Alert archive / Georgia / Tornado Warnings in 2008

Tornado Warning 9, NWS Atlanta, GA

February 17, 2008DeKalb County, Gwinnett County, Georgia

NWS Atlanta, GA issued this tornado warning at Feb 17, 2008, 4:57 PM EST for DeKalb County, Gwinnett County, Georgia. It was in force for 33 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: Feb 17, 2008, 4:57 PM EST (21:57 UTC)
Expired: Feb 17, 2008, 5:30 PM EST
In force: 33 min
Issued by: NWS Atlanta, GA
Area: Storm-based polygon

Counties DeKalb County, GA, Gwinnett County, GA

The radar

The Atlanta radar (KFFC), 61 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 21:57 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.

Issued	Product	Office	Lasted
Feb 17, 4:01 PM EST	Tornado Watch	SPC	5 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Peachtre/Fal Fld, GA (KFFC), launched 12:00Z, 10.0 hours before the alert went out and 57 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: 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 172157
TORFFC
GAC089-135-172230-
/O.NEW.KFFC.TO.W.0009.080217T2157Z-080217T2230Z/

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

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN PEACHTREE CITY HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  NORTHWESTERN DEKALB COUNTY IN NORTH CENTRAL GEORGIA
  SOUTHWESTERN GWINNETT COUNTY IN NORTH CENTRAL GEORGIA

* UNTIL 530 PM EST

* AT 452 PM EST...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A TORNADO WEST OF
  GRESHAM PARK...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 45 MPH.

* OTHER LOCATIONS IN THE WARNING INCLUDE BUT ARE NOT LIMITED TO
  PANTHERSVILLE...CANDLER-MCAFEE...DRUID HILLS...DECATUR...BELVEDERE
  PARK...NORTH DRUID HILLS...AVONDALE ESTATES...NORTH DECATUR...NORTH
  ATLANTA...SCOTTDALE...CLARKSTON...CHAMBLEE...PINE LAKE...STONE
  MOUNTAIN...TUCKER...DORAVILLE...MOUNTAIN PARK...NORCROSS...
  LILBURN...BERKELEY LAKE AND DULUTH.

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.

THE SAFEST PLACE TO BE DURING A TORNADO IS IN A BASEMENT. GET UNDER A
WORKBENCH OR OTHER PIECE OF STURDY FURNITURE. IF NO BASEMENT IS
AVAILABLE...SEEK SHELTER ON THE GROUND FLOOR OF THE BUILDING IN AN
INTERIOR HALLWAY OR SMALL ROOM SUCH AS A CLOSET. USE BLANKETS OR
PILLOWS TO COVER YOUR BODY AND ALWAYS STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS.

IF YOU ARE IN A MOBILE HOME OR VEHICLE...LEAVE THEM AND GET INSIDE A
SUBSTANTIAL SHELTER. IF NO SHELTER IS AVAILABLE...LIE FLAT IN THE
NEAREST DITCH OR OTHER LOW SPOT AND COVER YOUR HEAD WITH YOUR HANDS.

A TORNADO WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 900 PM EST SUNDAY EVENING FOR
NORTHERN 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 3368 8431 3367 8431 3366 8434 3391 8434
      3401 8421 3400 8419 3403 8416 3388 8398
TIME...MOT...LOC 2157Z 231DEG 42KT 3376 8438

$$

The office that day

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

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Feb 17, 4:21 AM EST	Wind Advisory	FFC	Bartow, Catoosa, Chattooga, Cherokee, Dade, Dawson and 12 more	18 hr
Feb 17, 3:21 PM EST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FFC	Carroll, Haralson, Heard, Paulding	24 min
Feb 17, 3:27 PM EST	Tornado Warning	FFC	Carroll, Heard	33 min
Feb 17, 3:40 PM EST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FFC	Bartow, Carroll, Douglas, Haralson, Paulding, Polk	35 min
Feb 17, 3:52 PM EST	Tornado Warning	FFC	Carroll, Coweta, Douglas, Fulton	23 min
Feb 17, 4:07 PM EST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FFC	Bartow, Cherokee, Cobb, Fulton, Paulding	23 min
Feb 17, 4:11 PM EST	Tornado Warning	FFC	Douglas, Fulton	34 min
Feb 17, 4:27 PM EST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FFC	Cherokee, Dawson, Forsyth, Fulton	33 min
Feb 17, 4:39 PM EST	Tornado Warning	FFC	Fulton	36 min
Feb 17, 4:44 PM EST	Tornado Warning	FFC	Stewart	36 min
Feb 17, 5:02 PM EST	Tornado Warning	FFC	Chattahoochee	43 min
Feb 17, 5:26 PM EST	Tornado Warning	FFC	Marion	33 min
Feb 17, 5:45 PM EST	Tornado Warning	FFC	Taylor	45 min
Feb 17, 5:50 PM EST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FFC	Stewart	40 min
Feb 17, 6:12 PM EST	Tornado Warning	FFC	Crawford	33 min
Feb 17, 6:26 PM EST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FFC	Marion, Schley, Sumter, Webster	34 min
Feb 17, 6:37 PM EST	Tornado Warning	FFC	Bibb	38 min
Feb 17, 6:49 PM EST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FFC	Crisp, Dooly, Macon, Schley, Sumter	26 min

Nearby

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; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.