUNTAINS...MAINLY MONDAY MORNING. FORCING WILL CONTINUE TO WEAKEN AND RACE EASTWARD DURING THE MIDDLE PART OF THE DAY...THEN WESTERLY 850MB FLOW WILL HINDER CONVECTION IN THE AFTERNOON. IT COULD BE A RELATIVELY QUIET AFTERNOON...BUT WILL KEEP CHANCE POP IN THE EVENT THAT SOMETHING CAN REGENERATE OVER THE MOUNTAINS OR ALONG A LEE TROF. WILL GO ABOVE GUIDANCE ACROSS NRN TIER FOR HIGH TEMP UNDER THE ASSUMPTION THAT DOWNSLOPE WARMING AND CLEARING WILL ALLOW TEMPS TO CLIMB INTO 80S. MONDAY NIGHT SHOULD BE QUIET...AND EXPECT TUESDAY TO BE THE SAME WAY. BOTH MODELS SHOW SOME CHANNELED VORTICITY TO OUR N WHILE THE GFS SUFFERS FROM GRID SCALE FEEDBACK ACROSS THE SE. ETA SOUNDINGS SHOW LOW LEVEL DRYING WITH THE WESTERLY FLOW AT 850MB...WHICH COMBINED WITH WARM MID LEVEL TEMPS WILL SERIOUSLY CUT DOWN ON AVAILABLE INSTABILITY. HAVE CUT BACK ON POP WITH THE EXCEPTION OF A SLIGHT CHANCE ACROSS THE MOUNTAINS...WHICH WILL NOT BE MENTIONED IN THE ZFP. THE NEXT CHANCE FOR CONVECTION SHOULD COME ON WEDNESDAY AS MODELS SHOW ANOTHER SHORT WAVE ROTATING AROUND TROF ALONG WITH UPPER DIVERGENCE WITH THE PASSAGE OF ANOTHER JET STREAK. WILL MAINTAIN THE AFTERNOON/EVENING CHANCE POP. TEMPS IN ALL OTHER PERIODS ARE IN GENERAL AGREEMENT WITH MODEL GUIDANCE AND ARE ACCEPTED. MID RANGE MODELS DEPICT POSSIBLE PATTERN CHANGE IN STORE BEGINNING LATE THURSDAY. GFS HAS IMPRESSIVE LONGWAVE RIDGE BUILDING DEEP INTO WESTERN CANADA DURING THE PERIOD FORCING A POLAR TROF SOUTH ACROSS THE EASTERN CONUS. TOO EARLY TO TELL WHETHER OR NOT AN ACTIVE MOIST PATTERN WILL MATERIALIZE ACROSS THE SOUTHEAST BASED ON A COUPLE MODEL RUNS...BUT WENT AHEAD AND INTRODUCE CHANCE POPS FOR THE WEEKEND. HOWEVER...KEPT POPS WITHIN CLIMO AND ENSEMBLE GUIDANCE. SEASONAL OR A LITTLE BELOW NORMAL TEMPERATURES SEEM REASONABLE AND MADE MINOR CHANGES TO THE REST OF THE GRIDS. && .GSP WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... GA...NONE. NC...NONE. SC...NONE. && RWH
Hazardous weather outlook, May 30, 5:21 AM EDT, 14 hours 19 minutes before
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC 521 AM EDT SUN MAY 30 2004 GAZ010-017-018-026-028-029-NCZ033>037-048>059-062>072-082-SCZ001>014- 019-310920- ABBEVILLE SC-ALEXANDER NC-ANDERSON SC-AVERY NC-BUNCOMBE NC-BURKE NC- CABARRUS NC-CALDWELL NC-CATAWBA NC-CHEROKEE SC-CHESTER SC- CLEVELAND NC-DAVIE NC-ELBERT GA-FRANKLIN GA-GASTON NC-GRAHAM NC- GREATER GREENVILLE SC-GREATER OCONEE SC-GREATER PICKENS SC- GREENVILLE MOUNTAINS SC-GREENWOOD SC-HABERSHAM GA-HART GA-HAYWOOD NC- HENDERSON NC-IREDELL NC-LAURENS SC-LINCOLN NC-MACON NC-MADISON NC- MCDOWELL NC-MECKLENBURG NC-MITCHELL NC-NORTHERN JACKSON NC- OCONEE MOUNTAINS SC-PICKENS MOUNTAINS SC-POLK NC-RABUN GA-ROWAN NC- RUTHERFORD NC-SOUTHERN JACKSON NC-SPARTANBURG SC-STEPHENS GA- SWAIN NC-TRANSYLVANIA NC-UNION SC-UNION NC-YANCEY NC-YORK SC- 521 AM EDT SUN MAY 30 2004 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA... UPSTATE SOUTH CAROLINA...AND EXTREME NORTHEAST GEORGIA. .DAY ONE... SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS WILL AFFECT THE WESTERN CAROLINAS AND NORTHEAST GEORGIA TODAY. COVERAGE OF THE THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE GREATEST IN THE WESTERN MOUNTAINS OF NORTH CAROLINA. THESE THUNDERSTORMS WILL PRODUCE OCCASIONAL LIGHTNING AND LOCALLY HEAVY RAINFALL. