Alert archive / Virginia / Tornado Watches in 2018
Tornado Watch 54
The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at Apr 15, 2018, 6:14 PM EDT for 14 counties in Virginia. It was in force for 7 hr.
The area
The outline as issued.
The facts
- Issued
- Apr 15, 2018, 6:14 PM EDT (22:14 UTC)
- Expired
- Apr 16, 2018, 1:40 AM EDT
- In force
- 7 hr
- Issued by
- the Storm Prediction Center
- Largest hail expected
- 1 in
- Strongest gust expected
- 60 kt
Counties Amelia County, VA, Brunswick County, VA, Chesterfield County, VA, City of Richmond, VA, Cumberland County, VA, Dinwiddie County, VA, Fluvanna County, VA, Goochland County, VA, Henrico County, VA, Lunenburg County, VA, Mecklenburg County, VA, Nottoway County, VA, Powhatan County, VA, Prince Edward County, VA
The radar
The Norfolk radar (KAKQ), 97 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 22:15 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
- 50%
- One or more EF2 to EF5 tornadoes
- 10%
- Ten or more severe wind reports
- 60%
- One or more gusts of 65 knots or more
- 20%
- 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
- 70%
Warnings issued inside it
11 tornado, severe thunderstorm and flash flood warnings for its counties while it was in force.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 15, 7:05 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | AKQ | Prince Edward | 40 min |
| Apr 15, 7:48 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | AKQ | Cumberland, Fluvanna, Goochland | 42 min |
| Apr 15, 8:24 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | AKQ | Amelia, Cumberland, Lunenburg, Nottoway, Prince Edward | 36 min |
| Apr 15, 8:30 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | AKQ | Cumberland, Fluvanna, Goochland | 30 min |
| Apr 15, 8:38 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | AKQ | Lunenburg, Mecklenburg | 37 min |
| Apr 15, 8:59 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | AKQ | Amelia, Cumberland, Goochland, Louisa, Powhatan | 61 min |
| Apr 15, 9:46 PM EDT | Tornado Warning | AKQ | Lunenburg, Nottoway | 29 min |
| Apr 15, 10:14 PM EDT | Tornado Warning | AKQ | Amelia, Chesterfield, Nottoway | 31 min |
| Apr 15, 10:39 PM EDT | Tornado Warning | AKQ | Amelia, Chesterfield, Goochland, Powhatan | 21 min |
| Apr 15, 11:04 PM EDT | Tornado Warning | AKQ | Brunswick, Lunenburg, Nottoway | 17 min |
| Apr 15, 11:22 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | AKQ | Goochland, Hanover, Louisa, Powhatan | 23 min |
Discussions around it
SPC mesoscale discussions over the same counties from four hours before the watch to its end.
The nearest sounding before it
Roanoke, VA (KRNK), launched 12:00Z, 10.2 hours before the alert went out and 136 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
- 0 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- No buoyant parcel
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 881 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 44 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 143 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 148 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 0.0
The text
As transmitted.
485 WWUS20 KWNS 152211 SEL4 SPC WW 152211 VAZ000-160400- URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED Tornado Watch Number 54 NWS Storm Prediction Center Norman OK 615 PM EDT Sun Apr 15 2018 The NWS Storm Prediction Center has issued a * Tornado Watch for portions of South Central Virginia * Effective this Sunday night from 615 PM until Midnight EDT. * Primary threats include... A few tornadoes possible Scattered damaging wind gusts to 70 mph likely SUMMARY...A line of intense thunderstorms over central North Carolina will track north-northeastward into the watch area this evening, posing a threat of locally damaging wind gusts and a few tornadoes. The tornado watch area is approximately along and 30 statute miles east and west of a line from 90 miles north of South Hill VA to 15 miles south southwest of South Hill VA. For a complete depiction of the watch see the associated watch outline update (WOUS64 KWNS WOU4). 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...CONTINUE...WW 52...WW 53... AVIATION...Tornadoes and a few severe thunderstorms with hail surface and aloft to 1 inch. Extreme turbulence and surface wind gusts to 60 knots. A few cumulonimbi with maximum tops to 450. Mean storm motion vector 21040. ...Hart
SPC that day
Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 15, 12:13 PM EDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | Carroll, Floyd, Grayson, City of Galax | 9 hr |
| Apr 15, 2:29 PM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Amherst, Appomattox, Bedford, Botetourt, Buckingham, Campbell and 21 more | 91 min |
| Apr 15, 3:02 PM EDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | Amherst, Appomattox, Bedford, Botetourt, Buckingham, Campbell and 20 more | 8 hr |
| Apr 15, 5:45 PM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Alleghany, Amherst, Appomattox, Bedford, Botetourt, Buckingham and 22 more | 90 min |
| Apr 15, 6:28 PM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | Amelia, Brunswick, Buckingham, Charlotte, Chesterfield, Cumberland and 17 more | 62 min |
Nearby
Tornado Watches in Virginia, 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.