NOUS42 KCHS 102036 PNSCHS GAZ087-088-099>101-114>119-137>141-SCZ040-042>045-047>051-110800- PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT...UPDATED... NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CHARLESTON SC 440 PM EDT MON APR 10 2006 ...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CONFIRMS THREE TORNADOES IN THE CHARLESTON METRO AREA... DAMAGE ASSESSMENT TEAMS FROM THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FORECAST OFFICE IN CHARLESTON SOUTH CAROLINA SURVEYED DAMAGE THAT OCCURRED FROM A SEVERE SUPERCELL THUNDERSTORM THAT MOVED THROUGH MUCH OF CHARLESTON COUNTY AS WELL AS PORTIONS OF SOUTHERN DORCHESTER AND SOUTHERN BERKELEY COUNTIES BETWEEN 345 PM AND 515 PM SATURDAY AFTERNOON. LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS IMPACTED MANY COMMUNITIES THROUGHOUT THE AREA. SOME OF THE MOST SEVERE DAMAGE OCCURRED IN THE COMMUNITIES OF ADAMS RUN AND WEST ASHLEY AND ON DANIEL ISLAND. TORNADOES HAVE BEEN CONFIRMED TO HAVE TOUCHED DOWN IN EACH OF THESES AREA. ...ADAMS RUN - TRACK REVIEW... A LARGE SUPERCELL THUNDERSTORM MOVED INTO THE WESTERN PORTIONS OF CHARLESTON COUNTY FROM SOUTHERN COLLETON COUNTY NEAR THE COMMUNITY OF JACKSONBORO SHORTLY AFTER 345 PM. THE SUPERCELL MOVED RAPIDLY EAST AT 45 MPH INTO THE COMMUNITY OF ADAMS RUN BY 350 PM AND PRODUCED A TORNADO. THE TORNADO INITIALLY TOUCHED DOWN ALONG WILLTOWN ROAD NEAR MINNIE HUGHS ELEMENTARY SCHOOL SHORTLY BEFORE 355 PM. HERE THE TORNADO BLEW DOWN AND SNAPPED POWERLINES AND NUMEROUS LARGE TREES INCLUDING SEVERAL LARGE GRAND OAKS. HIGH WINDS ASSOCIATED WITH THE TORNADO ALSO PARTIALLY COLLAPSED A HOUSE... POSSIBLY INJURING ONE PERSON INSIDE. THE TORNADO CONTINUED TO MOVE EAST AND CROSSED HIGHWAY 174 JUST NORTH OF THE INTERSECTION WITH MOFFETT ROAD. HERE SEVERAL LARGE GRAND OAKS WERE SNAPPED AND UPROOTED. THE TORNADO THEN MOVED INTO AN OPEN FARM FIELD WHERE IT DAMAGED MORE TREES. THE TORNADO FINALLY MOVED ACROSS TOOGOODOO ROAD NEAR THE INTERSECTION OF OAKVILLE ROAD AND SLIGHTLY DAMAGED SEVERAL HOMES BEFORE LIFTING. THE DAMAGE TEAM HAS DETERMINED THAT BASED ON THE SEVERITY OF OBSERVED DAMAGE IN THE ADAMS RUN AREA THAT THIS TORNADO REACHED THE HIGH END RANGE OF AN F1 TORNADO WITH ESTIMATED WINDS OF 100-110 MPH. -- TORNADO STATISTICS -- LOCATION... ADAMS RUN SC F-SCALE RATING... F1 ESTIMATED WINDS... 100-110 MPH TORNADO WIDTH... 200-300 FT TORNADO LENGTH... 