Alert archive / South Carolina / Tornado Warnings in 2012

Tornado Warning 2, NWS Charleston, SC

February 24, 2012Colleton County, Dorchester County, South Carolina

NWS Charleston, SC issued this tornado warning at Feb 24, 2012, 5:10 PM EST for Colleton County, Dorchester County, South Carolina. It was in force for 29 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
Feb 24, 2012, 5:10 PM EST (22:10 UTC)
Expired
Feb 24, 2012, 5:39 PM EST
In force
29 min
Issued by
NWS Charleston, SC
Area
Storm-based polygon

Counties Colleton County, SC, Dorchester County, SC

The radar

The Charleston,SC radar (KCLX), 39 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 22:10 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 24, 5:11 PM ESTTORNADO4 Se Islandton, SC1 HOME DESTROYED. ROOF BLOWN OFF A HOUSE. POWERLINES DOWN.
Feb 24, 5:12 PM ESTTORNADO3 Ese Islandton, SC2 HOMES DAMAGED. 1 SHED DESTROYED. NUMEROUS TREES DOWN. REPORTS ALONG 300 BLOCK OF FORKS ROAD. TIME ESTIMATED BASED ON RADAR.

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 24, 12:04 PM ESTTornado WatchSPC7 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Charleston AFB, SC (KCHS), launched 12:00Z, 10.2 hours before the alert went out and 72 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, Charleston AFB, SC at 12:00Z on 2012-02-24Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 817 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, Charleston AFB, SC at 12:00Z on 2012-02-24The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 350 square meters per square second.1939587897Sfc1 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
817 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-120 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
606 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
70 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
350 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
365 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
9.4

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

137 
WFUS52 KCHS 242210
TORCHS
SCC029-035-242300-
/O.NEW.KCHS.TO.W.0002.120224T2210Z-120224T2300Z/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLESTON SC
510 PM EST FRI FEB 24 2012

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN CHARLESTON HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  NORTHERN COLLETON COUNTY IN SOUTHEAST SOUTH CAROLINA...
  CENTRAL DORCHESTER COUNTY IN SOUTHEAST SOUTH CAROLINA...

* UNTIL 600 PM EST

* AT 510 PM EST...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE METEOROLOGISTS DETECTED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A TORNADO...NEAR
  ISLANDTON...MOVING EAST AT 35 MPH.

* SOME LOCATIONS IN THE WARNING INCLUDE...
  ISLANDTON...WALTERBORO...CANADYS...ROUND O...COTTAGEVILLE...

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

REPORT HAIL...DOWNED TREES...LIMBS...AND POWER LINES DIRECTLY TO THE
CHARLESTON NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AT 1-888-383-2024.

&&

LAT...LON 3311 8045 3288 8041 3281 8089 3283 8090
      3286 8093 3287 8094 3287 8095 3294 8099
TIME...MOT...LOC 2210Z 252DEG 30KT 3288 8089

$$

BSH
2 follow-up statements
221 
WWUS52 KCHS 242221
SVSCHS

SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLESTON SC
521 PM EST FRI FEB 24 2012

SCC029-035-242300-
/O.CON.KCHS.TO.W.0002.000000T0000Z-120224T2300Z/
DORCHESTER SC-COLLETON SC-
521 PM EST FRI FEB 24 2012

...A TORNADO WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 600 PM EST FOR CENTRAL
COLLETON AND CENTRAL DORCHESTER COUNTIES...

AT 521 PM EST...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR CONTINUED TO
INDICATE A TORNADO.  THIS TORNADO WAS LOCATED NEAR STOKES...OR ABOUT
6 MILES WEST OF WALTERBORO...MOVING EAST AT 35 MPH.

SOME LOCATIONS IN OR NEAR THE PATH OF THIS STORM INCLUDE...
COTTAGEVILLE...ROUND O AND WALTERBORO.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

TO REPORT SEVERE WEATHER SUCH AS HAIL...DOWNED TREES...LIMBS...AND
POWER LINES...PLEASE CONTACT THE CHARLESTON NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE
TOLL FREE AT 1-888-383-2024 OR EMAIL YOUR REPORTS TO
CHS.SKYWARN@NOAA.GOV.

A TORNADO WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 800 PM EST FRIDAY EVENING FOR
SOUTHEAST GEORGIA AND SOUTHEAST SOUTH CAROLINA.

&&

LAT...LON 3285 8078 3296 8083 3311 8045 3288 8041
TIME...MOT...LOC 2221Z 256DEG 30KT 3291 8076

$$

BSH
342 
WWUS52 KCHS 242239
SVSCHS

SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLESTON SC
539 PM EST FRI FEB 24 2012

SCC029-035-242248-
/O.CAN.KCHS.TO.W.0002.000000T0000Z-120224T2300Z/
DORCHESTER SC-COLLETON SC-
539 PM EST FRI FEB 24 2012

...THE TORNADO WARNING FOR NORTHERN COLLETON AND CENTRAL DORCHESTER
COUNTIES HAS BEEN CANCELLED...

AT 538 PM EST...RADAR INDICATED THAT THE TORNADIC THUNDERSTORM WHICH 
PROMPTED THE WARNING HAD WEAKENED...AND THE WARNING HAS BEEN 
CANCELED. A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR THE AREA.

A TORNADO WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 800 PM EST FRIDAY EVENING FOR
SOUTHEAST GEORGIA AND SOUTHEAST SOUTH CAROLINA.

LAT...LON 3285 8078 3296 8083 3311 8045 3288 8041
TIME...MOT...LOC 2238Z 256DEG 30KT 3294 8059

$$

BSH

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Feb 24, 3:39 AM ESTWind AdvisoryCHSAllendale, Berkeley, Colleton, Dorchester, Hampton15 hr
Feb 24, 3:24 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCHSBeaufort, Colleton, Jasper66 min
Feb 24, 3:33 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCHSAllendale, Hampton, Jasper57 min
Feb 24, 4:26 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCHSAllendale, Colleton, Hampton, Jasper34 min
Feb 24, 4:57 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCHSBeaufort, Berkeley, Charleston, Colleton, Dorchester, Hampton and 1 more63 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in South Carolina, 2012Every tornado warning in 2012Tornadoes in 2012

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.