Warm and moist conditions with very light low level winds created an environment supportive of waterspouts along the southeast South Carolina and southeast Georgia coast. A few showers and thunderstorms developed over the coastal waters in the morning and spawned several reports of waterspouts.
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The episode as NWS CHS wrote it up.
Warm and moist conditions with very light low level winds created an environment supportive of waterspouts along the southeast South Carolina and southeast Georgia coast. A few showers and thunderstorms developed over the coastal waters in the morning and spawned several reports of waterspouts. One waterspout developed within a nearby sound of Chatham County.
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 Jul 22, 9:32 AM EST, 38 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Charleston SC 1032 AM EDT FRI JUL 22 2016 .SYNOPSIS... High pressure will gradually shift offshore and persist through much of next week. && .NEAR TERM /THROUGH TONIGHT/... Late this morning: Land areas have remained dry while scattered showers/thunderstorms have the coastal waters have spawned a few reports of waterspouts off the Beaufort County coast. This activity is diminishing and focus for the rest of the day will turn inland. Aloft, water vapor imagery shows the region being on the far eastern extent of the large ridge and associated anticyclone centered over the plains and the lee of the Rockies. The prevailing flow aloft is north to northeast and a large area of NVA is covering much of the southeast coast. There is some very weak shortwave energy upstream, but nothing that looks overly significant. The weak surface pressure pattern will prevail and feature a mainly light onshore southerly flow. The main question for the day concerns convective coverage. Modifying the 12z KCHS RAOB shows the potential for around 2000 J/kg of CAPE with typical mid level lapse rates and 500 mb temperatures for this time of year. There is plentiful dry air, and DCAPE values could be as high as 1500 J/kg this afternoon. Hi-res models are very unimpressive and mainly show isolated weak activity along the sea breeze this afternoon. Given that there doesn't appear to be a strong cap or anything to prevent convection all together, have expanded the slight chance POP to include the entire coast. Coverage will not be high but given the high DCAPE values and large separation between the freezing level and the wet bulb zero height, it's not out of the question to see a strong to marginally severe storm. Damaging winds would be the main impact to watch for. Otherwise, expect highs in the low to mid 90s with heat indices 100-105 at times. Tonight: Any lingering showers or thunderstorms will diminish early with dry conditions overnight. Temps should bottom out in the lower to mid 70s inland and near 80 at the coast. && .SHORT TERM /SATURDAY THROUGH MONDAY/... The surface pattern will remain fairly stagnant through the period, with the primary features being Atlantic high pressure and a trough of low pressure situated inland. Aloft, upper ridging will weaken late Saturday into Sunday as a cutoff low and associated vort max shifts west across far southeast Georgia and the Florida Panhandle. On Monday, the ridge will briefly rebuild before shortwave energy moves into the Great Lakes region. Precipitation chances will largely be diurnally driven, primarily originating from the sea breeze or convergence along the piedmont trough. Organized severe threat looks low given weak deep layered shear, however isolated severe storms are possible especially where boundary interactions occur. High temperatures forecast to be a couple degrees above normal, mainly in the mid to upper 90s away from the immediate coast. Heat indices forecast to stay below the local heat advisory criteria of 110, peaking around 105-107. Lows in the mid/upper 70s. && .LONG TERM /MONDAY NIGHT THROUGH THURSDAY/... The forecast area will remain on the western periphery of Atlantic high pressure while a piedmont trough sits inland. A weak front will approach from the northwest mid week but will likely stall and eventually dissipate before reaching the local area. Fairly typical summertime PoP scheme, with shower and thunderstorm coverage peaking in the afternoon/evening when instability is greatest. Temperatures forecast to be at or a couple degrees above normal through the period. && .AVIATION /15Z FRIDAY THROUGH TUESDAY/... Mostly VFR with a low risk from showers/thunderstorms mainly this afternoon as the sea breeze pushes inland. Extended Aviation Outlook: Brief flight restrictions possible with afternoon showers/thunderstorms. Otherwise, VFR conditions expected. && .MARINE... Today and Tonight: A weak pressure gradient expected to prevail with high pressure in control. Variable winds will become south/southeast today and then south/southwest tonight, possibly increasing a tad due to nocturnal surging, although remaining 15 knots or less. Seas will mainly range from 2-3 feet, highest toward the Gulf Stream, but up to 4 feet well off the GA coast this morning. Conditions appear favorable again this morning for waterspouts associated with any cumulus cloud lines that develop. Saturday through Wednesday: Atlantic high pressure will prevail through the period while a piedmont trough persists inland. South/southwest winds will generally be 15 knots or less, peaking in the afternoon with the sea breeze circulation and then again at night over nearshore Atlantic waters due to nocturnal jetting. Seas 2-3 feet on average. && .CHS WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... GA...None. SC...None. MARINE...None. && NEAR TERM...BSH/RJB SHORT TERM...ECT LONG TERM...ECT AVIATION...ECT/RJB MARINE...ECT/RJB
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLESTON SC 358 AM EDT FRI JUL 22 2016 AMZ330-350-352-354-374-GAZ087-088-099>101-114>119-137>141-SCZ040- 042>045-047>052-230900- 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-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- 358 AM EDT FRI JUL 22 2016 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR ATLANTIC COASTAL WATERS...SOUTHEAST GEORGIA AND SOUTHEAST SOUTH CAROLINA. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT. THE PROBABILITY FOR WIDESPREAD HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS LOW. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SATURDAY THROUGH THURSDAY. THE PROBABILITY FOR WIDESPREAD HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS LOW. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ASSISTANCE IS NOT ANTICIPATED AT THIS TIME.
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLESTON SC
823 AM EDT FRI JUL 22 2016
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0810 AM WATER SPOUT 8 SE FOREST BEACH 32.07N 80.64W
07/22/2016 AMZ352 SC COAST GUARD
AT LEAST ONE WATERSPOUT WAS REPORTED 4-5 MILES OFF THE
COAST OF HILTON HEAD ISLAND.
&&
EVENT NUMBER CHS1600659
JMCPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLESTON SC
1016 AM EDT FRI JUL 22 2016
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0813 AM WATER SPOUT 3 ESE FOREST BEACH 32.13N 80.70W
07/22/2016 AMZ352 SC SOCIAL MEDIA
PHOTO RECEIVED VIA SOCIAL MEDIA SHOWS 3 MATURE
WATERSPOUTS AND 1 FUNNEL CLOUD OFFSHORE OF THE NORTH
FOREST BEACH AREA ON HILTON HEAD ISLAND.
&&
EVENT NUMBER CHS1600660
JMCThe Charleston,SC radar (KCLX), 80 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 15:11 UTC.
1 tornado. Local standard time, as filed.
Chatham County Emergency Management reported a waterspout within Wassaw Sound.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Georgia in 2016Every state in 2016This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for Georgia, 2016Warnings in Georgia, July 2016
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: 652766.