2.5 MILES ...WEST ASHLEY /CITY OF CHARLESTON/ - TRACK REVIEW...THE SUPERCELL THUNDERSTORM THAT PRODUCED A TORNADO NEAR ADAMS RUN REACHED THE WEST ASHLEY AREA OF CHARLESTON AROUND 420 PM AND SPAWNED A BRIEF TORNADO IN THE AVENDALE NEIGHBORHOOD AROUND 425-430 PM. THE TORNADO TOUCHED DOWN NEAR THE INTERSECTION OF COBURG ROAD AND HIGHWAY 17 /SAVANNAH HIGHWAY/...MOVED QUICKLY ACROSS HIGHWAY 17 AND LIFTED NEAR THE INTERSECTION OF HIGHWAY 17 AND MAGNOLIA ROAD. THE TORNADO BLEW OUT WINDOWS IN SEVERAL BUSINESSES AND BLEW DOWN SEVERAL LARGE TREES. SEVERAL BUSINESSES ALSO SUFFERED MINOR STRUCTURAL DAMAGE. SEVERAL PEOPLE WITNESSED THE TORNADO AS IT MOVED ACROSS HIGHWAY 17 AND DESCRIBED THE TORNADO AS VERY THIN AND ROPE LIKE. THE DAMAGE TEAM HAS DETERMINED THAT BASED ON THE SEVERITY OF THE OBSERVED DAMAGE IN THE WEST ASHLEY AREA THAT THIS TORNADO LIKELY REACHED THE HIGH END RANGE OF AN F0 TORNADO WITH ESTIMATED WINDS OF 60-70 MPH. -- TORNADO STATISTICS -- LOCATION... WEST ASHLEY /CITY OF CHARLESTON/ SC F-SCALE RATING... F0 ESTIMATED WINDS... 60-70 MPH TORNADO WIDTH... 100 FEET TORNADO LENGTH... 200-300 YARDS. ...DANIEL ISLAND /BERKELEY COUNTY/ - TRACK REVIEW...THE NORTHERN EXTENT OF THE SUPERCELL THUNDERSTORM MOVED ACROSS DANIEL ISLAND BETWEEN 420 PM AND 435 PM AND PRODUCED A TORNADO. THE TORNADO FORMED BETWEEN 420 AND 425 PM JUST NORTH OF THE ISLAND PARK DRIVE/RIVER LANDING DRIVE INTERSECTION. THE TORNADO MOVED EAST AND BROKE OUT THE FRONT GLASS DOOR OF A WEST FACING BUSINESS ON ISLAND PARK DRIVE. NUMEROUS OTHER WEST FACING GLASS DOORS AND WINDOWS WERE NOT IMPACTED. THE TORNADO THEN MAINLY TRAVELED ACROSS A POND AND A GRASS COVERED FIELD UPROOTING A COUPLE TREES BEFORE HITTING THE FAMILY CIRCLE TENNIS CENTER AND THEN LIFTING. AT THE TENNIS CENTER...TWO VERY LARGE BANNERS WERE SEVERELY DAMAGED...TWO HEAVY DUTY TENTS WERE TOPPLED...A METAL SUPPORT BEAM FROM ONE OF THE TENTS WAS SNAPPED IN TWO AND ONE PANEL OF THE TENNIS CENTER SCOREBOARD WAS DAMAGED. TWO LARGE DRUMS FILLED WITH WATER AND WEIGHTING ABOUT 300 POUNDS THAT WERE USED TO THE HOLD THE TENTS DOWN WERE MOVED ABOUT 12 FEET. IN ADDITION...A TEMPORARY LIGHT DISPLAY DAMAGED A VEHICLE WHEN THE TORNADO KNOCKED IT DOWN ONTO A VEHICLE. THE DAMAGE TEAM DETERMINED THAT BASED ON THE OBSERVED DAMAGE THAT THIS TORNADO LIKELY REACHED THE UPPER END OF AN F0 TORNADO WITH ESTIMATED WINDS OF 60-70 MPH. -- TORNADO STATISTICS -- LOCATION... DANIEL ISLAND /BERKELEY COUNTY/ SC F-SCALE RATING... F0 ESTIMATED WINDS... 60-70 MPH TORNADO WIDTH... 140 FEET TORNADO LENGTH... 400 YARDS. THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN CHARLESTON WISHES TO THANK THE CITIZENS OF CHARLESTON AND BERKELEY COUNTIES...THE CHARLESTON BROADCAST AND PRINT MEDIA...LOCAL EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT OFFICIALS...AND THE FAMILY CIRCLE TENNIS CENTER FOR THEIR ASSISTANCE. $$ ST/MTE