Alert archive / North Carolina / Tornado Warnings in 2008

Tornado Warning 41, NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC

August 26, 2008Union County, North Carolina

NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC issued this tornado warning at Aug 26, 2008, 1:16 PM EDT for Union County, North Carolina. It was in force for 36 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
Aug 26, 2008, 1:16 PM EDT (17:16 UTC)
Expired
Aug 26, 2008, 1:52 PM EDT
In force
36 min
Issued by
NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC
Area
Storm-based polygon

County Union County, NC

The radar

The Columbia radar (KCAE), 113 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 17:17 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
Aug 26, 10:00 AM EDTTornado WatchSPC9 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Greensboro/Hi Pt, NC (KGSO), launched 12:00Z, 5.3 hours before the alert went out and 151 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, Greensboro/Hi Pt, NC at 12:00Z on 2008-08-26Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 378 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, Greensboro/Hi Pt, NC at 12:00Z on 2008-08-26The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 24 square meters per square second.193958Sfc1 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
378 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-12 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
608 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
20 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
24 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
72 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.3

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WFUS52 KGSP 261716
TORGSP
NCC179-261800-
/O.NEW.KGSP.TO.W.0041.080826T1716Z-080826T1800Z/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC
116 PM EDT TUE AUG 26 2008

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  WESTERN UNION COUNTY IN THE PIEDMONT OF NORTH CAROLINA

* UNTIL 200 PM EDT

* AT 114 PM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A TORNADO 9 MILES NORTH OF
  LANCASTER...OR ABOUT 6 MILES SOUTHWEST OF WAXHAW...MOVING NORTH AT
  17 MPH.

* THE TORNADO EXPECTED TO BE NEAR...
  WAXHAW AROUND 130 PM EDT...
  WEDDINGTON AROUND 155 PM EDT...

MOBILE HOMES AND VEHICLES SHOULD BE ABANDONED FOR STURDIER SHELTER.
OTHERWISE...GO TO AN INTERIOR ROOM ON THE LOWEST LEVEL OF YOUR HOME
OR PLACE OF BUSINESS. MAKE SURE THERE ARE AS MANY WALLS AND FLOORS
BETWEEN YOU AND THE OUTSIDE AS POSSIBLE.

TO REPORT TORNADOES...DAMAGING WINDS...LARGE HAIL...OR FLOODING...
THROUGH OUR AUTOMATED REPORTING SYSTEM...CALL OUR TOLL FREE NUMBER...
1 8 7 7...6 3 3...6 7 7 2.

LAT...LON 3483 8073 3484 8080 3488 8080 3489 8080
      3494 8079 3497 8081 3502 8081 3510 8062
TIME...MOT...LOC 1715Z 187DEG 15KT 3486 8080

$$
LG
2 follow-up statements
000 
WWUS52 KGSP 261742
SVSGSP

SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC
142 PM EDT TUE AUG 26 2008

NCC179-261800-
/O.CON.KGSP.TO.W.0041.000000T0000Z-080826T1800Z/
UNION NC-
142 PM EDT TUE AUG 26 2008

...A TORNADO WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 200 PM EDT FOR WEST
CENTRAL UNION COUNTY IN THE PIEDMONT OF NORTH CAROLINA...

AT 140 PM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR CONTINUED TO 
INDICATE A POSSIBLE TORNADO.  THIS TORNADO WAS LOCATED 4 MILES 
NORTHWEST OF WAXHAW...OR ABOUT 14 MILES WEST OF MONROE...MOVING 
NORTH AT 17 MPH.

THE TORNADO WILL BE NEAR...
  WEDDINGTON BY 155 PM EDT...

LAT...LON 3491 8070 3490 8079 3488 8080 3494 8079
      3497 8081 3502 8081 3509 8063 3508 8063
TIME...MOT...LOC 1742Z 187DEG 15KT 3497 8078

$$
LG
000 
WWUS52 KGSP 261752
SVSGSP

SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC
152 PM EDT TUE AUG 26 2008

NCC179-261802-
/O.CAN.KGSP.TO.W.0041.000000T0000Z-080826T1800Z/
UNION NC-
152 PM EDT TUE AUG 26 2008

...THE TORNADO WARNING FOR WEST CENTRAL UNION COUNTY IN THE PIEDMONT
OF NORTH CAROLINA IS CANCELLED...

THE STORM THAT PROMPTED THE WARNING HAS WEAKENED AND LOST ITS 
ROTATION.

LAT...LON 3491 8070 3490 8079 3488 8080 3494 8079
      3497 8081 3502 8081 3509 8063 3508 8063
TIME...MOT...LOC 1752Z 330DEG 20KT 3493 8075

$$
LG

The office that day

Everything else NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Aug 26, 8:07 AM EDTAreal Flood AdvisoryGSPGaston, Mecklenburg113 min
Aug 26, 9:18 AM EDTFlash Flood WarningGSPMecklenburg4 hr
Aug 26, 10:05 AM EDTAreal Flood AdvisoryGSPUnion115 min
Aug 26, 10:30 AM EDTTornado WarningGSPUnion30 min
Aug 26, 10:37 AM EDTFlash Flood WarningGSPCabarrus, Mecklenburg3 hr
Aug 26, 11:17 AM EDTAreal Flood AdvisoryGSPBuncombe, Henderson, McDowell, Polk, Rutherford, Yancey118 min
Aug 26, 12:04 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningGSPMcDowell, Rutherford3 hr
Aug 26, 1:34 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningGSPMitchell, Yancey3 hr
Aug 26, 2:15 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningGSPUnion3 hr
Aug 26, 3:32 PM EDTTornado WarningGSPHenderson, Transylvania18 min
Aug 26, 5:27 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningGSPJackson, Transylvania10 hr
Aug 26, 5:55 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningGSPMacon6 hr
Aug 26, 7:05 PM EDTFlash Flood WarningGSPHaywood, Jackson6 hr

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in North 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.