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN... STRONG THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED TO DEVELOP AHEAD OF A COLD FRONT OVER THE MISSISSIPPI VALLEY LATE TODAY AND THEN SWEEP EAST ACROSS TENNESSEE OVERNIGHT. ANY REMNANTS FROM THESE THUNDERSTORMS WILL LIKELY REACH THE APPALACHIANS AROUND DAYBREAK ON MEMORIAL DAY. ADDITIONAL THUNDERSTORMS COULD FORM EASTWARD ACROSS THE PIEDMONT DURING THE DAY MONDAY ALONG THE LEADING EDGE OF THIS DISTURBANCE. ISOLATED SEVERE WEATHER...MAINLY IN THE FORM OF DAMAGING WIND GUSTS...COULD BE POSSIBLE MONDAY. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS UNLIKELY TODAY...BUT MAY BE REQUIRED ON MEMORIAL DAY. HG
In the hours before
Special weather statement, May 30, 4:28 PM EDT, 3 hours 12 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC 428 PM EDT SUN MAY 30 2004 NCZ033-048>050-302054- AVERY NC-MADISON NC-MITCHELL NC-YANCEY NC- 428 PM EDT SUN MAY 30 2004 A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM...POSSIBLY CONTAINING A TORNADO...WAS MOVING THROUGH GREENE COUNTY TENNESSEE...HEADED FOR THE NORTH CAROLINA NORTHERN MOUNTAINS. THE STORM WAS BEING MONITORED CLOSELY...AND IT IS QUITE POSSIBLE EITHER A TORNADO WARNING OR A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING MAY BECOME NECESSARY SOON FOR SOME OF THE NORTHERN MOUNTAIN COUNTIES. THE STORM WAS ALSO CAUSING LOTS OF CLOUD TO GROUND LIGHTNING...AND THE STORM APPEARED TO BE SPLITTING INTO TWO STORMS. LISTEN FOR LATER STATEMENTS AND WARNINGS. UPDATE...A FUNNEL CLOUD WAS JUST REPORTED BY A STORM SPOTTER IN GREENE COUNTY. JONES
Local storm report, May 30, 7:27 PM EDT, 13 minutes before
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC
727 PM EDT SUN MAY 30 2004
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION...ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0720 PM HAIL MORGANTON 35.74N 81.70W
05/30/2004 0.75 INCH BURKE NC AMATEUR RADIO
ON INTERSTATE 40 IN MORGANTON.
0540 PM HAIL SPRUCE PINE 35.92N 82.07W
05/30/2004 0.50 INCH MITCHELL NC PUBLIC
MARBLE SIZE HAIL AND WINDS OF 40-50 MPH.
&&
LAMBThe office that day
Everything else NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 30, 4:52 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | GSP | Yancey | 38 min |
| May 30, 5:31 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | GSP | Mitchell | 44 min |
| May 30, 5:35 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | GSP | Yancey | 40 min |
| May 30, 6:08 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | GSP | Burke, McDowell | 52 min |
| May 30, 7:03 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | GSP | Burke | 42 min |
Nearby
Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in North Carolina, 2004Every severe thunderstorm warning in 2004
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.