Alert archive / North Carolina / Tornado Warnings in 2004

Tornado Warning 10, NWS Raleigh, NC

August 12, 2004Forsyth County, North Carolina

NWS Raleigh, NC issued this tornado warning at Aug 12, 2004, 2:51 PM EDT for Forsyth County, North Carolina. It was in force for 24 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
Aug 12, 2004, 2:51 PM EDT (18:51 UTC)
Expired
Aug 12, 2004, 3:15 PM EDT
In force
24 min
Issued by
NWS Raleigh, NC
Area
Counties, with a storm outline in the text

County Forsyth County, NC

The radar

The Roanoke radar (KFCX), 104 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 18:51 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.

The watch it was issued in

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

IssuedProductOfficeLasted
Aug 12, 2:25 PM EDTTornado WatchSPC6 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Greensboro/Hi Pt, NC (KGSO), launched 12:00Z, 6.9 hours before the alert went out and 24 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-pSkew-T log-p diagram, Greensboro/Hi Pt, NC at 12:00Z on 2004-08-12Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 634 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Greensboro/Hi Pt, NC at 12:00Z on 2004-08-12The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 47 square meters per square second.19395878Sfc1 km3 km6 km9 kmRMLM
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
634 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-30 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
701 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
30 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
47 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
66 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.1
Supercell composite
1.2

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WFUS52 KRAH 121851
TORRAH
NCC067-121915-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RALEIGH NC
250 PM EDT THU AUG 12 2004

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN RALEIGH HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  SOUTHERN FORSYTH COUNTY IN CENTRAL NORTH CAROLINA

* UNTIL 315 PM EDT

* AT 250 PM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A 
  TORNADO OVER WINSTON-SALEM...MOVING EAST AT 20 MPH.

* THE TORNADO WILL BE NEAR...
  SEDGE GARDEN AROUND 300 PM...
  KERNERSVILLE AROUND 310 PM...

THE SAFEST PLACE TO BE DURING A TORNADO IS ON THE LOWEST FLOOR OF THE
BUILDING IN AN INTERIOR HALLWAY OR ROOM SUCH AS A CLOSET. USE
BLANKETS OR PILLOWS TO COVER YOUR BODY AND ALWAYS STAY AWAY FROM
WINDOWS. STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS AND EXTERIOR WALLS AS FLYING DEBRIS
GENERATED BY TORNADIC WINDS CAN BE DEADLY.

A TORNADO WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 600 PM EDT THURSDAY EVENING
FOR CENTRAL NORTH CAROLINA. A TORNADO WATCH ALSO REMAINS IN EFFECT
UNTIL 800 PM EDT THURSDAY EVENING FOR CENTRAL NORTH CAROLINA.

LAT...LON 3618 8032 3618 8011 3617 8010 3617 8004
      3605 8004 3601 8005 3603 8012 3603 8021
      3600 8022 3601 8034

$$

04

The office that day

Everything else NWS Raleigh, NC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Aug 12, 2:06 PM EDTTornado WarningRAHRichmond39 min
Aug 12, 2:27 PM EDTTornado WarningRAHScotland33 min
Aug 12, 2:34 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningRAHForsyth116 min
Aug 12, 3:46 PM EDTTornado WarningRAHHarnett44 min
Aug 12, 4:12 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningRAHDurham, Wake108 min
Aug 12, 4:18 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningRAHJohnston42 min
Aug 12, 4:55 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningRAHFranklin95 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in North Carolina, 2004Every tornado warning in 2004Tornadoes 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.