A weak front along with ample moisture and instability led to a few strong/severe thunderstorms across Southeast Georgia.
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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 weak front along with ample moisture and instability led to a few strong/severe thunderstorms across Southeast Georgia.
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 Jun 12, 9:58 AM EST, 3 hours 20 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Charleston SC 1058 AM EDT Fri Jun 12 2020 .SYNOPSIS... A stationary front will linger across the region into early next week, bringing unsettled weather. An upper level disturbance is expected to develop over the Southeast by the middle of next week. && .NEAR TERM /THROUGH TONIGHT/... A weak surface front will gradually drop south across the area today. BL flow remains less than 10 kt and PWAT on 12Z RAOB was 1.88" which is relatively moist. Extensive cloud cover will limit high temps which in turn will cap surface-based instability around 2000-2500 J/kg. Aloft a weak shortwave ridge will build from the west, helping push the surface front to the south and allow slightly drier air to shift into inland SC later today. As instability gradually increases today, coverage of showers and tstms will steadily increase as well. The main concern for flooding rainfall will be along coastal sections as we approach an early/mid afternoon high tide. We therefore shrank the Flash Flood Watch to only include coastal SC plus Chatham County, GA. && .SHORT TERM /SATURDAY THROUGH MONDAY/... An unsettled weather pattern is expected during the short term. The mid-levels will consist of a trough over the East Coast on Saturday. The trough will strengthen/amplify Sunday into Monday. A cutoff low is expected to form within the trough by Monday and hover over the Southeast. At the surface, a stationary front will linger across the Southeast this weekend into early next week. The exact location of the front each day will determine the overall rainfall potential, as even a minor shift inland or out to sea could bring the heaviest rainfall potential over land or out to sea. Additionally, mesoscale interactions each day could enhance/inhibit the precipitation. The fine details still need to be worked out. For now, most of the models seem to keep the front right along our coast and that's could equate to numerous or maybe even widespread showers each day, with coverage/intensity decreasing each night. There is plenty of moisture in the vicinity of the front, with PWATs generally peaking in the 1.5-1.75" range each day. Though, these values aren't significantly above normal. The SPC climo sounding page has the median moving average for CHS ~1.5" for this time of year. However, very light steering winds in the mid-levels will equate to slow storm motions. Periods of locally heavy rainfall over grounds that are already fairly saturated could lead to flooding, especially in the typical low- lying and poorly drained areas. This appears to be the main threat the next few days. There does not appear to be a significant amount of instability each day, so the organized severe thunderstorm threat is low. High temperatures should be a few degrees below normal due to the showers, while low temperatures should be near normal. && .LONG TERM /MONDAY NIGHT THROUGH THURSDAY/... The unsettled weather pattern continues into the long term. A stationary front should be near or along our coast Monday night. The front will get pushed along as a mid-level cutoff low moves over the Southeast Tuesday and Wednesday. The end result will be periods of showers and thunderstorms. Thursday the low and front start to shift away from the Southeast. However, sea breeze convection may bring another unsettled day. && .AVIATION /15Z FRIDAY THROUGH TUESDAY/... Numerous to widespread showers/tstms are expected at both sites today, but pinning down the window of greatest impacts is proving very challenging in this warm, moist environment. Current thinking is 15-18z at KCHS and 17-20z at KSAV, but this will likely change as trends become more apparent. Will limit conditions to MVFR for now, but IFR or lower is certainly possible at times. Amendments will be issued as necessary. Extended Aviation Outlook: Periodic flight restrictions are expected in showers/thunderstorms through early next week. && .MARINE... Thought Tonight: A south to southeast wind regime will hold through tonight as a weak surface front holds to the west. Winds will actually average 10 kt or less through the period with seas 2-3 ft. Vsbys will drop to 1 NM or less in areas of tstms and heavy rainfall. Saturday through Tuesday: A stationary front will linger across the region into early next week, bringing periods of showers/thunderstorms to the coastal waters. A weak pressure gradient should keep winds below 15 kt during this time period. Winds start to shift towards the middle of next week as a mid- level low develops over the Southeast. However, models don't have a good sense of what the general wind direction and speeds will be, so expect changes to the second half of the forecast. It appears winds and seas will remain below Small Craft Advisory criteria during this time period. && .CHS WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... GA...Flash Flood Watch until 6 PM EDT this evening for GAZ118-119. SC...Flash Flood Watch until 6 PM EDT this evening for SCZ048>051. MARINE...None. && NEAR TERM...JRL SHORT TERM... LONG TERM... AVIATION... MARINE...
Hazardous Weather Outlook National Weather Service Charleston SC 1224 PM EDT Fri Jun 12 2020 AMZ330-350-352-354-374-GAZ087-088-099>101-114>119-137>141-SCZ040- 042>045-047>052-131630- 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 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- 1224 PM EDT Fri Jun 12 2020 This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for Atlantic coastal waters, southeast Georgia and southeast South Carolina. .DAY ONE...This afternoon 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.
The Charleston,SC radar (KCLX), 69 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 18:18 UTC.
1 lightning, 1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.
Broadcast media reported lightning struck a transformer and brought a tree down on Salt Creek Road.
The Chatham County Emergency Management reported a tree down near the intersection of Davidson Avenue and White Bluff Road, a tree down on a power line at East Welwood Drive and White Bluff Road, and a tree down on power lines along the 1300 Block of East 32nd Street.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Georgia in 2020Every state in 2020This day in weather historyWarnings in Georgia, June 2020
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: 900181, 900192.