Alert archive / Florida / Tornado Warnings in 1986
Tornado Warning 4, NWS Tampa Bay, FL
NWS Tampa Bay, FL issued this tornado warning at Mar 14, 1986, 9:05 AM EST for Polk County, Florida. It was in force for 25 min.
The area
The counties it named.
The facts
- Issued
- Mar 14, 1986, 9:05 AM EST (14:05 UTC)
- Expired
- Mar 14, 1986, 9:30 AM EST
- In force
- 25 min
- Issued by
- NWS Tampa Bay, FL
- Area
- Whole counties
County Polk County, FL
The radar
The WSR-88D network and its archive begin in 1991, so there is no radar volume for this alert.
The nearest sounding before it
Tampa Bay, FL (KTBW), launched 12:00Z, 2.1 hours before the alert went out and 74 km from the middle of its area. This is the routine balloon launch nearest before it, the air the forecaster had in hand, not a measurement taken for the alert.
- Mixed-layer CAPE
- 1405 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -3 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 637 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 50 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 242 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 337 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 2.0
- Supercell composite
- 10.0
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000 TTAA00 KTBW 141408 TORTBW FLC105-141430- BULLETIN.....EBS ACTIVATION REQUESTED TORNADO WARNING NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TAMPA BAY AREA RUSKIN FL 905 AM EST FRI MAR 14 1986 THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED A TORNADO WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 930 AM EST FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES IN WEST CENTRAL FLORIDA ... POLK A TORNADO WAS OBSERVED JUST EAST OF LAKELAND AT 900 AM MOVING TOWARDS THE NORTHEAST AT 30 MPH. IF THREATENING CONDITIONS AREA SIGHTED GO TO A BPLACE OF SAFETY IMMEDIATELY. YOU SHOULD ASK THE NEAREST LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY TO RELAY YOUR SEVERE WEATHER REPORTS TO THE LOCAL NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OFFICE. LISTEN TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION.
What forecasters said that day
The local office's own words before this tornado warning went out, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
In the hours before
Special weather statement, Mar 14, 5:29 AM EST, 3 hours 36 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT AND RADAR SUMMARY NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TAMPA BAY AREA RUSKIN FL 528 AM EST FRI MAR 14 1985 A TORNADO WATCH IS INEFFECT FOR LEVY..CITRUS AND HERNANDO COUNTIES IN FLROIDA UNTIL 9 AM EST. AN AREA OF VERY HEAVY THUNDERSTORMS WAS OCCURRING FROM CROSS CITY TO CEDAR KEY AND EXTENDED SOUTHWEST OUT OVER THE GULF FOR SOME 125 MILES. SHOWERS AND RAIN COVERD MUCH OF THE EASTERN PORTIONS OF THE GULF. MOVEMENT WAS TO THE SOUTHEAST AT 25 MILES AN HOUR.
Special weather statement, Mar 14, 5:31 AM EST, 3 hours 34 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT AND RADAR SUMMARY NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TAMPA BAY AREA RUSKIN FL 528 AM EST FRI MAR 14 1985 A TORNADO WATCH IS INEFFECT FOR LEVY..CITRUS AND HERNANDO COUNTIES IN FLORIDA UNTIL 9 AM EST. AN AREA OF VERY HEAVY THUNDERSTORMS WAS OCCURRING FROM CROSS CITY TO CEDAR KEY AND EXTENDED SOUTHWEST OUT OVER THE GULF FOR SOME 125 MILES. SHOWERS AND RAIN COVERD MUCH OF THE EASTERN PORTIONS OF THE GULF. MOVEMENT WAS TO THE SOUTHEAST AT 25 MILES AN HOUR.
Special weather statement, Mar 14, 6:28 AM EST, 2 hours 37 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT AND RADAR SUMMARY NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TAMPA BAY AREA RUSKIN FL 628 AM EST FRI MAR 14 1985 A TORNADO WATCH IS INEFFECT FOR LEVY..CITRUS AND HERNANDO COUNTIES IN FLORIDA UNTIL 9 AM EST. A LINE OF VERY HEAVY THUNDERSHOWERS WAS OCCURRING FROM CEDAR KEY TO A POINT 100 MILES WEST OF SARASOTA. SHOWERS AND RAIN CONTINUED OVER MUCH OF THE CENTRAL AND EAST CENTRAL GULF WATERS. MOVEMENT WAS SOUTHEAST AT 25 MILES AN HOUR.
Special weather statement, Mar 14, 7:31 AM EST, 1 hour 34 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT AND RADAR SUMMARY NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TAMPA BAY AREA RUSKIN FL 728 AM EST FRI MAR 14 1985 A TORNADO WATCH IS IN EFFECT FOR LEVY..CITRUS AND HERNANDO COUNTIES IN FLORIDA UNTIL 9 AM EST. A LINE OF VERY HEAVY THUNDERSHOWERS WAS OCCURRING FROM OCALA TO HOMOSSASA AND OUT OVER THE GULF WATERS SOUTHWEST TO 50 MILES WEST OF SARASOTA. ELSEWHERE A LARGE AREA OF RAIN WITH SHOWERS COVERED MUCH OF THE EASTERN GULF. MOVEMENT WAS SOUTHEAST AT 30 MILES AN HOUR.
Special weather statement, Mar 14, 7:39 AM EST, 1 hour 26 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TAMPA BAY AREA RUSKIN FL 740 AM EST FRI MAR 14 1986 THIS STATEMENT IS FOR LEVY COUNTY IN WEST CENTRAL FLORIDA. THE TORNADO WATCH FOR LEVY COUNTY HAS BEEN CANCELLED EFFECTIVE AT 745 THIS MORNING. THE LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS HAS MOVED SOUTHEASTWARD OUT OF LEVY COUNTY.
Special weather statement, Mar 14, 8:47 AM EST, 18 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT AND RADAR SUMMARY NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TAMPA BAY AREA RUSKIN FL 840 AM EST FRI MAR 14 1986 A TORNADO WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR CITRUS AND HERNANDO COUNTY UNTIL 9AM EST FRI 14 MAR 1986. A LINE OF VERY HEAVY THUNDERSTORMS EXTENDED FROM JUST OFFSHORE OF CRYSTAL RIVER...SOUTHWEST OUT OVER GULF WATERS TO A POINT 100 MILES WEST OF THE FORT MYERS AREA. ANOTHER BAND OF THUNDERSHOWERS STRETCHED FROM NEAR DAYTONA BEACH... SO1UTHWEST THROUGH THE TAMPA BAY AREA...AND ON OUT OVER GULF WATERS FOR 75 MILES. THE LINE OF THUNDERSHOWERS WAS MOVING TO THE SOUTHEAST AT 30 MILES AN HOUR WITH INDIVIDUAL THUNDERSHOWERS MOVING TO THE NORTHEAST AT 35 MILES AN HOUR.
The office that day
Everything else NWS Tampa Bay, FL issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 14, 9:43 AM EST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | TBW | Hillsborough | 47 min |
| Mar 14, 10:35 AM EST | Tornado Warning | TBW | Sarasota | 25 min |
Nearby
Tornado Warnings in Florida, 1986Every tornado warning in 1986Tornadoes in 1986
Sources
The product and its follow-ups from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service and Storm Prediction Center text; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive.