Alert archive / Virginia / Tornado Watches in 2004

Tornado Watch 357

May 31, 20047 counties in Maryland; Camden County, Currituck County, Pasquotank County, North Carolina; 68 counties in Virginia

The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at May 31, 2004, 3:50 PM EDT for 7 counties in Maryland; Camden County, Currituck County, Pasquotank County, North Carolina; 68 counties in Virginia. It was in force for 6 hr.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
May 31, 2004, 3:50 PM EDT (19:50 UTC)
Expired
May 31, 2004, 10:00 PM EDT
In force
6 hr
Issued by
the Storm Prediction Center
All 78 counties

Calvert County, MD, Charles County, MD, Dorchester County, MD, Montgomery County, MD, Prince George's County, MD, Saint Mary's County, MD, Somerset County, MD, Camden County, NC, Currituck County, NC, Pasquotank County, NC, Accomack County, VA, Albemarle County, VA, Amelia County, VA, Arlington County, VA, Buckingham County, VA, Caroline County, VA, Charles City County, VA, Chesterfield County, VA, City of Alexandria, VA, City of Charlottesville, VA, City of Chesapeake, VA, City of Colonial Heights, VA, City of Fairfax, VA, City of Falls Church, VA, City of Franklin, VA, City of Fredericksburg, VA, City of Hampton, VA, City of Hopewell, VA, City of Manassas, VA, City of Manassas Park, VA, City of Newport News, VA, City of Norfolk, VA, City of Petersburg, VA, City of Poquoson, VA, City of Portsmouth, VA, City of Richmond, VA, City of Suffolk, VA, City of Virginia Beach, VA, City of Williamsburg, VA, Culpeper County, VA, Cumberland County, VA, Dinwiddie County, VA, Essex County, VA, Fairfax County, VA, Fauquier County, VA, Fluvanna County, VA, Gloucester County, VA, Goochland County, VA, Greene County, VA, Hanover County, VA, Henrico County, VA, Isle of Wight County, VA, James City County, VA, King and Queen County, VA, King George County, VA, King William County, VA, Lancaster County, VA, Loudoun County, VA, Louisa County, VA, Madison County, VA, Mathews County, VA, Middlesex County, VA, Nelson County, VA, New Kent County, VA, Northampton County, VA, Northumberland County, VA, Orange County, VA, Powhatan County, VA, Prince George County, VA, Prince William County, VA, Richmond County, VA, Southampton County, VA, Spotsylvania County, VA, Stafford County, VA, Surry County, VA, Sussex County, VA, Westmoreland County, VA, York County, VA

The radar

The Sterling radar (KLWX), 113 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 19:49 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.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 31, 8:13 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningLWXLoudoun32 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

Washington/Dulle, VA (KIAD), launched 12:00Z, 7.8 hours before the alert went out and 107 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, Washington/Dulle, VA at 12:00Z on 2004-05-31Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 18 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°0°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Washington/Dulle, VA at 12:00Z on 2004-05-31The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 127 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
18 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-157 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
501 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
35 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
127 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
207 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WWUS20 KWNS 311952
SEL7  
SPC WW 311950
DCZ000-MDZ000-NCZ000-VAZ000-CWZ000-010200-

URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 357
NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
350 PM EDT MON MAY 31 2004

THE NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF 

       DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
       SOUTHERN AND EASTERN MARYLAND
       EXTREME NORTHEAST NORTH CAROLINA
       CENTRAL AND EASTERN VIRGINIA
       COASTAL WATERS

EFFECTIVE THIS MONDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING FROM 350 PM UNTIL 1000
PM EDT.

TORNADOES...HAIL TO 1 INCH IN DIAMETER...THUNDERSTORM WIND GUSTS
TO 65 MPH...AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE IN THESE AREAS.

THE TORNADO WATCH AREA IS ALONG AND 70 STATUTE MILES EITHER SIDE
OF A LINE FROM 35 MILES NORTH NORTHEAST OF CHARLOTTESVILLE
VIRGINIA TO 50 MILES EAST OF NORFOLK VIRGINIA.

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...CONTINUE...WW 353...WW 354...WW 355...WW
356...

DISCUSSION...THUNDERSTORMS EXPECTED TO DEVELOP IN THE NEXT HOUR OR
SO OVER THE FOOTHILLS OF NW VA AND THE VA PIEDMONT IN RESPONSE TO
AFTERNOON HEATING. OTHER STORMS MAY FORM WHERE WLY LOW LEVEL FLOW
IMPINGES ON STATIONARY FRONT FROM NEAR CHO ESE TO THE LWR CHESAPEAKE
BAY.  50 KT MID LEVEL WLY JET WILL SUPPORT POTENTIAL FOR SUPERCELLS
WITH HIGH WIND.  AT THE SAME TIME... ENHANCED LOW LEVEL SHEAR AND
DEWPOINTS IN THE LOW 70S F SUGGEST THREAT FOR TORNADOES ALONG
STATIONARY FRONT.

AVIATION...TORNADOES AND A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH HAIL
SURFACE AND ALOFT TO 1 INCH. EXTREME TURBULENCE AND SURFACE WIND
GUSTS TO 55 KNOTS. A FEW CUMULONIMBI WITH MAXIMUM TOPS TO 400.
MEAN STORM MOTION VECTOR 29030.


...CORFIDI

392,0773 374,0744 360,0755 374,0784

SPC that day

Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 31, 12:40 AM EDTTornado WatchSPCGarrett5 hr
May 31, 2:40 AM EDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCGarrett2 hr
May 31, 4:40 AM EDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCGarrett95 min
May 31, 2:53 PM EDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCCalvert, Charles, Saint Mary's, Somerset37 min
May 31, 7:17 PM EDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCCalvert, Charles, Dorchester, Montgomery, Prince George's, Saint Mary's and 1 more118 min
May 31, 1:40 AM EDTTornado WatchSPCAvery, Buncombe, Cherokee, Clay, Graham, Haywood and 8 more5 hr
May 31, 5:50 AM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCAlamance, Alexander, Anson, Cabarrus, Caswell, Catawba and 21 more5 hr
May 31, 7:56 AM EDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCAlamance, Anson, Cabarrus, Caswell, Davidson, Davie and 13 more2 hr
May 31, 9:10 AM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCAlamance, Anson, Cabarrus, Chatham, Cumberland, Davidson and 23 more5 hr
May 31, 11:18 AM EDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBladen, Brunswick, Columbus, Cumberland, New Hanover, Pender and 3 more27 min
May 31, 11:40 AM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCBladen, Columbus6 hr
May 31, 12:46 PM EDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCRobeson, Sampson29 min
May 31, 2:27 PM EDTMesoscale DiscussionSPCBladen, Columbus63 min

Nearby

Tornado Watches in Virginia, 2004Tornado Watches in Maryland, 2004Tornado Watches in North Carolina, 2004Every tornado watch 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.