Alert archive / North Carolina / Columbus County
Weather alerts in Columbus County, North Carolina, 2020
177 weather alerts in 2020, from the National Weather Service and the Storm Prediction Center. An alert counts here when it covered this county.
Columbus County and its neighbors
Each county as a circle sized by its count in 2020. Tap one for its archive.
- Alerts
- 177
- Warnings
- 41
- Watches
- 18
- Advisories
- 51
- Busiest month
- May38 alerts
- Busiest day
- May 21, 202012 alerts
Over time
By month
Warning verification
How often warnings here had a storm report inside them, and how much warning the reports had.
7 of 19 tornado warnings covering Columbus County in 2020 had a tornado report inside them; 6 of 6 tornado reports fell inside a warning, on average 9 minutes after it went out.
Columbus County, 2020
| Warnings | With a report | False alarm ratio | Reports | Inside a warning | Mean lead time | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tornado warnings | 19 | 7 | 63% | 6 | 100% | 9 min |
| Severe thunderstorm warnings | 14 | 7 | 50% | 3 | 67% | 17 min |
| Flash flood warnings | 4 | 3 | 25% | 5 | 100% | 45 min |
Each office's whole area, 2020
| Warnings | With a report | False alarm ratio | Reports | Inside a warning | Mean lead time | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NWS Wilmington, NC: tornado warnings | 43 | 16 | 63% | 41 | 73% | 10 min |
| NWS Wilmington, NC: severe thunderstorm warnings | 65 | 34 | 48% | 92 | 87% | 21 min |
| NWS Wilmington, NC: flash flood warnings | 10 | 8 | 20% | 30 | 83% | 82 min |
An office's figures cover every county it serves, including across state lines.
Verified by the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's Cow, which matches each storm-based warning with the local storm reports inside its polygon while it was in force, within 15 km of its edge: a tornado warning counts as verified on a tornado report, a severe thunderstorm warning on hail of 1 inch or more, a gust of 58 mph or more, or wind damage, a flash flood warning on a flash flood report. The false alarm ratio is the share of warnings with no such report; "inside a warning" is the probability of detection, the share of reports that fell inside one; lead time runs from the warning's issue to each report inside it, counting zero for a report that came first. A warning with no report is not proof nothing happened: reports come from spotters, the public and damage surveys, and are thin where few people live.
The alerts
Every alert, in the order issued. Times are local, Eastern Time. Each opens its own page with the text, the map, the radar and the sounding.
| Issued | Product | Office | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 12, 1:49 AM EST | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | 86 min |
| Jan 12, 10:52 PM EST | Dense Fog Advisory | ILM | 12 hr |
| Jan 13, 12:46 PM EST | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | 119 min |
| Jan 13, 3:16 PM EST | Areal Flood Advisory | ILM | 52 min |
| Feb 6, 4:00 PM EST | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | 60 min |
| Feb 6, 4:23 PM EST | Tornado Watch | SPC | 9 hr |
| Feb 6, 8:09 PM EST | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | 96 min |
| Feb 6, 8:31 PM EST | Wind Advisory | ILM | 22 hr |
| Feb 6, 9:10 PM EST | Areal Flood Advisory | ILM | 3 hr |
| Feb 6, 10:59 PM EST | Special Weather Statement | ILM | 31 min |
| Feb 7, 12:58 AM EST | Areal Flood Advisory | ILM | 88 min |
| Feb 7, 12:59 AM EST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | ILM | 31 min |
| Feb 13, 3:00 PM EST | Special Weather Statement | ILM | 60 min |
| Feb 20, 3:31 AM EST | Winter Weather Advisory | ILM | 30 hr |
| Mar 6, 2:31 PM EST | Freeze Watch | ILM | 24 hr |
| Mar 7, 2:55 PM EST | Freeze Warning | ILM | 17 hr |
| Apr 9, 6:44 AM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | ILM | 36 min |
| Apr 10, 11:27 AM EDT | Red Flag Warning | ILM | 7 hr |
| Apr 10, 5:27 PM EDT | Frost Advisory | ILM | 15 hr |
