Georgia, 2005

Tornadoes and Hail in Georgia, January 13, 2005

January 13, 2005 · NWS CAE · 7 events in 3 counties and zones

3 hail, 3 tornado, 1 thunderstorm wind, as filed by the National Weather Service.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it. Tap one for its entry below.

  • Tornadoes
  • Tropical storms and surge
  • Floods
  • Wind
  • Hail
  • Winter weather
  • Heat and drought
  • Cold
  • Fire, smoke and dust
  • Marine and coastal
  • Other

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
7

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Columbia, SC wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jan 13, 3:07 PM EST, 3 hours 3 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jan 13, 3:07 PM EST, 3 hours 3 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE COLUMBIA SC
307 PM EST THU JAN 13 2005

.SHORT TERM (TNGT-SAT)...
ISOLATED SHOWERS SPREADING ACROSS THE AREA THIS MORNING HAVE
BECOME MORE NUMEROUS PAST FEW HOURS. LINE OF SHOWERS AND A FEW TSRA
TO THE WEST CONTINUES TO MOVE EASTWARD ACROSS AL/GA/TN. WILL
CONTINUE THE LAKE WIND ADVISORY THRU MIDNIGHT AS WINDS SHOULD
INCREASE SOME DURING THE EVENING. MODELS IN AGREEMENT ON PCPN TNGT
WITH STRONG UVV...UPPER LEVEL DIVERGENCE AND LOW LEVEL CONVERGENCE
SHOULD BE ENOUGH FOR CATEGORICAL POPS. GOOD LOW LEVEL SHEAR WILL BE
PRESENT OVERNIGHT ALONG WITH FAVORABLE DEEP LAYER SHEAR. STABILITY
IS THE LIMITING FACTOR...ISOLATED STORMS MAY BECOME SEVERE WITH WIND
DAMAGE THE MAIN THREAT LATER TONIGHT INTO THE EARLY MORNING. MIN/MAX
TEMPERATURES FRI WILL BE TRICKY WITH COLD FRONT EXPECTED TO BE NEAR
CAE AT 12Z FRI.

COLD FRONT TO PUSH THROUGH THE AREA LATE TONIGHT EARLY FRI
MORNING...4 TO 9 AM. GOOD CAA SPREAD INTO THE AREA LATER TONIGHT AND
CONTINUES FRIDAY. TEMPERATURES NEAR OR BELOW NORMAL ARE EXPECTED
SAT/SUN AS A DRIER/COLDER AIRMASS DOMINATED THE WEATHER.

&&

.LONG TERM (MON-THU)...
THE LATEST 00Z RUN OF THE GFS IS MUCH COLDER THAN THE PREVIOUS 00Z
RUN.  UPPER LEVEL SHORTWAVE...STRONGER THAN PREVIOUS RUN...MOVES
ACROSS THE AREA LATE MON AND OFFSHORE TUE. WITH UPPER LEVEL FLOW
MORE AMPLIFIED COLDER AIR WILL BE PUSHED ACROSS THE AREA. HAVE LOWER
MAX AND MIN TEMPS SEVERAL DEGREES. ENSEMBLES INDICATING A LARGE
SPREAD IN THE MIN TEMPS ESPECIALLY TUE MORNING...AND WILL NOT GO AS
LOW AS MOS AT THIS TIME. LIMITED DEEP LAYER MOISTURE SPEAKS WELL
FOR A DRY FORECAST.

&&

.AVIATION...
COLD FRONT APPROACHING WILL CAUSE WINDS TO INCREASE FROM THE S TO 15
TO 25 WITH HIGHER GUSTS BKN DECK WILL REMAIN THROUGH THE AFTERNOON
AT AROUND 030. CEILINGS WILL LOWER AS PRECIP BECOMES MORE WIDESPREAD
AFTER 0300Z TO AROUND 015. ISOL THUNDER IN ASSOCIATION WITH THE
FRONT WILL BE AROUND FROM 0000Z TO 1000Z...SOME STORMS MAY BECOME
SEVERE. WIND SHEAR AROUND 2K FT INDICATED BY MODELS WILL CONTINUE
THROUGH 1000Z. FRONTAL PASSAGE IS EXPECTED AROUND 1000Z-1200Z TIME
FRAME.
&&

.PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS...
COLUMBIA     58  60  34  53 / 100  70   0   0
AUGUSTA      58  61  34  53 / 100  70   0   0
SUMTER       59  61  35  53 / 100  70   0   0
ORANGEBURG   60  63  36  53 / 100  70   0   0

&&

.CAE WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
SC...LAKE WIND ADVY  UNTIL 05Z TONIGHT ALL CAE ZONES.
GA...LAKE WIND ADVY  UNTIL 05Z TONIGHT ALL CAE ZONES.

