Alert archive / South Carolina / Tornado Warnings in 2008

Tornado Warning 7, NWS Columbia, SC

March 15, 2008Fairfield County, South Carolina

NWS Columbia, SC issued this tornado warning at Mar 15, 2008, 3:58 PM EDT for Fairfield County, South Carolina. It was in force for 17 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
Mar 15, 2008, 3:58 PM EDT (19:58 UTC)
Expired
Mar 15, 2008, 4:15 PM EDT
In force
17 min
Issued by
NWS Columbia, SC
Area
Storm-based polygon

County Fairfield County, SC

The radar

The Columbia radar (KCAE), 62 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 19:59 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
Mar 15, 11:02 AM EDTTornado WatchSPC8 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Charleston AFB, SC (KCHS), launched 12:00Z, 8.0 hours before the alert went out and 197 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, Charleston AFB, SC at 12:00Z on 2008-03-15Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 585 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, Charleston AFB, SC at 12:00Z on 2008-03-15The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 71 square meters per square second.1939587897Sfc1 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
585 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-85 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
636 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
41 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
71 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
38 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.6

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WFUS52 KCAE 151958
TORCAE
SCC039-152015-
/O.NEW.KCAE.TO.W.0007.080315T1958Z-080315T2015Z/

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

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN COLUMBIA HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  NORTHERN FAIRFIELD COUNTY IN CENTRAL SOUTH CAROLINA

* UNTIL 415 PM EDT

* AT 350 PM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A TORNADO OVER FAIRFIELD
  COUNTY...OR ABOUT 6 MILES NORTH OF WINNSBORO...MOVING EAST NORTHEAST
  AT 50 MPH.

* THE TORNADO WILL OTHERWISE REMAIN OVER MAINLY RURAL AREAS OF THE
  INDICATED COUNTY.

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

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 3448 8088 3447 8089 3446 8089 3443 8111
      3453 8113 3455 8089
TIME...MOT...LOC 1958Z 250DEG 44KT 3450 8100

$$

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Mar 15, 1:34 AM EDTLake Wind AdvisoryCAEAiken, Bamberg, Barnwell, Calhoun, Chesterfield, Clarendon and 10 more22 hr
Mar 15, 9:25 AM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCAEFairfield, Newberry23 min
Mar 15, 3:51 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCAEFairfield24 min
Mar 15, 4:04 PM EDTTornado WarningCAENewberry41 min
Mar 15, 4:06 PM EDTTornado WarningCAELancaster24 min
Mar 15, 4:16 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCAEFairfield, Kershaw, Lancaster, Richland44 min
Mar 15, 4:17 PM EDTTornado WarningCAEMcCormick43 min
Mar 15, 4:25 PM EDTTornado WarningCAEKershaw, Lancaster35 min
Mar 15, 4:40 PM EDTTornado WarningCAEFairfield, Lexington, Newberry, Richland50 min
Mar 15, 4:41 PM EDTTornado WarningCAEChesterfield34 min
Mar 15, 4:50 PM EDTTornado WarningCAEEdgefield, McCormick, Saluda40 min
Mar 15, 5:16 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCAEKershaw, Lee, Richland, Sumter44 min
Mar 15, 5:21 PM EDTTornado WarningCAEAiken, Edgefield, Lexington, Saluda39 min
Mar 15, 5:23 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCAEMcCormick52 min
Mar 15, 5:30 PM EDTTornado WarningCAERichland30 min
Mar 15, 5:36 PM EDTTornado WarningCAEEdgefield, McCormick39 min
Mar 15, 5:46 PM EDTTornado WarningCAELee44 min
Mar 15, 5:50 PM EDTTornado WarningCAECalhoun, Lexington, Orangeburg, Richland40 min
Mar 15, 5:56 PM EDTTornado WarningCAENewberry, Saluda34 min
Mar 15, 6:03 PM EDTTornado WarningCAEAiken, Edgefield, McCormick42 min
Mar 15, 6:18 PM EDTTornado WarningCAECalhoun, Clarendon, Orangeburg, Richland, Sumter42 min
Mar 15, 6:26 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCAEFairfield, Lexington, Richland34 min
Mar 15, 6:32 PM EDTTornado WarningCAEAiken, Bamberg, Barnwell, Orangeburg43 min
Mar 15, 6:34 PM EDTTornado WarningCAEAiken, Barnwell41 min
Mar 15, 7:01 PM EDTTornado WarningCAEClarendon14 min
Mar 15, 7:14 PM EDTTornado WarningCAEBamberg, Orangeburg46 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in South Carolina, 2008Every tornado warning in 2008Tornadoes 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; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.