| Apr 12, 2:52 PM EDT | Wind Advisory | ILM | 25 hr |
| Apr 13, 4:40 AM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | 95 min |
| Apr 13, 5:01 AM EDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | 7 hr |
| Apr 13, 6:46 AM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | 89 min |
| Apr 13, 7:53 AM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | ILM | 52 min |
| Apr 13, 8:10 AM EDT | Tornado Warning | ILM | 35 min |
| Apr 13, 8:19 AM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | ILM | 26 min |
| Apr 13, 8:42 AM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | ILM | 48 min |
| Apr 13, 8:50 AM EDT | Tornado Warning | ILM | 25 min |
| Apr 13, 9:01 AM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | ILM | 44 min |
| Apr 15, 3:13 PM EDT | Frost Advisory | ILM | 17 hr |
| Apr 16, 3:21 PM EDT | Frost Advisory | ILM | 17 hr |
| Apr 30, 10:24 AM EDT | Special Weather Statement | ILM | 66 min |
| May 5, 6:50 AM EDT | Special Weather Statement | ILM | 55 min |
| May 5, 8:53 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | ILM | 37 min |
| May 5, 8:57 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Watch | SPC | 2 hr |
| May 5, 9:31 PM EDT | Special Weather Statement | ILM | 59 min |
| May 6, 7:41 PM EDT | Special Weather Statement | ILM | 64 min |
| May 18, 7:51 PM EDT | Special Weather Statement | ILM | 39 min |
| May 18, 8:30 PM EDT | Special Weather Statement | ILM | 45 min |
| May 19, 3:16 PM EDT | Flash Flood Watch | ILM | 61 hr |
| May 20, 10:47 PM EDT | Special Weather Statement | ILM | 43 min |
| May 20, 11:12 PM EDT | Areal Flood Advisory | ILM | 2 hr |
| May 21, 2:08 AM EDT | Areal Flood Advisory | ILM | 3 hr |
| May 21, 2:44 AM EDT | Tornado Warning | ILM | 31 min |
| May 21, 3:43 AM EDT | Special Weather Statement | ILM | 62 min |
| May 21, 3:51 AM EDT | Areal Flood Advisory | ILM | 3 hr |
| May 21, 5:07 AM EDT | Flash Flood Warning | ILM | 113 min |
| May 21, 6:54 AM EDT | Flash Flood Warning | ILM | 2 hr |
| May 21, 6:57 AM EDT | Areal Flood Advisory | ILM | 63 min |
| May 21, 7:57 AM EDT | Areal Flood Advisory | ILM | 93 min |
| May 21, 9:26 AM EDT | Areal Flood Advisory | ILM | 64 min |
| May 21, 12:24 PM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | 2 hr |
| May 22, 3:49 PM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | 86 min |
| May 22, 4:14 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Watch | SPC | 5 hr |
| May 22, 6:37 PM EDT | Special Weather Statement | ILM | 53 min |
| May 22, 6:40 PM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | 95 min |
| May 22, 7:33 PM EDT | Special Weather Statement | ILM | 57 min |
| May 27, 8:53 AM EDT | Flash Flood Watch | ILM | 21 hr |
| May 27, 1:38 PM EDT | Areal Flood Advisory | ILM | 4 hr |
| May 27, 6:31 PM EDT | Special Weather Statement | ILM | 29 min |
| May 27, 6:53 PM EDT | Special Weather Statement | ILM | 37 min |
| May 27, 7:00 PM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | 2 hr |
| May 28, 2:00 AM EDT | Areal Flood Advisory | ILM | 2 hr |
| May 28, 3:59 AM EDT | Areal Flood Advisory | ILM | 2 hr |
| May 28, 4:43 AM EDT | Flash Flood Warning | ILM | 2 hr |
| May 28, 11:25 AM EDT | Areal Flood Advisory | ILM | 110 min |
| May 28, 2:15 PM EDT | Areal Flood Advisory | ILM | 2 hr |
| May 29, 8:21 AM EDT | Flash Flood Watch | ILM | 16 hr |
| May 29, 12:37 PM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | 113 min |
| May 29, 3:17 PM EDT | Areal Flood Advisory | ILM | 91 min |
| Jun 11, 12:14 PM EDT | Flash Flood Watch | ILM | 10 hr |
| Jun 11, 2:08 PM EDT | Areal Flood Advisory | ILM | 112 min |
| Jun 12, 9:17 AM EDT | Areal Flood Advisory | ILM | 118 min |
| Jun 12, 11:15 AM EDT | Areal Flood Advisory | ILM | 60 min |
| Jun 16, 6:09 PM EDT | Areal Flood Advisory | ILM | 2 hr |
| Jun 16, 6:39 PM EDT | Flash Flood Warning | ILM | 2 hr |
| Jun 16, 8:25 PM EDT | Areal Flood Advisory | ILM | 59 min |
| Jun 19, 5:22 PM EDT | Special Weather Statement | ILM | 53 min |
