Alert archive / South Carolina / Tornado Warnings in 2012

Tornado Warning 8, NWS Charleston, SC

May 22, 2012Berkeley County, South Carolina

NWS Charleston, SC issued this tornado warning at May 22, 2012, 8:18 PM EDT for Berkeley County, South Carolina. It was in force for 19 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
May 22, 2012, 8:18 PM EDT (00:18 UTC)
Expired
May 22, 2012, 8:37 PM EDT
In force
19 min
Issued by
NWS Charleston, SC
Area
Storm-based polygon

County Berkeley County, SC

The radar

The Charleston,SC radar (KCLX), 139 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 00:21 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
May 22, 3:32 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPC5 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Charleston AFB, SC (KCHS), launched 00:00Z, 0.3 hours before the alert went out and 47 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 00:00Z on 2012-05-23Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1022 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 00:00Z on 2012-05-23The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 56 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
1022 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-41 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1333 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
29 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
56 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
66 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.1
Supercell composite
1.4

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

901 
WFUS52 KCHS 230018
TORCHS
SCC015-230100-
/O.NEW.KCHS.TO.W.0008.120523T0018Z-120523T0100Z/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLESTON SC
818 PM EDT TUE MAY 22 2012

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN CHARLESTON HAS ISSUED A

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

* UNTIL 900 PM EDT

* AT 819 PM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM CAPABLE OF PRODUCING A TORNADO 8 MILES
  SOUTHWEST OF JAMESTOWN...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 25 MPH.

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

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

TAKE SHELTER AS THUNDERSTORMS APPROACH.

REPORT HAIL...DOWNED TREES...LIMBS...AND POWER LINES DIRECTLY TO THE
CHARLESTON NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AT 1-888-383-2024...WHEN IT IS
SAFE TO DO SO.

&&

LAT...LON 3311 7987 3328 7995 3335 7977 3332 7974
      3332 7970 3330 7967 3328 7957 3324 7949
TIME...MOT...LOC 0019Z 247DEG 22KT 3323 7980

$$
2 follow-up statements
514 
WWUS52 KCHS 230031
SVSCHS

SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLESTON SC
831 PM EDT TUE MAY 22 2012

SCC015-230100-
/O.CON.KCHS.TO.W.0008.000000T0000Z-120523T0100Z/
BERKELEY SC-
831 PM EDT TUE MAY 22 2012

...A TORNADO WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 900 PM EDT FOR EAST
CENTRAL BERKELEY COUNTY...

AT 832 PM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR CONTINUED TO
INDICATE A TORNADO.  THIS TORNADO WAS LOCATED NEAR FAREWELL CORNER...
OR ABOUT 16 MILES EAST OF MONCKS CORNER...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 25 MPH.

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

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

TAKE COVER NOW. IF YOU WAIT UNTIL YOU SEE OR HEAR THE TORNADO
COMING...IT MAY BE TOO LATE TO GET TO A SAFE PLACE.

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 SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 900 PM EDT
TUESDAY EVENING FOR SOUTHEAST SOUTH CAROLINA.

&&

LAT...LON 3314 7978 3329 7979 3335 7977 3332 7974
      3332 7970 3330 7967 3328 7957 3324 7949
TIME...MOT...LOC 0032Z 247DEG 22KT 3326 7972

$$
829 
WWUS52 KCHS 230037
SVSCHS

SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLESTON SC
837 PM EDT TUE MAY 22 2012

SCC015-230047-
/O.CAN.KCHS.TO.W.0008.000000T0000Z-120523T0100Z/
BERKELEY SC-
837 PM EDT TUE MAY 22 2012

...THE TORNADO WARNING FOR EAST CENTRAL BERKELEY COUNTY HAS BEEN
CANCELLED...

AT 837 PM EDT...RADAR INDICATED THAT THE TORNADIC THUNDERSTORM WHICH
PROMPTED THE WARNING HAD WEAKENED...AND WAS NO LONGER CAPABLE OF
PRODUCING TORNADOES OR OTHER SEVERE WEATHER. THE TORNADO WARNING HAS 
THEREFORE BEEN CANCELED. HOWEVER...A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING 
REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR THE AREA THROUGH 900 PM EDT

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 SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 900 PM EDT
TUESDAY EVENING FOR SOUTHEAST SOUTH CAROLINA.

LAT...LON 3314 7978 3329 7979 3335 7977 3332 7974
      3332 7970 3330 7967 3328 7957 3324 7949
TIME...MOT...LOC 0037Z 247DEG 22KT 3327 7969

$$

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
May 22, 8:07 PM EDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningCHSBerkeley, Charleston53 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; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.