Alert archive / North Carolina / Tornado Watches in 2018
Tornado Watch 376
The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at Sep 15, 2018, 6:59 AM EDT for 20 counties in North Carolina. It was in force for 10 hr.
The area
The outline as issued.
The facts
- Issued
- Sep 15, 2018, 6:59 AM EDT (10:59 UTC)
- Expired
- Sep 15, 2018, 5:00 PM EDT
- In force
- 10 hr
- Issued by
- the Storm Prediction Center
- Strongest gust expected
- 60 kt
Counties Bladen County, NC, Brunswick County, NC, Columbus County, NC, Cumberland County, NC, Duplin County, NC, Greene County, NC, Harnett County, NC, Hoke County, NC, Johnston County, NC, Jones County, NC, Lee County, NC, Lenoir County, NC, Moore County, NC, New Hanover County, NC, Onslow County, NC, Pender County, NC, Robeson County, NC, Sampson County, NC, Wayne County, NC, Wilson County, NC
The radar
The Raleigh/Durham radar (KRAX), 76 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 11:03 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 SPC expected
The probabilities SPC published with the watch, for the watch area over its life.
- Two or more tornadoes
- 40%
- One or more EF2 to EF5 tornadoes
- 20%
- Ten or more severe wind reports
- 5%
- One or more gusts of 65 knots or more
- 5%
- Ten or more severe hail reports
- 5%
- One or more hailstones of 2 inches or more
- 5%
- Six or more combined severe hail and wind reports
- 20%
Warnings issued inside it
9 tornado, severe thunderstorm and flash flood warnings for its counties while it was in force.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 15, 7:31 AM EDT | Flash Flood Warning | RAH | Johnston, Sampson, Wayne | 3 hr |
| Sep 15, 9:42 AM EDT | Flash Flood Warning | MHX | Carteret, Jones, Pamlico | 6 hr |
| Sep 15, 11:12 AM EDT | Tornado Warning | ILM | Pender | 23 min |
| Sep 15, 11:19 AM EDT | Tornado Warning | RAH | Sampson | 26 min |
| Sep 15, 11:24 AM EDT | Tornado Warning | MHX | Duplin | 21 min |
| Sep 15, 11:30 AM EDT | Tornado Warning | MHX | Duplin, Jones, Onslow | 27 min |
| Sep 15, 2:57 PM EDT | Flash Flood Warning | MHX | Carteret, Craven, Duplin, Jones, Lenoir, Onslow | 22 hr |
| Sep 15, 3:45 PM EDT | Flash Flood Warning | MHX | Carteret, Jones, Pamlico | 8 hr |
| Sep 15, 4:34 PM EDT | Flash Flood Warning | MHX | Carteret, Craven, Jones, Onslow, Pamlico | 7 hr |
Discussions around it
SPC mesoscale discussions over the same counties from four hours before the watch to its end.
The nearest sounding before it
Newport, NC (KMHX), launched 00:00Z, 11.0 hours before the alert went out and 141 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.
- Mixed-layer CAPE
- 522 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- 0 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 546 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
The text
As transmitted.
315 WWUS20 KWNS 151056 SEL6 SPC WW 151056 NCZ000-CWZ000-152100- URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED Tornado Watch Number 376 NWS Storm Prediction Center Norman OK 700 AM EDT Sat Sep 15 2018 The NWS Storm Prediction Center has issued a * Tornado Watch for portions of Southeastern North Carolina Coastal Waters * Effective this Saturday morning and afternoon from 700 AM until 500 PM EDT. * Primary threats include... A couple tornadoes possible SUMMARY...The tornado potential with Florence should remain in the northeastern quadrant, especially in middle-outer bands that can access at least marginal instability near the coast and inland. The risk should shift very slowly westward with time. The tornado watch area is approximately along and 55 statute miles either side of a line from 25 miles west southwest of Fayetteville NC to 30 miles east of Jacksonville NC. For a complete depiction of the watch see the associated watch outline update (WOUS64 KWNS WOU6). PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... 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 375. Watch number 375 will not be in effect after 700 AM EDT. AVIATION...Tornadoes and a few severe thunderstorms with hail surface and aloft to 0 inches. Extreme turbulence and surface wind gusts to 60 knots. A few cumulonimbi with maximum tops to 550. Mean storm motion vector 14040. ...Edwards
SPC that day
Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 14, 8:01 PM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Beaufort, Carteret, Craven, Cumberland, Dare, Duplin and 18 more | 119 min |
| Sep 14, 10:25 PM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Bladen, Brunswick, Carteret, Columbus, Craven, Cumberland and 11 more | 95 min |
| Sep 14, 11:03 PM EDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | Bladen, Brunswick, Carteret, Columbus, Craven, Cumberland and 12 more | 8 hr |
| Sep 15, 2:59 AM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Bladen, Brunswick, Carteret, Columbus, Craven, Cumberland and 12 more | 91 min |
| Sep 15, 6:15 AM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Beaufort, Bladen, Brunswick, Carteret, Columbus, Craven and 16 more | 90 min |
| Sep 15, 12:01 PM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Bladen, Brunswick, Columbus, Craven, Cumberland, Duplin and 9 more | 119 min |
| Sep 15, 3:26 PM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Pender | 64 min |
| Sep 15, 4:38 PM EDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | Bladen, Brunswick, Columbus, Cumberland, Hoke, New Hanover and 4 more | 6 hr |
Nearby
Tornado Watches in North Carolina, 2018Every tornado watch in 2018
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.