| Jun 20, 5:36 PM EDT | Special Weather Statement | ILM | 54 min |
| Jun 20, 6:47 PM EDT | Special Weather Statement | ILM | 58 min |
| Jun 21, 5:49 PM EDT | Special Weather Statement | ILM | 26 min |
| Jun 24, 8:15 PM EDT | Areal Flood Advisory | ILM | 60 min |
| Jun 28, 5:33 PM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | 87 min |
| Jun 28, 9:01 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | ILM | 44 min |
| Jun 28, 9:35 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | ILM | 20 min |
| Jul 8, 4:13 PM EDT | Areal Flood Advisory | ILM | 74 min |
| Jul 13, 1:21 PM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | 84 min |
| Jul 13, 2:48 PM EDT | Special Weather Statement | ILM | 57 min |
| Jul 13, 3:00 PM EDT | Special Weather Statement | ILM | 60 min |
| Jul 13, 3:27 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | ILM | 33 min |
| Jul 13, 3:37 PM EDT | Special Weather Statement | ILM | 53 min |
| Jul 13, 4:21 PM EDT | Special Weather Statement | ILM | 39 min |
| Jul 20, 3:53 AM EDT | Heat Advisory | ILM | 16 hr |
| Jul 20, 8:35 PM EDT | Heat Advisory | ILM | 23 hr |
| Jul 28, 3:48 AM EDT | Heat Advisory | ILM | 15 hr |
| Jul 28, 3:51 PM EDT | Special Weather Statement | ILM | 24 min |
| Jul 28, 4:04 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | ILM | 26 min |
| Jul 29, 5:12 PM EDT | Special Weather Statement | ILM | 63 min |
| Jul 29, 5:18 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | ILM | 27 min |
| Jul 31, 4:48 AM EDT | Heat Advisory | ILM | 14 hr |
| Aug 1, 3:22 AM EDT | Heat Advisory | ILM | 12 hr |
| Aug 1, 1:23 PM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | 2 hr |
| Aug 1, 2:35 PM EDT | Special Weather Statement | ILM | 25 min |
| Aug 1, 2:40 PM EDT | Special Weather Statement | ILM | 65 min |
| Aug 1, 3:11 PM EDT | Areal Flood Advisory | ILM | 64 min |
| Aug 2, 3:10 AM EDT | Flash Flood Watch | ILM | 48 hr |
| Aug 2, 5:12 AM EDT | Tropical Storm Watch | ILM | 6 hr |
| Aug 2, 11:13 AM EDT | Tropical Storm Warning | ILM | 42 hr |
| Aug 3, 3:58 PM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | 2 hr |
| Aug 3, 4:44 PM EDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | 8 hr |
| Aug 3, 8:03 PM EDT | Tornado Warning | ILM | 17 min |
| Aug 3, 8:03 PM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | 117 min |
| Aug 3, 8:10 PM EDT | Tornado Warning | ILM | 35 min |
| Aug 3, 8:50 PM EDT | Tornado Warning | ILM | 25 min |
| Aug 3, 9:56 PM EDT | Tornado Warning | ILM | 34 min |
| Aug 3, 10:25 PM EDT | Areal Flood Advisory | ILM | 3 hr |
| Aug 5, 7:54 AM EDT | Special Weather Statement | ILM | 66 min |
| Aug 5, 4:08 PM EDT | Special Weather Statement | ILM | 52 min |
| Aug 7, 6:58 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | ILM | 16 min |
| Aug 7, 9:16 PM EDT | Special Weather Statement | ILM | 44 min |
| Aug 9, 5:59 PM EDT | Special Weather Statement | ILM | 61 min |
| Aug 10, 6:34 PM EDT | Special Weather Statement | ILM | 56 min |
| Sep 2, 3:15 AM EDT | Heat Advisory | ILM | 16 hr |
| Sep 3, 3:42 AM EDT | Heat Advisory | ILM | 15 hr |
| Sep 9, 4:09 PM EDT | Areal Flood Advisory | ILM | 45 min |
| Sep 16, 9:29 AM EDT | Flash Flood Watch | ILM | 41 hr |
| Sep 17, 2:33 PM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | 117 min |
| Sep 17, 3:06 PM EDT | Tornado Watch | SPC | 8 hr |
| Sep 17, 6:54 PM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | 2 hr |
| Sep 17, 9:39 PM EDT | Areal Flood Advisory | ILM | 111 min |
| Sep 25, 5:30 PM EDT | Areal Flood Advisory | ILM | 3 hr |
| Sep 25, 6:32 PM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | 88 min |
| Sep 25, 6:42 PM EDT | Tornado Warning | ILM | 13 min |
| Sep 25, 6:57 PM EDT | Special Weather Statement | ILM | 63 min |
| Sep 25, 8:28 PM EDT | Areal Flood Advisory | ILM | 3 hr |
| Sep 25, 9:26 PM EDT | Areal Flood Advisory | ILM | 3 hr |
| Sep 25, 11:24 PM EDT | Special Weather Statement | ILM | 51 min |
| Sep 29, 2:36 PM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | 2 hr |
