Alert archive / Florida / Tornado Warnings in 1992

Tornado Warning 2, NWS Tampa Bay, FL

February 5, 1992Pinellas County, Florida

NWS Tampa Bay, FL issued this tornado warning at Feb 5, 1992, 4:05 AM EST for Pinellas County, Florida. It was in force for 40 min. 1 report came from inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The counties it named, with what was reported inside it.

The facts

Issued
Feb 5, 1992, 4:05 AM EST (09:05 UTC)
Expired
Feb 5, 1992, 4:45 AM EST
In force
40 min
Issued by
NWS Tampa Bay, FL
Area
Whole counties

County Pinellas County, FL

What was reported inside it

TimeReportWhereRemark
Feb 5, 4:35 AM ESTHail 0.75Pinellas, FL

NCEI Storm Data entries that began inside the alert's area while it was in force. Before 2003 the local storm report archive is thin, so this is the record of what happened rather than what was phoned in. Storm Data before 1996 records only tornadoes, thunderstorm wind and hail.

The nearest sounding before it

Tampa Bay, FL (KTBW), launched 00:00Z, 9.1 hours before the alert went out and 40 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.

Skew-T log-pSkew-T log-p diagram, Tampa Bay, FL at 00:00Z on 1992-02-05Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 0 joules per kilogram.LCL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Tampa Bay, FL at 00:00Z on 1992-02-05The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 32 square meters per square second.19395878Sfc1 km3 km6 km9 kmRMLM
The wind turning with height, colored by layer: ground to 1 km, 1 to 3 km, 3 to 6 km, 6 to 10 km.
Mixed-layer CAPE
0 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL
1405 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
43 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
32 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
112 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.

000 
TTAA00 KTBW 050922 COR
TORTBW
FLC081-103-050945-

BULLETIN - EBS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING... CORRECTED TO DELETE LAST TWO PARAGRAPHS
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TAMPA BAY AREA RUSKIN FL
405 AM EST WED FEB 5 1992

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN TAMPA BAY AREA RUSKIN HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL  445 AM EST
FOR PEOPLE...

IN WEST CENTRAL FLORIDA

   ...WESTERN MANATEE COUNTY...SOUTHERN PINELLAS COUNTY

AND ADJACENT COASTAL WATERS
INCLUDING THE BAY AND INLAND WATERS

RADAR INDICATES THAT ONE OF THE THUNDERSTORMS ALONG THE SEVERE SQUALL
LINE IS LIKELY TO PRODUCE WATERSPOUTS AND TORNADOES WITHIN THE NEXT 45
MINUTES. THE STORM IS MOVING RAPIDILY TOWARDS THE NORTHEAST AND SHOULD
COME ON SHORE BETWEEN ANNA MARIA ISLAND AND INDIAN ROCKS BEACH.

THIS IS A DANGEROUS STORM. TAKE COVER IMMEDIATELY!

MARINE INTERESTS IN THESE WATERS SHOULD AVOID THESE STORMS AND
SEEK SAFE HARBOR.

IF YOU SEE A TORNADO... WATERSPOUT... HAIL OR DAMAGING WINDs...
CALL THE WEST CENTRAL AND SOUTHWEST FLORIDA SEVERE WEATHER LINE AT
1-800-282-5584.

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, Feb 5, 2:35 AM EST, 1 hour 30 minutes before
FLZ006-008>021-050830-

SPECIAL WEATHER AND MARINE WEATHER STATEMENT AND RADAR SUMMARY
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TAMPA BAY-RUSKIN FL
230 AM EST WED FEB 5 1992

...SQUALL LINE MOVING TOWARD THE WEST COAST OF FLORIDA...

A LINE OF RAPIDLY MOVING THUNDERSTORMS EXTENDS ABOUT 75 MILES OFFSHORE FROM
LEVY COUNTY SOUTH TO 100 MILES OFFSHORE FROM LEE COUNTY. THE SQUALL LINE HAS
FORMED AHEAD OF A LOW PRESSURE CENTER OVER THE GULF. THE LINE IS MOVING TOWARD
THE WEST AT 40 TO 50 MPH. THIS MOVEMENT WILL PUT THE SQUALL LINE ON THE
COASTLINE OF WEST CENTRAL AND SOUTHWEST FLORIDA AROUND 4 AM.

RESIDENTS AND MARINERS ALONG THE WEST COAST OF FLORIDA SHOULD BE ALERT FOR
STRONG GUSTY WINDS... DEADLY LIGHTNING ANkD HEAVY RAIN TONIGHT.

MARINERS IN PARTICULAR SHOULD BE ALERT FOR DANGEROUS SQUALL CONDITIONS WITH
GUSTY AND SHIFTING WIND AND ROUGH SEAS.

The office that day

Everything else NWS Tampa Bay, FL issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Feb 5, 3:24 AM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTBWHillsborough, Manatee2 hr
Feb 5, 3:24 AM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTBWPasco, Pinellas2 hr
Feb 5, 3:33 AM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTBWCitrus, Hernando, Levy, Sumter117 min
Feb 5, 4:05 AM ESTTornado WarningTBWManatee40 min
Feb 5, 4:52 AM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTBWSarasota53 min
Feb 5, 5:16 AM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTBWDeSoto, Hardee, Polk59 min
Feb 5, 5:16 AM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTBWSumter59 min
Feb 5, 4:31 PM ESTTornado WarningTBWHillsborough, Pinellas44 min
Feb 5, 4:55 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTBWPasco50 min
Feb 5, 5:01 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTBWManatee, Sarasota44 min
Feb 5, 5:14 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTBWPasco, Pinellas61 min
Feb 5, 5:14 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTBWHillsborough, Manatee, Sarasota61 min
Feb 5, 5:49 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTBWHardee41 min
Feb 5, 6:15 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTBWHillsborough, Manatee, Sarasota45 min
Feb 5, 6:15 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTBWPasco45 min
Feb 5, 6:29 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTBWHighlands, Polk61 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Florida, 1992Every tornado warning in 1992Tornadoes in 1992

Sources

The product and its follow-ups from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service and Storm Prediction Center text; verification from NCEI's Storm Data; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive.