Alert archive / Georgia / Tornado Watches in 2004
Tornado Watch 831
The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at Sep 16, 2004, 8:45 PM EDT for 30 counties in Georgia; 7 counties in North Carolina; 25 counties in South Carolina. It was in force for 6 hr.
The area
The outline as issued.
The facts
- Issued
- Sep 16, 2004, 8:45 PM EDT (00:45 UTC)
- Expired
- Sep 17, 2004, 3:00 AM EDT
- In force
- 6 hr
- Issued by
- the Storm Prediction Center
All 62 counties
Baldwin County, GA, Banks County, GA, Burke County, GA, Clarke County, GA, Columbia County, GA, Elbert County, GA, Franklin County, GA, Glascock County, GA, Greene County, GA, Habersham County, GA, Hancock County, GA, Hart County, GA, Jackson County, GA, Jefferson County, GA, Jones County, GA, Lincoln County, GA, Madison County, GA, McDuffie County, GA, Morgan County, GA, Oconee County, GA, Oglethorpe County, GA, Putnam County, GA, Rabun County, GA, Richmond County, GA, Stephens County, GA, Taliaferro County, GA, Warren County, GA, Washington County, GA, Wilkes County, GA, Wilkinson County, GA, Cabarrus County, NC, Cleveland County, NC, Gaston County, NC, Lincoln County, NC, Mecklenburg County, NC, Polk County, NC, Union County, NC, Abbeville County, SC, Aiken County, SC, Anderson County, SC, Barnwell County, SC, Calhoun County, SC, Cherokee County, SC, Chester County, SC, Edgefield County, SC, Fairfield County, SC, Greenville County, SC, Greenwood County, SC, Kershaw County, SC, Lancaster County, SC, Laurens County, SC, Lexington County, SC, McCormick County, SC, Newberry County, SC, Oconee County, SC, Orangeburg County, SC, Pickens County, SC, Richland County, SC, Saluda County, SC, Spartanburg County, SC, Union County, SC, York County, SC
The radar
The Greer radar (KGSP), 60 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 00:49 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.
Discussions around it
SPC mesoscale discussions over the same counties from four hours before the watch to its end.
The nearest sounding before it
Charleston AFB, SC (KCHS), launched 00:00Z, 0.8 hours before the alert went out and 268 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
- 2699 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- 0 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 481 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 32 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 75 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 103 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.7
- Supercell composite
- 5.1
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000
WWUS20 KWNS 170049
SEL1
SPC WW 170045
GAZ000-NCZ000-SCZ000-170700-
URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 831
NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
845 PM EDT THU SEP 16 2004
THE NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF
EAST CENTRAL AND NORTHEAST GEORGIA
A SMALL PART OF SOUTHWEST NORTH CAROLINA
CENTRAL AND UPSTATE SOUTH CAROLINA
EFFECTIVE THIS THURSDAY NIGHT AND FRIDAY MORNING FROM 845 PM UNTIL
300 AM EDT.
TORNADOES...HAIL TO 0.5 INCH IN DIAMETER...THUNDERSTORM WIND GUSTS
TO 70 MPH...AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE IN THESE AREAS.
THE TORNADO WATCH AREA IS ALONG AND 80 STATUTE MILES NORTH AND
SOUTH OF A LINE FROM 15 MILES WEST SOUTHWEST OF ATHENS GEORGIA TO
55 MILES NORTHEAST OF COLUMBIA SOUTH 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 828...TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 830. WATCH NUMBER 828 830
WILL NOT BE IN EFFECT AFTER 845 PM EDT.
DISCUSSION...THE REMNANTS OF IVAN ARE MOVING ENEWD FROM AL INTO N
GA...WHILE THE MAIN CONVECTIVE BAND IS LOCATED NEAR THE SAVANNAH
RIVER...WELL E OF THE CIRCULATION CENTER. BOUNDARY LAYER DEWPOINTS
IN THE LOW-MID 70S WILL SUPPORT AT LEAST WEAK BUOYANCY
OVERNIGHT...WHILE VERTICAL SHEAR WILL REMAIN VERY STRONG FROM ERN GA
ACROSS SC. PRESENT INDICATIONS ARE THAT THE TORNADO THREAT WILL BE
PRIMARILY IN THE CORRIDOR WHERE THE MAIN CONVECTIVE BAND /OR ANY
ISOLATED STORMS E OF THIS BAND/ INTERACTS WITH A WEAK BAROCLINIC
ZONE ACROSS SC.
AVIATION...TORNADOES AND A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH HAIL
SURFACE AND ALOFT TO 0.5 INCH. EXTREME TURBULENCE AND SURFACE WIND
GUSTS TO 60 KNOTS. A FEW CUMULONIMBI WITH MAXIMUM TOPS TO 500.
MEAN STORM MOTION VECTOR 18040.
...THOMPSON
350,0833 353,0802 332,0802 324,0833SPC that day
Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 16, 11:42 PM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Baldwin, Brantley, Burke, Charlton, Clarke, Clinch and 29 more | 2 hr |
| Sep 17, 1:51 AM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Alexander, Burke, Caldwell, Catawba, Cleveland, Gaston and 6 more | 84 min |
| Sep 17, 9:26 AM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Alamance, Anson, Bladen, Caswell, Chatham, Cumberland and 24 more | 2 hr |
| Sep 17, 10:10 AM EDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | Alamance, Anson, Bladen, Brunswick, Caswell, Chatham and 37 more | 7 hr |
| Sep 17, 11:03 AM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Alamance, Bertie, Caswell, Chatham, Cumberland, Durham and 26 more | 87 min |
| Sep 17, 12:33 PM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Beaufort, Bertie, Camden, Chowan, Craven, Gates and 8 more | 117 min |
| Sep 17, 1:15 PM EDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | Beaufort, Bertie, Camden, Carteret, Chowan, Craven and 18 more | 7 hr |
| Sep 17, 1:37 PM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Alamance, Bladen, Brunswick, Caswell, Chatham, Columbus and 29 more | 113 min |
| Sep 17, 3:53 PM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Beaufort, Bertie, Camden, Chowan, Craven, Edgecombe and 11 more | 2 hr |
| Sep 17, 4:01 PM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Bladen, Brunswick, Columbus, Cumberland, Duplin, Franklin and 6 more | 59 min |
| Sep 17, 4:35 PM EDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | Bladen, Brunswick, Columbus, Duplin, Edgecombe, Franklin and 14 more | 3 hr |
| Sep 17, 6:19 PM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Beaufort, Bertie, Camden, Chowan, Craven, Currituck and 13 more | 116 min |
| Sep 17, 6:50 PM EDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | Bertie, Camden, Chowan, Currituck, Gates, Hertford and 3 more | 5 hr |
| Sep 17, 7:23 PM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Duplin, Edgecombe, Greene, Halifax, Lenoir, Nash and 4 more | 37 min |
Nearby
Tornado Watches in Georgia, 2004Tornado Watches in South Carolina, 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.