| Sep 29, 8:08 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | ILM | 37 min |
| Oct 11, 7:47 AM EDT | Areal Flood Advisory | ILM | 3 hr |
| Oct 11, 1:31 PM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | 3 hr |
| Oct 11, 4:42 PM EDT | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | 2 hr |
| Oct 11, 5:06 PM EDT | Tornado Warning | ILM | 19 min |
| Oct 11, 5:27 PM EDT | Special Weather Statement | ILM | 33 min |
| Oct 11, 5:43 PM EDT | Tornado Warning | ILM | 32 min |
| Oct 11, 6:19 PM EDT | Tornado Warning | ILM | 26 min |
| Oct 11, 6:37 PM EDT | Tornado Warning | ILM | 23 min |
| Nov 1, 11:36 AM EST | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | 114 min |
| Nov 2, 2:10 PM EST | Frost Advisory | ILM | 18 hr |
| Nov 11, 3:20 AM EST | Flash Flood Watch | ILM | 36 hr |
| Nov 12, 11:36 AM EST | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | 114 min |
| Nov 12, 11:40 AM EST | Areal Flood Advisory | ILM | 5 hr |
| Nov 12, 1:07 PM EST | Areal Flood Advisory | ILM | 3 hr |
| Nov 12, 2:10 PM EST | Special Weather Statement | ILM | 50 min |
| Nov 12, 3:34 PM EST | Flood Watch | ILM | 5 hr |
| Nov 12, 4:15 PM EST | Areal Flood Advisory | ILM | 3 hr |
| Nov 12, 4:16 PM EST | Areal Flood Advisory | ILM | 3 hr |
| Nov 17, 2:50 PM EST | Freeze Watch | ILM | 12 hr |
| Nov 18, 2:53 AM EST | Freeze Warning | ILM | 29 hr |
| Dec 13, 9:15 PM EST | Dense Fog Advisory | ILM | 9 hr |
| Dec 24, 12:03 PM EST | Tornado Warning | ILM | 27 min |
| Dec 24, 12:12 PM EST | Tornado Warning | ILM | 33 min |
| Dec 24, 12:16 PM EST | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | 2 hr |
| Dec 24, 12:57 PM EST | Special Weather Statement | ILM | 63 min |
| Dec 24, 1:16 PM EST | Tornado Warning | ILM | 29 min |
| Dec 24, 2:19 PM EST | Tornado Watch | SPC | 9 hr |
| Dec 24, 2:25 PM EST | Tornado Warning | ILM | 35 min |
| Dec 24, 2:55 PM EST | Tornado Warning | ILM | 35 min |
| Dec 24, 3:08 PM EST | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | 2 hr |
| Dec 24, 3:16 PM EST | Tornado Warning | ILM | 29 min |
| Dec 24, 3:23 PM EST | Tornado Warning | ILM | 37 min |
| Dec 24, 4:01 PM EST | Special Weather Statement | ILM | 44 min |
| Dec 24, 7:13 PM EST | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | 2 hr |
| Dec 24, 8:23 PM EST | Areal Flood Advisory | ILM | 3 hr |
| Dec 24, 8:43 PM EST | Special Weather Statement | ILM | 62 min |
| Dec 24, 9:39 PM EST | Special Weather Statement | ILM | 66 min |
| Dec 31, 3:26 PM EST | Mesoscale Discussion | SPC | 2 hr |
By product
Every kind of product issued here, grouped by hazard. Each opens the same place narrowed to that product.
| Product | Alerts |
|---|---|
| Severe storms | |
| Severe Thunderstorm Warning | 14 |
| Tornado Warning | 19 |
| Severe Thunderstorm Watch | 2 |
| Tornado Watch | 5 |
| Mesoscale Discussion | 28 |
| Special Weather Statement | 39 |
| Flooding | |
| Flash Flood Warning | 4 |
| Flash Flood Watch | 7 |
| Flood Watch | 1 |
| Areal Flood Advisory | 35 |
| Winter | |
| Winter Weather Advisory | 1 |
| Heat | |
| Heat Advisory | 7 |
| Cold | |
| Freeze Warning | 2 |
| Freeze Watch | 2 |
| Frost Advisory | 4 |
| Wind and dust | |
| Wind Advisory | 2 |
| Fire | |
| Red Flag Warning | 1 |
| Fog and smoke | |
| Dense Fog Advisory | 2 |
| Tropical | |
| Tropical Storm Warning | 1 |
| Tropical Storm Watch | 1 |
The busiest days
Days with the most alerts issued, by UTC date.
Nearby
Alerts in force nowTornadoes on recordForecastThe radar archive20192021
Sources
National Weather Service watches, warnings, advisories and statements from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's VTEC archive, which reconstructs tornado, severe thunderstorm, flash flood and marine warnings back to 1986 from the NWS text archive. Storm Prediction Center watches and mesoscale discussions from SPC's archive through the Mesonet. County centers from the US Census Bureau. Warning verification from the Mesonet's Cow. Rebuilt daily.