Tornado Watch 21

Issued

Jan 30, 2013, 12:19 PM CST (18:19 UTC)

Expired

Jan 30, 2013, 8:54 PM CST

In force

9 hr

Issued by

the Storm Prediction Center

Largest hail expected

1 in

Strongest gust expected

65 kt

The Atlanta radar (KFFC), 111 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 18:23 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.

Two or more tornadoes

50%

One or more EF2 to EF5 tornadoes

30%

Ten or more severe wind reports

70%

One or more gusts of 65 knots or more

40%

Ten or more severe hail reports

10%

One or more hailstones of 2 inches or more

5%

Six or more combined severe hail and wind reports

90%

• Mesoscale Discussion 97Jan 30, 10:09 AM CST
• Mesoscale Discussion 98Jan 30, 11:50 AM CST
• Mesoscale Discussion 102Jan 30, 3:13 PM CST
• Mesoscale Discussion 103Jan 30, 4:31 PM CST
• Mesoscale Discussion 105Jan 30, 6:56 PM CST

353 
WWUS20 KWNS 301820
SEL1  
SPC WW 301820
ALZ000-GAZ000-NCZ000-SCZ000-310100-

URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 21
NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
120 PM EST WED JAN 30 2013

THE NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF 

       SOUTHEAST ALABAMA
       WESTERN...CENTRAL...AND NORTHEAST GEORGIA
       WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA
       UPSTATE SOUTH CAROLINA

EFFECTIVE THIS WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING FROM 120 PM UNTIL
800 PM EST.

TORNADOES...HAIL TO 1 INCH IN DIAMETER...THUNDERSTORM WIND GUSTS
TO 75 MPH...AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE IN THESE AREAS.

THE TORNADO WATCH AREA IS APPROXIMATELY ALONG AND 70 STATUTE
MILES EAST AND WEST OF A LINE FROM 20 MILES NORTH NORTHWEST OF
HICKORY NORTH CAROLINA TO 50 MILES WEST SOUTHWEST OF DOTHAN
ALABAMA.  FOR A COMPLETE DEPICTION OF THE WATCH SEE THE
ASSOCIATED WATCH OUTLINE UPDATE (WOUS64 KWNS WOU1).

REMEMBER...A TORNADO WATCH MEANS CONDITIONS ARE FAVORABLE FOR
TORNADOES AND SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS IN AND CLOSE TO THE WATCH
AREA. PERSONS IN THESE AREAS SHOULD BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR
THREATENING WEATHER CONDITIONS AND LISTEN FOR LATER STATEMENTS
AND POSSIBLE WARNINGS.

OTHER WATCH INFORMATION...THIS TORNADO WATCH REPLACES TORNADO
WATCH NUMBER 18...TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 19. WATCH NUMBER 18 19
WILL NOT BE IN EFFECT AFTER 120 PM EST. 

DISCUSSION...THE PRE-FRONTAL SQUALL LINE CONTINUES TO ORGANIZE FROM
E CENTRAL AL INTO N GA...WITH OTHER MORE ISOLATED STORMS CONTINUING
TO FORM IN THE WARM SECTOR AND MERGE INTO THE BAND.  INSTABILITY AND
VERTICAL SHEAR REMAIN FAVORABLE FOR SUPERCELLS/TORNADOES WITH THE
WARM SECTOR STORMS...WHILE DAMAGING WINDS AND EMBEDDED CIRCULATIONS
WILL BE POSSIBLE WITHIN THE CONVECTIVE BAND.  THE SEVERE RISK WILL
BEGIN TO SPREAD NEWD ACROSS UPSTATE SC AND WRN NC AS THE LOW LEVELS
DESTABILIZE AND THE SYNOPTIC SYSTEM EJECTS NEWD FROM THE LOWER MS
VALLEY THROUGH THIS EVENING.

AVIATION...TORNADOES AND A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH HAIL
SURFACE AND ALOFT TO 1 INCH. EXTREME TURBULENCE AND SURFACE WIND
GUSTS TO 65 KNOTS. A FEW CUMULONIMBI WITH MAXIMUM TOPS TO 450.
MEAN STORM MOTION VECTOR 24050.


...THOMPSON

Tornado Watches in Georgia, 2013Tornado Watches in North Carolina, 2013Tornado Watches in Alabama, 2013Every tornado watch in 2013

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.