&&

17/25
Hazardous weather outlook, Jan 13, 9:50 AM EST, 8 hours 20 minutes before
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...CORRECTION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE COLUMBIA SC
950 AM EST THU JAN 13 2005

GAZ040-063>065-077-SCZ015-016-018-020>022-025>031-035>038-041-140955-
AIKEN SC-BAMBERG SC-BARNWELL SC-BURKE GA-CALHOUN SC-CHESTERFIELD SC-
CLARENDON SC-COLUMBIA GA-EDGEFIELD SC-FAIRFIELD SC-KERSHAW SC-
LANCASTER SC-LEE SC-LEXINGTON SC-LINCOLN GA-MCCORMICK SC-MCDUFFIE GA-
NEWBERRY SC-ORANGEBURG SC-RICHLAND SC-RICHMOND GA-SALUDA SC-
SUMTER SC-
950 AM EST THU JAN 13 2005

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR THE MIDLANDS OF SOUTH CAROLINA
AND THE CENTRAL SAVANNAH RIVER AREA OF GEORGIA.

.DAY ONE...
A LAKE WIND ADVISORY IS IN EFFECT FROM NOON UNTIL MIDNIGHT. WIND S15
TO 25 KNOTS ARE EXPECTED OVER AREA LAKES TODAY WITH POSSIBLE HIGHER
GUSTS.

THERE IS ALSO A SLIGHT RISK OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS IN THE SOUTH
MIDLANDS AND CENTRAL SAVANNAH RIVER AREA TONIGHT...WIND GUSTS IN
EXCESS OF 65 MPH IS THE MAIN THREAT.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...
NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...
SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE NEEDED TONIGHT IN THE SOUTH MIDLANDS
AND AUGUSTA AREA.

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

3 hail, 3 tornado, 1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Hail, McDuffie

When
January 13, 6:10 PM EST
Where
McDuffie County, 1 mi SE of Thomson
Measured
0.75 in hail
Reported by
BROADCAST MEDIA
Coordinates
33.450, -82.483

WAGT weather sporter reported 3/4 inch hail just southeast of Thomson.

Tornado, McDuffie

When
January 13, 6:15 PM EST to 6:16 PM EST
Where
McDuffie County, 5 mi ENE of Thomson
Rating
F0
Path length
0.1 mi
Path width
30 yd
Reported by
NWS STORM SURVEY
Coordinates
33.500, -82.417

Storm Survey found an F0 broke trees in half at the intersection of I-20 and White Oak road.

Thunderstorm Wind, Columbia

When
January 13, 6:31 PM EST
Where
Columbia County, 4 mi NW of Appling
Measured
50 kt (58 mph) estimated gust
Reported by
NWS STORM SURVEY
Coordinates
33.583, -82.367

Storm Survey found large branches and some small trees down on Marshall road.

Hail, Columbia

When
January 13, 6:34 PM EST
Where
Columbia County, 1 mi NNW of Leah
Measured
0.75 in hail
Reported by
GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates
33.683, -82.333

Public reported 3/4 inch hail.

Tornado, Columbia

When
January 13, 6:37 PM EST to 6:38 PM EST
Where
Columbia County, 1 mi NNW of Leah
Rating
F0
Path length
0.2 mi
Path width
40 yd
Reported by
NWS STORM SURVEY
Coordinates
33.683, -82.333

Storm Survey and witness reported a tornado touchdown at Little River marina. Trees were down and minor damage was done to a mobile home and the Marina store.

Hail, Lincoln

When
January 13, 6:39 PM EST
Where
Lincoln County, 5 mi SE of Lincolnton
Measured
0.75 in hail
Reported by
STORM CHASER
Coordinates
33.733, -82.417

SKYWARN HAM operator reported 3/4 inch hail near Double Branches.

Tornado, Lincoln

When
January 13, 6:40 PM EST to 6:41 PM EST
Where
Lincoln County, 1 mi ENE of Double Branches
Rating
F0
Path length
0.1 mi
Path width
30 yd
Reported by
NWS STORM SURVEY
Coordinates
33.750, -82.317

An F0 touched down on Blanton road taking down some trees.

What these are

Hail
Hail three-quarters of an inch or larger, or smaller hail that caused damage, filed with the largest stone measured.
Tornado
A violently rotating column of air in contact with the ground and extending from a thunderstorm, filed with its path, width and Fujita or Enhanced Fujita rating from the damage survey.
Thunderstorm Wind
Winds from a thunderstorm of 50 knots (58 mph) or more, or lower winds that caused damage or casualties. Measured gusts are marked MG, estimated EG.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Georgia in 2005Every state in 2005This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for Georgia, 2005Warnings in Georgia, January 2005

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5434097, 5434098, 5434099, 5434102, 5434101, 5434100, 5434103.