Alert archive / Virginia / Tornado Warnings in 2004

Tornado Warning 1, NWS Morristown, TN

May 26, 2004Lee County, Scott County, Virginia

NWS Morristown, TN issued this tornado warning at May 26, 2004, 5:23 PM EDT for Lee County, Scott County, Virginia. It was in force for 37 min. 3 reports came from inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The outline as issued, with what was reported inside it.

The facts

Issued: May 26, 2004, 5:23 PM EDT (21:23 UTC)
Expired: May 26, 2004, 6:00 PM EDT
In force: 37 min
Issued by: NWS Morristown, TN
Area: Counties, with a storm outline in the text

Counties Lee County, VA, Scott County, VA

The radar

The Knoxville radar (KMRX), 85 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 21:24 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.

What was reported inside it

Time	Report	Where	Remark
May 26, 5:25 PM EDT	TSTM WND DMG	23 W Gate City, VA	SEVERAL TREES DOWN IN THE FAIRVIEW AREA.
May 26, 5:35 PM EDT	TSTM WND DMG	6 W Gate City, VA	HOME DAMAGED WITH HOLE IN ROOF AND PORCH COLLAPSE NEAR THE COMMUNITY OF DANIEL BOONE.
May 26, 5:45 PM EDT	TSTM WND DMG	Gate City, VA	NUMEROUS LARGE TREES DOWN AND POWERLINES DOWN COUNTYWIDE.

Local storm reports filed while the alert was in force, from inside its polygon or its counties.

The watch it was issued in

The SPC watch in force over the same counties when this warning went out.

Issued	Product	Office	Lasted
May 26, 2:50 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Watch	SPC	7 hr
May 26, 4:25 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Watch	SPC	6 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Greensboro/Hi Pt, NC (KGSO), launched 12:00Z, 9.4 hours before the alert went out and 266 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-p

Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.

Hodograph

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: 266 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -124 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 1644 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 57 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: -32 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 46 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: -0.0
Supercell composite: -0.1

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

435 
WFUS54 KMRX 262123
TORMRX
VAC105-169-262200-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MORRISTOWN TN
522 PM EDT WED MAY 26 2004

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN MORRISTOWN HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  LEE COUNTY IN SOUTHWEST VIRGINIA
  SCOTT COUNTY IN SOUTHWEST VIRGINIA

* UNTIL 600 PM EDT

* AT 519 PM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WITH A DEVELOPING TORNADO NEAR PATTONSVILLE...
  OR 11 MILES EAST OF JONESVILLE...MOVING EAST AT 45 MPH.

* THE TORNADO IS EXPECTED TO BE NEAR...
  NATURAL TUNNEL STATE PARK AROUND 530 PM EDT
  GATE CITY AROUND 540 PM EDT
  HILTONS AROUND 550 PM EDT
  NICKELSVILLE AROUND 555 PM EDT

THIS DANGEROUS STORM IS ALSO CAPABLE OF PRODUCING WINDS UP TO 90
MPH...AND GOLFBALL SIZE HAIL OR LARGER.

IF YOU ARE CAUGHT OUTSIDE...SEEK SHELTER IN A NEARBY REINFORCED
BUILDING. AS A LAST RESORT...SEEK SHELTER IN A CULVERT...DITCH OR LOW
SPOT AND COVER YOUR HEAD WITH YOUR HANDS.

LAT...LON 3680 8299 3661 8305 3662 8236 3684 8242

$$

The office that day

Everything else NWS Morristown, TN issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
May 26, 4:46 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MRX	Lee	44 min
May 26, 4:51 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MRX	Wise, City of Norton	39 min
May 26, 5:12 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MRX	Scott	48 min
May 26, 5:48 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MRX	Washington, City of Bristol	57 min
May 26, 5:49 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MRX	Russell	41 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Virginia, 2004 Every tornado warning in 2004 Tornadoes 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; local storm reports from the same archive; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.