Alert archive / South Carolina / Tornado Warnings in 2008

Tornado Warning 10, NWS Columbia, SC

March 15, 2008McCormick County, South Carolina; Lincoln County, Georgia

NWS Columbia, SC issued this tornado warning at Mar 15, 2008, 4:17 PM EDT for McCormick County, South Carolina; Lincoln County, Georgia. It was in force for 43 min. 2 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: Mar 15, 2008, 4:17 PM EDT (20:17 UTC)
Expired: Mar 15, 2008, 5:00 PM EDT
In force: 43 min
Issued by: NWS Columbia, SC
Area: Storm-based polygon

Counties Lincoln County, GA, McCormick County, SC

The radar

The Greer radar (KGSP), 100 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 20:20 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
Mar 15, 4:45 PM EDT	TORNADO	6 W Mccormick, SC	POSSIBLE TORNADO. TREES DOWN ON HWY 81 NEAR WILLINGTON. GOLF BALL SIZE HAIL ALSO REPORTED.
Mar 15, 4:56 PM EDT	HAIL 1.75	Mccormick, SC	MCCORMICK COUNTY DISPATCH REPORTS GOLF BALL SIZE HAIL IN THE TOWN OF MCCORMICK AND THE TOWN OF MT CARMEL.

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
Mar 15, 11:02 AM EDT	Tornado Watch	SPC	8 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Peachtre/Fal Fld, GA (KFFC), launched 12:00Z, 8.3 hours before the alert went out and 213 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: 33 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -342 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 1103 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 68 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 196 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 459 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 
WFUS52 KCAE 152018
TORCAE
GAC181-SCC065-152100-
/O.NEW.KCAE.TO.W.0010.080315T2017Z-080315T2100Z/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE COLUMBIA SC
417 PM EDT SAT MAR 15 2008

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN COLUMBIA HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  NORTHWESTERN LINCOLN COUNTY IN EAST CENTRAL GEORGIA
  MCCORMICK COUNTY IN CENTRAL SOUTH CAROLINA

* UNTIL 500 PM EDT

* AT 416 PM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED 
  A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A TORNADO 6 MILES 
  SOUTHEAST OF ELBERTON MOVING EAST AT 50 MPH.

* OTHER LOCATIONS IN THE WARNING INCLUDE BUT ARE NOT LIMITED TO
  MCCORMICK

A TORNADO WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 700 PM EDT SATURDAY EVENING
FOR EAST CENTRAL GEORGIA AND CENTRAL SOUTH CAROLINA.

LARGE HAIL UP TO GOLF BALL SIZE IS ALSO POSSIBLE WITH THIS STORM.

REPORT LARGE HAIL...DAMAGING WINDS OR FLOODING TO YOUR COUNTY
SHERIFF...OR CALL THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN COLUMBIA TOLL FREE
AT 1 800 7 7 5 7 1 9 9.

LAT...LON 3407 8253 3408 8249 3406 8241 3407 8232
      3399 8229 3402 8223 3398 8220 3398 8204
      3395 8205 3393 8215 3389 8216 3382 8212
      3388 8262 3396 8265
TIME...MOT...LOC 2017Z 272DEG 44KT 3405 8278

$$

The office that day

Everything else NWS Columbia, SC issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Mar 15, 1:34 AM EDT	Lake Wind Advisory	CAE	Aiken, Bamberg, Barnwell, Calhoun, Chesterfield, Clarendon and 10 more	22 hr
Mar 15, 9:25 AM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	CAE	Fairfield, Newberry	23 min
Mar 15, 3:51 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	CAE	Fairfield	24 min
Mar 15, 3:58 PM EDT	Tornado Warning	CAE	Fairfield	17 min
Mar 15, 4:04 PM EDT	Tornado Warning	CAE	Newberry	41 min
Mar 15, 4:06 PM EDT	Tornado Warning	CAE	Lancaster	24 min
Mar 15, 4:16 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	CAE	Fairfield, Kershaw, Lancaster, Richland	44 min
Mar 15, 4:25 PM EDT	Tornado Warning	CAE	Kershaw, Lancaster	35 min
Mar 15, 4:40 PM EDT	Tornado Warning	CAE	Fairfield, Lexington, Newberry, Richland	50 min
Mar 15, 4:41 PM EDT	Tornado Warning	CAE	Chesterfield	34 min
Mar 15, 4:50 PM EDT	Tornado Warning	CAE	Edgefield, McCormick, Saluda	40 min
Mar 15, 5:16 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	CAE	Kershaw, Lee, Richland, Sumter	44 min
Mar 15, 5:21 PM EDT	Tornado Warning	CAE	Aiken, Edgefield, Lexington, Saluda	39 min
Mar 15, 5:23 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	CAE	McCormick	52 min
Mar 15, 5:30 PM EDT	Tornado Warning	CAE	Richland	30 min
Mar 15, 5:36 PM EDT	Tornado Warning	CAE	Edgefield, McCormick	39 min
Mar 15, 5:46 PM EDT	Tornado Warning	CAE	Lee	44 min
Mar 15, 5:50 PM EDT	Tornado Warning	CAE	Calhoun, Lexington, Orangeburg, Richland	40 min
Mar 15, 5:56 PM EDT	Tornado Warning	CAE	Newberry, Saluda	34 min
Mar 15, 6:03 PM EDT	Tornado Warning	CAE	Aiken, Edgefield, McCormick	42 min
Mar 15, 6:18 PM EDT	Tornado Warning	CAE	Calhoun, Clarendon, Orangeburg, Richland, Sumter	42 min
Mar 15, 6:26 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	CAE	Fairfield, Lexington, Richland	34 min
Mar 15, 6:32 PM EDT	Tornado Warning	CAE	Aiken, Bamberg, Barnwell, Orangeburg	43 min
Mar 15, 6:34 PM EDT	Tornado Warning	CAE	Aiken, Barnwell	41 min
Mar 15, 7:01 PM EDT	Tornado Warning	CAE	Clarendon	14 min
Mar 15, 7:14 PM EDT	Tornado Warning	CAE	Bamberg, Orangeburg	46 min
Mar 15, 6:00 PM EDT	Tornado Warning	CAE	Burke, McDuffie, Richmond	45 min
Mar 15, 7:11 PM EDT	Tornado Warning	CAE	Burke	49 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in South Carolina, 2008 Tornado Warnings in Georgia, 2008 Every tornado warning in 2008 Tornadoes in 2008

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.