Alert archive / Georgia / Tornado Warnings in 2008

Tornado Warning 4, NWS Atlanta, GA

February 17, 2008Carroll County, Heard County, Georgia

NWS Atlanta, GA issued this tornado warning at Feb 17, 2008, 3:27 PM EST for Carroll County, Heard County, Georgia. It was in force for 33 min. 6 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
Feb 17, 2008, 3:27 PM EST (20:27 UTC)
Expired
Feb 17, 2008, 4:00 PM EST
In force
33 min
Issued by
NWS Atlanta, GA
Area
Storm-based polygon

Counties Carroll County, GA, Heard County, GA

The radar

The Atlanta radar (KFFC), 48 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 20:29 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

TimeReportWhereRemark
Feb 17, 3:50 PM ESTTSTM WND DMGLowell, GANUMEROUS TREES AND POWERLINES DOWN.
Feb 17, 3:52 PM ESTTORNADO3 Sw Lowell, GAPATH 4 MILES LONG WITH INTERMITTENT DAMAGE. MAXIMUM WIDTH 150 YARDS. EF1 APPROXIMATELY 90MPH. WITNESS SAW TREES FALLING ON HOUSE AND DEBRIS BLOWING ACROSS ROAD. PATH BEGAN AT MILLIGAN CREEK RD. AND ENDED AT HEMP CHAPEL RD.
Feb 17, 3:57 PM ESTTSTM WND DMG1 E Lowell, GANUMEROUS TREES DOWN.
Feb 17, 4:00 PM ESTTSTM WND DMG1 Ne Carrollton, GATHREE TREES DOWN NEAR LAKE CARROLL
Feb 17, 4:00 PM ESTTSTM WND DMG4 S Carrollton, GADAMAGE TO SEVERAL BARNS, NUMEROUS TREES AND POWERLINES DOWN IN VICINITY OF RINGER ROAD AND HIGHWAY 5.
Feb 17, 4:05 PM ESTTSTM WND DMG2 E Roopville, GANUMEROUS TREES AND POWERLINES DOWN.

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.

IssuedProductOfficeLasted
Feb 17, 1:32 PM ESTTornado WatchSPC7 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Peachtre/Fal Fld, GA (KFFC), launched 12:00Z, 8.5 hours before the alert went out and 54 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, Peachtre/Fal Fld, GA at 12:00Z on 2008-02-17Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 0 joules per kilogram.LCL10008507005003002001001 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, Peachtre/Fal Fld, GA at 12:00Z on 2008-02-17The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 320 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
0 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL
1892 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
54 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
320 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
438 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 KFFC 172028
TORFFC
GAC045-149-172100-
/O.NEW.KFFC.TO.W.0004.080217T2027Z-080217T2100Z/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PEACHTREE CITY GA
327 PM EST SUN FEB 17 2008

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN PEACHTREE CITY HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  SOUTHERN CARROLL COUNTY IN NORTHWEST GEORGIA
  NORTHERN HEARD COUNTY IN WEST CENTRAL GEORGIA

* UNTIL 400 PM EST

* AT 324 PM EST...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A TORNADO 19 MILES WEST OF
  SIMPSON...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 50 MPH.

* OTHER LOCATIONS IN THE WARNING INCLUDE BUT ARE NOT LIMITED TO
  CARROLLTON...CLEM...EPHESUS...ROOPVILLE...AND WHITESBURG.

WHEN A TORNADO WARNING IS ISSUED BASED ON DOPPLER RADAR...IT MEANS
THAT STRONG ROTATION HAS BEEN DETECTED IN THE STORM. A TORNADO MAY
ALREADY BE ON THE GROUND...OR IS EXPECTED TO DEVELOP SHORTLY. IF YOU
ARE IN THE PATH OF THIS DANGEROUS STORM...MOVE INDOORS AND TO A
BASEMENT OR INTERIOR ROOM ON THE GROUND FLOOR. STAY AWAY FROM
WINDOWS. IF DRIVING...DO NOT SEEK SHELTER UNDER A HIGHWAY OVERPASS.

A TORNADO WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 900 PM EST SUNDAY EVENING FOR
WEST CENTRAL GEORGIA.

IF YOU SEE WIND DAMAGE...LARGE HAIL OR SIGNIFICANT FLOODING...WAIT
UNTIL AFTER THE STORM HAS PASSED...AND THEN CALL THE NATIONAL WEATHER
SERVICE TOLL FREE AT 1 8 6 6 7 6 3 4 4 6 6.

