Alert archive / Florida / Tornado Warnings in 1996

Tornado Warning 10, NWS Melbourne, FL

March 30, 1996Orange County, Seminole County, Florida

NWS Melbourne, FL issued this tornado warning at Mar 30, 1996, 7:13 PM EST for Orange County, Seminole County, Florida. It was in force for 62 min. 3 reports 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: Mar 30, 1996, 7:13 PM EST (00:13 UTC)
Expired: Mar 30, 1996, 8:15 PM EST
In force: 62 min
Issued by: NWS Melbourne, FL
Area: Whole counties

Counties Orange County, FL, Seminole County, FL

The radar

The Melbourne radar (KMLB), 83 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 00:16 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

Time	Report	Where
Mar 30, 7:22 PM EST	Thunderstorm Wind 58	Chuluota, FL
Mar 30, 7:35 PM EST	Hail 1.75	Christmas, FL
Mar 30, 7:35 PM EST	Hail 1.75	Orlando, 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.

The nearest sounding before it

Tampa Bay, FL (KTBW), launched 00:00Z, 0.2 hours before the alert went out and 150 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-p

Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.

Hodograph

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: 602 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -71 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 1170 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 45 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 124 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 214 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.3
Supercell composite: 2.9

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
TTAA00 KMLB 310015
TORMLB
FLC095-117-310115-
 
BULLETIN - EBS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MELBOURNE FL
713 PM EST SAT MAR 30 1996
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN MELBOURNE HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL  815 PM EST
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS...
 
IN CENTRAL FLORIDA
 
   ...ORANGE COUNTY...SEMINOLE COUNTY
 
AT 712 PM...DOPPLER RADAR IN MELBOURNE SHOWED A SEVERE STORM
THAT HAS PRODUCED A TORNADO AND GOLFBALL SIZE HAIL FROM GENEVA
TO JUST NORTH OF CHRISTMAS. ANOTHER SEVERE STORM EXTENDED FROM
WINDERMERE TO MAITLAND. EACH OF THE STORMS HAS THE POTENTIAL
TO PRODUCE A TORNADO AND LARGE HAIL DURING THE NEXT HOUR. PERSONS
IN THE PATH OF THESE STORMS SHOULD TAKE COVER IMMEDIATELY.
 
THESE ARE DANGEROUS STORMS. PREPARE FOR DAMAGING WIND IN EXCESS OF
58 MPH...LARGE HAIL...AND DEADLY LIGHTNING.  PEOPLE OUTSIDE OR IN
MOBILE HOMES SHOULD MOVE INSIDE A STRONG BUILDING AND STAY AWAY FROM
WINDOWS.

The office that day

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

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Mar 30, 7:09 PM EST	Tornado Warning	MLB	Brevard	66 min
Mar 30, 7:19 PM EST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MLB	Lake, Volusia	56 min
Mar 30, 8:15 PM EST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MLB	Brevard	45 min
Mar 30, 8:20 PM EST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MLB	Volusia	55 min
Mar 30, 8:31 PM EST	Tornado Warning	MLB	Brevard	44 min
Mar 31, 3:52 PM EST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MLB	Lake	38 min
Mar 31, 3:56 PM EST	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MLB	Orange	34 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Florida, 1996 Every tornado warning in 1996 Tornadoes in 1996

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.