Alert archive / South Carolina / Tornado Warnings in 2011

Tornado Warning 5, NWS Charleston, SC

April 16, 2011Berkeley County, South Carolina

NWS Charleston, SC issued this tornado warning at Apr 16, 2011, 5:28 PM EDT for Berkeley County, South Carolina. It was in force for 32 min. 2 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: Apr 16, 2011, 5:28 PM EDT (21:28 UTC)
Expired: Apr 16, 2011, 6:00 PM EDT
In force: 32 min
Issued by: NWS Charleston, SC
Area: Storm-based polygon

County Berkeley County, SC

The radar

The Wilmington radar (KLTX), 141 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 21:28 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
Apr 16, 5:42 PM EDT	HAIL 0.88	3 Ene Bonneau, SC
Apr 16, 5:57 PM EDT	HAIL 1	8 Wnw Jamestown, SC

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.

Issued	Product	Office	Lasted
Apr 16, 12:02 PM EDT	Tornado Watch PDS	SPC	11 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Charleston AFB, SC (KCHS), launched 12:00Z, 9.5 hours before the alert went out and 52 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: 421 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -9 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 687 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 0 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 0 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 0 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.

596 
WFUS52 KCHS 162128
TORCHS
SCC015-162200-
/O.NEW.KCHS.TO.W.0005.110416T2128Z-110416T2200Z/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLESTON SC
528 PM EDT SAT APR 16 2011

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN CHARLESTON HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  EAST CENTRAL BERKELEY COUNTY IN SOUTHEAST SOUTH CAROLINA...

* UNTIL 600 PM EDT

* AT 527 PM EDT...LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT REPORTED A TORNADO 8 MILES
  NORTHWEST OF JAMESTOWN...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 55 MPH.

* SOME LOCATIONS IN THE WARNING INCLUDE...
  JAMESTOWN...SAINT STEPHEN...

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

THIS IS AN EXTREMELY DANGEROUS AND LIFE THREATENING SITUATION. THIS
TORNADO IS CAPABLE OF PRODUCING SEVERE DAMAGE TO STRUCTURES. IF YOU
ARE IN THE PATH OF THIS TORNADO...THE SAFEST PLACE TO BE IS AN
INTERIOR BATHROOM OR CLOSET ON THE LOWEST FLOOR. PROTECT YOUR HEAD.

&&

LAT...LON 3320 7957 3323 7987 3332 7995 3340 7995
      3343 7986 3340 7983 3339 7979 3332 7974
      3328 7958 3325 7953 3325 7949 3323 7946
TIME...MOT...LOC 2128Z 242DEG 46KT 3338 7976

$$

1 follow-up statement

329 
WWUS52 KCHS 162143
SVSCHS

SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLESTON SC
543 PM EDT SAT APR 16 2011

SCC015-162200-
/O.CON.KCHS.TO.W.0005.000000T0000Z-110416T2200Z/
BERKELEY SC-
543 PM EDT SAT APR 16 2011

...A TORNADO WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 600 PM EDT FOR EAST
CENTRAL BERKELEY COUNTY...

AT 540 PM EDT...WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR CONTINUED TO INDICATE A
POSSIBLE TORNADO WITH A STORM THAT HAS RECENTLY MOVING INTO 
WILLIAMSBURG COUNTY.  ADDITIONAL THUNDERSTORMS WITH STRONG ROTATION 
WERE MOVING TOWARD THE TORNADO WARNING AREA. TAKE COVER NOW AS AN 
ADDITIONAL TORNADO REMAINS POSSIBLE TO THE EAST OF LAKE MOULTRIE.

SOME LOCATIONS IN OR NEAR THE PATH OF THIS STORM INCLUDE...JAMESTOWN
AND SAINT STEPHEN.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

IF YOU ARE IN THE PATH OF A TORNADO...THE SAFEST PLACE IN A HOME OR
BUSINESS IS AN INTERIOR ROOM OR HALLWAY ON THE LOWEST FLOOR POSSIBLE.
AVOID WINDOWS.

&&

LAT...LON 3320 7957 3323 7987 3332 7995 3340 7995
      3343 7986 3340 7983 3339 7979 3332 7974
      3328 7958 3325 7953 3325 7949 3323 7946
TIME...MOT...LOC 2140Z 251DEG 44KT 3335 7965

$$

The office that day

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

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Apr 16, 12:35 PM EDT	High Wind Warning	CHS	Berkeley	7 hr
Apr 16, 2:05 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	CHS	Allendale, Colleton, Hampton	40 min
Apr 16, 3:18 PM EDT	Special Weather Statement	CHS	Dorchester	27 min
Apr 16, 4:11 PM EDT	Special Weather Statement	CHS	Dorchester	49 min
Apr 16, 4:22 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	CHS	Berkeley, Colleton, Dorchester	53 min
Apr 16, 4:53 PM EDT	Tornado Warning	CHS	Berkeley	37 min
Apr 16, 5:29 PM EDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	CHS	Berkeley	61 min
Apr 16, 5:53 PM EDT	Tornado Warning	CHS	Berkeley	52 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in South Carolina, 2011 Every tornado warning in 2011 Tornadoes in 2011

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.