LAT...LON 3329 8528 3348 8531 3363 8500 3347 8489
      3346 8490 3343 8493 3345 8497 3343 8500
      3338 8500 3327 8526
TIME...MOT...LOC 2027Z 240DEG 47KT 3329 8545

$$
1 follow-up statement
000 
WWUS52 KFFC 172047
SVSFFC

SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PEACHTREE CITY GA
345 PM EST SUN FEB 17 2008

GAC045-149-172100-
/O.CON.KFFC.TO.W.0004.000000T0000Z-080217T2100Z/
HEARD GA-CARROLL GA-
345 PM EST SUN FEB 17 2008

...A TORNADO WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 400 PM EST FOR SOUTHERN
CARROLL AND NORTHERN HEARD COUNTIES...

AT 345 PM EST...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR CONTINUED TO 
INDICATE A TORNADO. THIS TORNADO WAS LOCATED NEAR ABOUT 5 MILES EAST 
OF EPHESUS...AND MOVING NORTHEAST AT 45 MPH.

OTHER LOCATIONS IN THE WARNING INCLUDE BUT ARE NOT LIMITED TO 
ROOPVILLE...LOWELL...CARROLLTON...CLEM AND WHITESBURG.

WHEN A TORNADO WARNING IS ISSUED BASED ON DOPPLER RADAR...IT MEANS
THAT STRONG ROTATION HAS BEEN DETECTED IN THE STORM. A TORNADO MAY
ALREADY BE ON THE GROUND...OR IS EXPECTED TO DEVELOP SHORTLY. IF YOU
ARE IN THE PATH OF THIS DANGEROUS STORM...MOVE INDOORS AND TO A
BASEMENT OR INTERIOR ROOM ON THE FIRST FLOOR. STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS.
IF DRIVING...DO NOT SEEK SHELTER UNDER A HIGHWAY OVERPASS.

A TORNADO WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 900 PM EST SUNDAY EVENING FOR
NORTHWESTERN GEORGIA.

IF YOU SEE WIND DAMAGE...LARGE HAIL OR SIGNIFICANT FLOODING...WAIT
UNTIL AFTER THE STORM HAS PASSED...AND THEN CALL THE NATIONAL WEATHER
SERVICE TOLL FREE AT 1 8 6 6 7 6 3 4 4 6 6.

LAT...LON 3329 8528 3348 8531 3363 8500 3347 8489
      3346 8490 3343 8493 3345 8497 3343 8500
      3338 8500 3327 8526
TIME...MOT...LOC 2045Z 240DEG 47KT 3341 8517

$$

The office that day

Everything else NWS Atlanta, GA issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Feb 17, 4:21 AM ESTWind AdvisoryFFCBartow, Catoosa, Chattooga, Cherokee, Dade, Dawson and 12 more18 hr
Feb 17, 3:21 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFFCCarroll, Haralson, Heard, Paulding24 min
Feb 17, 3:40 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFFCBartow, Carroll, Douglas, Haralson, Paulding, Polk35 min
Feb 17, 3:52 PM ESTTornado WarningFFCCarroll, Coweta, Douglas, Fulton23 min
Feb 17, 4:07 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFFCBartow, Cherokee, Cobb, Fulton, Paulding23 min
Feb 17, 4:11 PM ESTTornado WarningFFCDouglas, Fulton34 min
Feb 17, 4:27 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFFCCherokee, Dawson, Forsyth, Fulton33 min
Feb 17, 4:39 PM ESTTornado WarningFFCFulton36 min
Feb 17, 4:44 PM ESTTornado WarningFFCStewart36 min
Feb 17, 4:57 PM ESTTornado WarningFFCDeKalb, Gwinnett33 min
Feb 17, 5:02 PM ESTTornado WarningFFCChattahoochee43 min
Feb 17, 5:26 PM ESTTornado WarningFFCMarion33 min
Feb 17, 5:45 PM ESTTornado WarningFFCTaylor45 min
Feb 17, 5:50 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFFCStewart40 min
Feb 17, 6:12 PM ESTTornado WarningFFCCrawford33 min
Feb 17, 6:26 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFFCMarion, Schley, Sumter, Webster34 min
Feb 17, 6:37 PM ESTTornado WarningFFCBibb38 min
Feb 17, 6:49 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningFFCCrisp, Dooly, Macon, Schley, Sumter26 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Georgia, 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; local storm reports from the same archive; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.