Alert archive / North Carolina / Tornado Warnings in 2012

Tornado Warning 18, NWS Raleigh, NC

December 26, 2012Cumberland County, Sampson County, North Carolina

NWS Raleigh, NC issued this tornado warning at Dec 26, 2012, 12:31 PM EST for Cumberland County, Sampson County, North Carolina. It was in force for 20 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: Dec 26, 2012, 12:31 PM EST (17:31 UTC)
Expired: Dec 26, 2012, 12:51 PM EST
In force: 20 min
Issued by: NWS Raleigh, NC
Area: Storm-based polygon

Counties Cumberland County, NC, Sampson County, NC

The radar

The Raleigh/Durham radar (KRAX), 83 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 17:32 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.

Issued	Product	Office	Lasted
Dec 26, 10:08 AM EST	Tornado Watch	SPC	6 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Newport, NC (KMHX), launched 12:00Z, 5.5 hours before the alert went out and 152 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: 438 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 51 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 540 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 770 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.

992 
WFUS52 KRAH 261731
TORRAH
NCC051-163-261815-
/O.NEW.KRAH.TO.W.0018.121226T1731Z-121226T1815Z/

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RALEIGH NC
1231 PM EST WED DEC 26 2012

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN RALEIGH HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  SOUTHEASTERN CUMBERLAND COUNTY IN CENTRAL NORTH CAROLINA
  CENTRAL SAMPSON COUNTY IN CENTRAL NORTH CAROLINA

* UNTIL 115 PM EST

* AT 1228 PM EST...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  TORNADO 16 MILES SOUTH OF CEDAR CREEK...OR 13 MILES NORTHWEST OF
  ELIZABETHTOWN...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 55 MPH.

* LOCATIONS IMPACTED INCLUDE...
  ROSEBORO...SALEMBURG...

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

HEAVY RAINFALL MAY HIDE THIS TORNADO MAKING IT DIFFICULT TO SEE. DO
NOT WAIT TO SEE OR HEAR THE TORNADO. TAKE COVER NOW.

PLEASE REPORT SEVERE WEATHER TO THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TO YOUR
LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY.THEY WILL RELAY YOUR REPORT TO THE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE.

A TORNADO WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 500 PM EST WEDNESDAY
AFTERNOON FOR CENTRAL NORTH CAROLINA.

&&

LAT...LON 3485 7850 3484 7890 3520 7863 3500 7824
      3479 7844
TIME...MOT...LOC 1731Z 222DEG 47KT 3475 7876

$$

VINCENT

2 follow-up statements

544 
WWUS52 KRAH 261744
SVSRAH

SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RALEIGH NC
1244 PM EST WED DEC 26 2012

NCC051-163-261815-
/O.CON.KRAH.TO.W.0018.000000T0000Z-121226T1815Z/
CUMBERLAND NC-SAMPSON NC-
1244 PM EST WED DEC 26 2012

...A TORNADO WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 115 PM EST FOR CENTRAL
SAMPSON AND SOUTHEASTERN CUMBERLAND COUNTIES...

AT 1242 PM EST...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR CONTINUED TO
INDICATE A TORNADO.  THIS TORNADO WAS LOCATED 11 MILES SOUTH OF
AUTRYVILLE...OR 15 MILES NORTH OF ELIZABETHTOWN...MOVING NORTHEAST AT
50 MPH.

LOCATIONS IN THE PATH OF THE STORM INCLUDE...ROSEBORO...SALEMBURG 
AND CLINTON.

A TORNADO WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 500 PM EST WEDNESDAY
AFTERNOON FOR CENTRAL NORTH CAROLINA.

LAT...LON 3485 7850 3485 7876 3516 7855 3500 7824
      3479 7844
TIME...MOT...LOC 1744Z 223DEG 42KT 3485 7865

$$

VINCENT

068 
WWUS52 KRAH 261751
SVSRAH

SEVERE WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RALEIGH NC
1251 PM EST WED DEC 26 2012

NCC051-163-261801-
/O.CAN.KRAH.TO.W.0018.000000T0000Z-121226T1815Z/
CUMBERLAND NC-SAMPSON NC-
1251 PM EST WED DEC 26 2012

...THE TORNADO WARNING FOR CENTRAL SAMPSON AND SOUTHEASTERN
CUMBERLAND COUNTIES IS CANCELLED...

THE STORM THAT PROMPTED THE WARNING HAS WEAKENED...AND SEVERE 
WEATHER IS NO LONGER EXPECTED. THEREFORE...THE TORNADO WARNING HAS 
BEEN CANCELLED.

A TORNADO WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 500 PM EST WEDNESDAY
AFTERNOON FOR CENTRAL NORTH CAROLINA.

LAT...LON 3485 7850 3485 7876 3516 7855 3500 7824
      3479 7844
TIME...MOT...LOC 1751Z 223DEG 42KT 3491 7858

$$

VINCENT

The office that day

Everything else NWS Raleigh, NC issued on the same UTC day.

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Dec 26, 12:18 PM EST	Special Weather Statement	RAH	Cumberland	27 min
Dec 26, 1:16 PM EST	Special Weather Statement	RAH	Sampson, Wayne	29 min
Dec 26, 1:31 PM EST	Tornado Warning	RAH	Johnston, Wayne	26 min
Dec 26, 1:51 PM EST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	RAH	Edgecombe, Nash, Wilson	24 min
Dec 26, 2:19 PM EST	Special Weather Statement	RAH	Wayne	26 min
Dec 26, 2:33 PM EST	Special Weather Statement	RAH	Halifax	27 min
Dec 26, 4:50 PM EST	Special Weather Statement	RAH	Nash	25 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in North Carolina, 2012 Every tornado warning in 2012 Tornadoes 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.