Alert archive / Georgia / Tornado Warnings in 2009

Tornado Warning 124, NWS Atlanta, GA

October 15, 2009Sumter County, Georgia

NWS Atlanta, GA issued this tornado warning at Oct 15, 2009, 6:48 PM EDT for Sumter County, Georgia. It was in force for 27 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: Oct 15, 2009, 6:48 PM EDT (22:48 UTC)
Expired: Oct 15, 2009, 7:15 PM EDT
In force: 27 min
Issued by: NWS Atlanta, GA
Area: Storm-based polygon

County Sumter County, GA

The radar

The Robins AFB radar (KJGX), 115 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 22:48 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
Oct 15, 6:50 PM EDT	TSTM WND DMG	5 Ssw Americus, GA	TREES AND POWER LINES DOWN ON MCLITTLE BRIDGE ROAD
Oct 15, 6:55 PM EDT	TSTM WND DMG	3 S Americus, GA	SOUTH WALL OF A GROCERY STORE COLLAPSED ON HIGHWAY 19.
Oct 15, 6:55 PM EDT	TSTM WND DMG	4 S Americus, GA	TREE FELL ON A HOUSE ON HIGHWAY 19.
Oct 15, 6:55 PM EDT	TSTM WND DMG	5 Ssw Americus, GA	ROOF DAMAGE ON A HOUSE ON HIGHWAY 19 SOUTH OF MCLITTLE BRIDGE RD
Oct 15, 7:00 PM EDT	TORNADO 1	5 S Americus, GA	AN EF1 TORNADO TOUCHED DOWN AT 700 PM APPROX 5 NM S OF AMERICUS NEAR US HWY 19. CAUSED WALL TO COLLAPSE AND OTHER DAMAGE TO GROCERY STORE AT 1146 S HWY 19 SOUTH OF MCLITTLE BRIDGE RD. LARGE TREE FELL ON A FORESTRY BUILDING NEAR THIS LOCATION. ONE HOME WAS ALSO
Oct 15, 7:00 PM EDT	TORNADO	5 S Americus, GA	LIKELY TORNADO TOUCHED DOWN AT 700 PM APPROX 5 NM S OF AMERICUS NEAR US HWY 19. CAUSED WALL TO COLLAPSE AND OTHER DAMAGE TO GROCERY STORE AT 1146 S HWY 19 SOUTH OF MCLITTLE BRIDGE RD. LARGE TREE FELL ON A FORESTRY BUILDING NEAR THIS LOCATION. ONE HOME WAS ALSO

Local storm reports filed while the alert was in force, from inside its polygon or its counties.

The nearest sounding before it

Peachtre/Fal Fld, GA (KFFC), launched 12:00Z, 10.8 hours before the alert went out and 158 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: 455 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 52 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 163 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 204 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 152248
TORFFC
GAC261-152315-
/O.NEW.KFFC.TO.W.0124.091015T2248Z-091015T2315Z/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PEACHTREE CITY GA
648 PM EDT THU OCT 15 2009

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN PEACHTREE CITY HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  SOUTHERN SUMTER COUNTY IN WEST CENTRAL GEORGIA

* UNTIL 715 PM EDT

* AT 648 PM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A TORNADO NEAR PLAINS...
  MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 35 MPH.

* OTHER LOCATIONS IN THE WARNING INCLUDE BUT ARE NOT LIMITED TO
  LESLIE AND DESOTO.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

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.

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 3191 8430 3199 8444 3208 8442 3200 8396
      3190 8406
TIME...MOT...LOC 2249Z 295DEG 30KT 3201 8438

$$

The office that day

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

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Oct 15, 10:00 AM EDT	River Flood Warning	FFC	Johnson, Washington, Wilkinson	5 days
Oct 15, 11:15 AM EDT	River Flood Warning	FFC	Bleckley, Pulaski	70 hr
Oct 15, 11:15 AM EDT	River Flood Warning	FFC	Dodge, Telfair, Wilcox	9 days
Oct 15, 6:34 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FFC	Marion, Schley, Sumter, Webster	26 min
Oct 15, 6:54 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FFC	Crisp, Dooly, Schley, Sumter	36 min
Oct 15, 7:11 PM EDT	Tornado Warning	FFC	Sumter	34 min
Oct 15, 7:33 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	FFC	Crisp, Sumter	42 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Georgia, 2009 Every tornado warning in 2009 Tornadoes in 2009

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.