Alert archive / Florida / Tornado Warnings in 1995

Tornado Warning 15, NWS Tallahassee, FL

October 4, 1995Jackson County, Florida

NWS Tallahassee, FL issued this tornado warning at Oct 4, 1995, 1:38 PM CDT for Jackson County, Florida. It was in force for 52 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
Oct 4, 1995, 1:38 PM CDT (18:38 UTC)
Expired
Oct 4, 1995, 2:30 PM CDT
In force
52 min
Issued by
NWS Tallahassee, FL
Area
Whole counties

County Jackson County, FL

The radar

The Eglin Afb radar (KEVX), 72 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 18:38 UTC, the scan nearest the moment this went out.

Open the radar archive at this moment

The archived warnings, watches and discussions in force at that minute are drawn over the scan, this one among them.

What was reported inside it

TimeReportWhereRemark
Oct 4, 1:40 PM CDTTornado F0Cottondale, FLA tornado was reported by Jackson County Sheriff's Department.

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

Tallahassee Rgnl, FL (KTLH), launched 12:00Z, 6.6 hours before the alert went out and 98 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, Tallahassee Rgnl, FL at 12:00Z on 1995-10-04Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1919 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°0°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Tallahassee Rgnl, FL at 12:00Z on 1995-10-04The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 217 square meters per square second.193958Sfc1 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
1919 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-3 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
488 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
42 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
217 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
215 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
1.8
Supercell composite
9.1

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
TTAA00 KTLH 041839
TORTLH
FLC063-041930-
 
BULLETIN - EBS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TALLAHASSEE FL
238 PM EDT (138 PM CDT) WED OCT 4 1995
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN TALLAHASSEE HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL  330 PM EDT (230 PM CDT)
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATION...
 
IN NORTHWEST FLORIDA
 
   ...JACKSON COUNTY
 
AT 135 PM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM OVER THE SOUTHWESTERN CORNER OF JACKSON COUNTY NEAR
ALFORD. THIS STORM HAS THE POTENTIAL TO PRODUCE A TORNADO OVER THE
WESTERN PART OF THE COUNTY. THIS STORM WILL MOVE NORTH-NORTHWEST AT 40
MPH. COTTONDALE AND GRACEVILLE ARE IN THE PATH OF THIS DANGEROUS STORM.
TAKE COVER NOW!
 
IF YOU ARE IN THE PATH OF A TORNADO...THE SAFEST PLACE IS UNDER
STURDY FURNITURE IN AN INTERIOR ROOM ON THE LOWEST FLOOR. USE
PILLOWS TO COVER YOUR BODY. AVOID WINDOWS. A MOBILE HOME IS NOT A
SAFE REFUGE FROM A TORNADO. MOVdE TO A MORE SUBSTANTIAL BUILDING.

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.

NWS Tallahassee, FL wrote its last area forecast discussion before this tornado warning went out at Oct 4, 3:12 AM CDT, 10 hours 26 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Oct 4, 3:12 AM CDT, 10 hours 26 minutes before
ALZ065>069-FLZ007>019-026>029-034-041345-

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION...COR POPS 3RD PD
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TALLAHASSEE FL
338 AM EDT WED OCT 4 1995

LETS KEEP THIS BRIEF. NGM APPRS TO BE CLOSEST TO OFCL NHC
GUIDNC SO WL FLLW THAT MDL THIS PKG. AVN AND ETA ARE MOVG STRM
SLOWR TO LEFT OF NHC TRAK. CURNT STRM MMT APPRS TO BE HINTING AT A
MORE NRLY TRAK WHICH WUD BE CLOSR TO NGM... W/LNDFL IN XTRM WRN PNHNDL
AFTR 18Z TDA... PROBLY CLSR TO 00Z THU.

LTL QUESTN ABT POPS 1ST TWO PDS AS TLH 00Z SNDG IS HILY SATURATD W/PW
OF 2.43. MAJR DAA AFTR 00Z ON NGM AND THINGS DRY OUT DRAMATICALLY...
BUT WL COMPROMISE AND GO LIKELY POP THU ALL AREAS... TAKING INTO ACCT
PSBL SLO DWN IN STRM MMT...EVEN THO IF NGM FCST PANS OUT CUD PRBLY
HAVE GONE ISOLD/WDLY SCT.

WL COORD WNDS W/NEW AND MIA SO THAT WE BLEND WITH CWF AND BIG BEND
ZNS.

ON FWC TEMPS... WL LWR HIGH TEMPS AND RAISE LOWS. POPS 1ST PD LK
GUD... HWVR THNK POPS DROP OFF TOO QUIK NXT TWO PDS... PARTICULARLY IN
LIGHT OF PSBL SLWR STRM MMT. CNSDRNG UNCERTNTY IN FCST... WL SMOOTH
THIS OUT. DISCARDING FAN GUIDNC.

FACIANE/#04

3 81/70/86 ++7
2 80/72/85 ++7
1 80/70/84 ++7

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Oct 4, 11:19 AM CDTTornado WarningTAEWalton56 min
Oct 4, 11:46 AM CDTTornado WarningTAEBay44 min
Oct 4, 12:23 PM CDTTornado WarningTAEWalton52 min
Oct 4, 12:52 PM CDTTornado WarningTAEHolmes53 min
Oct 4, 2:37 PM CDTTornado WarningTAEJackson23 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Florida, 1995Every tornado warning in 1995Tornadoes in 1995

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; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.