A warm and moist airmass developed over southeast Georgia well ahead of an approaching cold front. A few severe thunderstorms developed within the airmass, producing strong and damaging winds.
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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.
The episode as NWS CHS wrote it up.
A warm and moist airmass developed over southeast Georgia well ahead of an approaching cold front. A few severe thunderstorms developed within the airmass, producing strong and damaging winds.
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 Charleston, SC wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Aug 11, 11:16 AM EST, 1 hour 29 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLESTON SC 1216 PM EDT TUE AUG 11 2015 .SYNOPSIS... HIGH PRESSURE WILL WEAKEN TODAY. A WEAK COLD FRONT WILL MOVE INTO THE AREA WEDNESDAY...THEN PUSH SOUTH INTO NORTHERN FLORIDA THURSDAY BEFORE EVENTUALLY DISSIPATING OVER THE WEEKEND. && .NEAR TERM /UNTIL 6 PM THIS EVENING/... CONVECTION HAS INITIATED OVER CENTRAL GEORGIA AS EXPECTED. ACTIVITY WILL GRADUALLY EXPAND EAST AND POSSIBLY UP THE SEA BREEZE THROUGH THE AFTERNOON WITH SOME UPSCALE GROWTH AS BOTH MLCAPE AND SBCAPE IS SLOWLY BUILDING. POPS HAVE BEEN MODIFIED SLIGHTLY AS IT NOW APPEARS THE MOST LIKELY AREAS FOR MEASURABLE RAINFALL WILL BE THE COAST AND MUCH OF INTERIOR SOUTHEAST GEORGIA. LIKELY POPS WILL BE MAINTAINED THERE. IT IS STILL UNCLEAR HOW MUCH CONVECTION WILL REACH INTERIOR SOUTHEAST SOUTH CAROLINA...AS MUCH WILL DEPEND ON HOW THE MESOSCALE PATTERN EVOLVES OVER TIME. LOWERED POPS SLIGHTLY TO 50 PERCENT IN THIS AREA. THE REST OF THE FORECAST IS ON TRACK. A RISK FOR LOCALLY HEAVY RAINFALL WILL BE PRESENT AS PWATS SURGE TO 2.20-2.30 INCHES AS GULF COAST MOISTURE INCREASES AHEAD OF AN APPROACHING COLD FRONT. THE STORMS LOOK TO REMAIN PROGRESSIVE ENOUGH THAT FLASH FLOODING SHOULD NOT BE MUCH OF AN ISSUE...ALTHOUGH MINOR FLOODING OF LOW LYING AND POOR DRAINAGE AREAS COULD OCCUR. DCAPES ARE ALSO FORECAST TO INCREASE TO 700-900 J/KG BY MID-LATE AFTERNOON...WHICH COULD SUPPORT AN ISOLATED SEVERE TSTM OR TWO...ESPECIALLY ALONG BOUNDARY COLLISIONS. THE PRIMARY HAZARD WILL BE DAMAGING WINDS AND CLOUD TO GROUND LIGHTNING. && .SHORT TERM /6 PM THIS EVENING THROUGH FRIDAY/... TONIGHT...THE MAIN SYNOPTIC SCALE DISTURBANCE WILL MOVE SOUTH AND EAST OF THE AREA INTO THE COASTAL WATERS AND NORTHERN FLORIDA AFTER MIDNIGHT...SO THE LIKELY POPS IN THE EARLY EVENING WILL RAMP DOWN STEADILY OVERNIGHT. OVERVIEW...A WEAK COLD FRONT WILL PUSH SOUTH THROUGH THE AREA WEDNESDAY NIGHT INTO THURSDAY AND REMAIN THERE THROUGH FRIDAY. THIS WILL ALLOW A SLIGHTLY COOLER AND DRIER AIR MASS TO MOVE IN FROM THE NORTH. WEDNESDAY...THE LINGERING COLD FRONT ALONG WITH THE SEA BREEZE WILL LEAD TO SOME SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS. INSTABILITY LOOKS MINIMAL BUT COULD BE SUFFICIENT FOR A FEW STRONG STORMS...ESPECIALLY GIVEN THE 25 KT OF BULK SHEAR. HIGHS LIKELY A BIT ABOVE NORMAL IN THE LOWER TO MID 90S AWAY FROM THE COAST. RAIN CHANCES WILL DIMINISH WEDNESDAY NIGHT AS THE FRONT SHIFTS INTO SOUTHEAST GEORGIA BUT A FEW SHOWERS COULD LINGER NEAR THE COAST. THURSDAY...THE WEAK COLD FRONT SHOULD BE OVER SOUTHEAST GEORGIA MOVING TOWARD FLORIDA. HOWEVER...SOME UPPER FORCING FROM THE TROUGH AND JET AND THE SEA BREEZE WILL LEAD TO SOME SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS...LIKELY HEAVIEST OVER SOUTHEAST GEORGIA. HIGHS NEAR NORMAL. MOSTLY DRY THURSDAY NIGHT BUT SOME SHOWERS COULD IMPACT COASTAL AREAS...MAINLY IN GEORGIA. FRIDAY...MOIST ONSHORE FLOW TO CONTINUE LEADING TO A FEW SHOWERS AND WEAK THUNDERSTORMS...ESPECIALLY IN GEORGIA. TEMPS LIKELY A BIT BELOW NORMAL IN THE UPPER 80S TO NEAR 90 INLAND DUE TO THE SLIGHTLY ENHANCED ONSHORE FLOW. && .LONG TERM /FRIDAY NIGHT THROUGH MONDAY/... A STALLED FRONT TO THE SOUTH AND EAST ALONG WITH SOME WEAK AREAS OF LOW PRESSURE WILL PERSIST THROUGH THE WEEKEND BEFORE EVENTUALLY DISSIPATING EARLY NEXT WEEK AS HIGH PRESSURE TRIES TO BUILD FROM THE SOUTHEAST. THIS PATTERN MEANS THERE WILL BE SOME SHOWER AND THUNDERSTORM CHANCES THROUGH THE PERIOD...ESPECIALLY FOR SOUTHEAST GEORGIA AND COASTAL SC WHICH WILL BE NEARER THE DEEPER MOISTURE. TEMPS SHOULD BE ABOUT NORMAL FOR THIS TIME OF YEAR. && .AVIATION /16Z TUESDAY THROUGH SATURDAY/... INITIAL CONCERN IS PINNING DOWN THE TIMING AND POTENTIAL IMPACTS FROM TSTMS. RADAR SHOWS CONVECTION EXPANDING OVER EAST-CENTRAL GEORGIA...WHICH HIGH RESOLUTION MODELS CAPTURED FAIRLY WELL. THIS ACTIVITY IS EXPECTED TO GRADUALLY EXPAND EAST AND POSSIBLY UP THE SEA BREEZE. THE BETTER CHANCES FOR IMPACTS WILL BE AT KSAV...ROUGHLY 20-23Z WHERE TEMPO LOW-END MVFR VSBYS WILL BE SHOWN IN TSRA. AT KCHS...ITS A BIT MORE UNCERTAIN. MAINTAINED TEMPO 4SM -TSRA 20-23Z FOR NOW...BUT ADJUSTMENTS MAY BE NEEDED. SHOWER/TSTM ACTIVITY BY LINGER INTO THE EVENING HOURS BEFORE SHIFTING OFFSHORE...BUT GUIDANCE SUGGESTS MOST OF THIS WILL MISS THE TERMINALS. VFR EXPECTED OUTSIDE OF TSTMS. THERE IS A LOW RISK FOR LOW CLOUDS/STRATUS AT THE TERMINALS JUST BEFORE SUNRISE WEDNESDAY. EXTENDED AVIATION OUTLOOK...WEDNESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY...MODERATE CONFIDENCE IN IMPACTS WED DUE TO SHOWERS/TSTMS. RISK OF IMPACTS FROM SHOWERS/TSTMS/LOW CIGS LOWER THU- SUN BEHIND A COLD FRONT...ESPECIALLY AT KCHS. && .MARINE... TODAY...SOUTHERLY WINDS BETWEEN HIGH PRESSURE OVER THE WESTERN ATLANTIC AND THE APPROACHING WEAK COLD FRONT WILL INCREASE DURING THE DAY WITH THE TIGHTENING OF THE PRESSURE GRADIENT. THIS WILL ALLOW WINDS TO REACH 15 TO 20 KNOTS LATE TODAY AND INTO THE EVENING AHEAD OF THE LINE OF CONVECTION. I CANT RULE OUT AN OCCASIONAL GUST TO 25 KNOTS OVER THE CHARLESTON COUNTY COASTAL WATERS...ESPECIALLY NORTH OF THE HARBOR...BUT IT SHOULD NOT BE FREQUENT ENOUGH TO NECESSITATE ANY ADVISORIES. SEAS WILL BUILD A LITTLE...BUT THE WIND DIRECTION OF SOUTHERLY TO SOUTH SOUTHWESTERLY WILL NOT ALLOW MUCH MORE THAN 2 FEET OF SWELL TO BUILD UP. WIND WAVES COULD ADD ANOTHER FOOT OR TWO...BUT COMBINED SEAS SHOULD REMAIN AT 4 FEET OR LESS THIS AFTERNOON INTO THE EVENING. TONIGHT...THE FRONT EDGES CLOSER TO THE COASTAL WATERS...ALLOWING THE PRESSURE GRADIENT TO RELAX A BIT AFTER MIDNIGHT. THERE SHOULD BE QUITE A BIT OF CONVECTION AROUND WHICH COULD CAUSE LOCALLY STRONG WIND GUSTS...BUT THE GENERAL GRADIENT FLOW SHOULD START TO SUBSIDE. WEDNESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY...A WEAK COLD FRONT WILL MOVE SOUTH THROUGH THE WATERS WEDNESDAY NIGHT INTO THURSDAY AND REMAIN SOUTH AND EAST OF THE AREA THROUGH THE REST OF THE WEEK BEFORE DISSIPATING. EAST TO NORTHEAST WINDS WILL SURGE A BIT THU/FRI BUT CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED TO REMAIN BELOW ADVISORY THRESHOLDS WITH SEAS LIKELY PEAKING AT 4 FT AROUND 20 NM OFFSHORE AND BEYOND. && .CHS WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... GA...NONE. SC...NONE. MARINE...NONE. && ST
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLESTON SC 938 AM EDT TUE AUG 11 2015 GAZ087-088-099>101-114>119-137>141-SCZ040-042>045-047>052-121345- JENKINS-SCREVEN-CANDLER-BULLOCH-EFFINGHAM-TATTNALL-EVANS- INLAND BRYAN-COASTAL BRYAN-INLAND CHATHAM-COASTAL CHATHAM-LONG- INLAND LIBERTY-COASTAL LIBERTY-INLAND MCINTOSH-COASTAL MCINTOSH- ALLENDALE-HAMPTON-INLAND COLLETON-DORCHESTER-INLAND BERKELEY- INLAND JASPER-BEAUFORT-COASTAL COLLETON-CHARLESTON-COASTAL JASPER- TIDAL BERKELEY- 938 AM EDT TUE AUG 11 2015 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR SOUTHEAST GEORGIA AND SOUTHEAST SOUTH CAROLINA. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT. SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS AND EXCESSIVE RAINFALL...NUMEROUS SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED OVER SOUTHEAST SOUTH CAROLINA AND SOUTHEAST GEORGIA THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING. A FEW OF THESE THUNDERSTORMS COULD BECOME SEVERE WITH DAMAGING WINDS. FREQUENT CLOUD TO GROUND LIGHTNING AS WELL AS LOCALLY HEAVY RAINFALL WHICH COULD PRODUCE MINOR FLOODING OF LOW LYING AND POOR DRAINAGE AREAS COULD ALSO OCCUR. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY. NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... PLEASE RELAY ANY REPORTS OF HAZARDOUS WEATHER INCLUDING...BUT NOT LIMITED TO LARGE HAIL...DAMAGING WINDS...AND FLOODING TO THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN CHARLESTON AT 1-888-383-2024. AMZ330-350-352-354-374-121345- CHARLESTON HARBOR- WATERS FROM SOUTH SANTEE RIVER TO EDISTO BEACH SC OUT 20 NM- WATERS FROM EDISTO BEACH SC TO SAVANNAH GA OUT 20 NM- WATERS FROM SAVANNAH GA TO ALTAMAHA SOUND GA OUT 20 NM...INCLUDING GRAYS REEF NATIONAL MARINE SANCTUARY- WATERS FROM SAVANNAH GA TO ALTAMAHA SOUND GA EXTENDING FROM 20 TO 60 NM- 938 AM EDT TUE AUG 11 2015 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR ATLANTIC COASTAL WATERS. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT. STRONG THUNDERSTORMS...SCATTERED TO NUMEROUS THUNDERSTORMS WILL DEVELOP ACROSS THE COASTAL WATERS THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT. A FEW THUNDERSTORMS COULD PRODUCE WINDS IN EXCESS OF 35 KNOTS...LOCALLY HEAVY RAINFALL REDUCING VISIBILITIES TO LESS THAN 1 NAUTICAL MILE AND CLOUD TO WATER LIGHTNING. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY. NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... PLEASE RELAY ANY REPORTS OF HAZARDOUS WEATHER INCLUDING...BUT NOT LIMITED TO LARGE HAIL...DAMAGING WINDS...AND FLOODING TO THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN CHARLESTON AT 1-888-383-2024.
The Charleston,SC radar (KCLX), 121 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 17:45 UTC.
1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.
A report via social media indicated a microburst event that downed 13 trees and blew over a shed. Minor damage was also reported to a few homes along Old Anderson Cemetery Road.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Georgia in 2015Every state in 2015This day in weather historyWarnings in Georgia, August 2015
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: 592832.