Alert archive / Florida / Tornado Warnings in 1998

Tornado Warning 32, NWS Melbourne, FL

March 9, 1998Osceola County, Florida

NWS Melbourne, FL issued this tornado warning at Mar 9, 1998, 1:32 AM EST for Osceola County, Florida. It was in force for 48 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
Mar 9, 1998, 1:32 AM EST (06:32 UTC)
Expired
Mar 9, 1998, 2:20 AM EST
In force
48 min
Issued by
NWS Melbourne, FL
Area
Whole counties

County Osceola County, FL

What was reported inside it

TimeReportWhereRemark
Mar 9, 1:50 AM ESTTornado F0Kissimmee, FLA category F2 tornado touched down briefly in the western part of Kissimmee producing minor damage to about 40 mobile homes. Most of the damage was to carports and awnings.

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 watch it was issued in

The SPC watch in force over the same counties when this warning went out.

IssuedProductOfficeLasted
Mar 9, 1:00 AM ESTTornado WatchSPC6 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Tampa Bay, FL (KTBW), launched 00:00Z, 6.5 hours before the alert went out and 129 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 1998-03-09Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 1169 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 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 1998-03-09The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 238 square meters per square second.1939587897Sfc1 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
1169 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-16 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
873 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
47 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
238 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
163 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
1.0
Supercell composite
4.9

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
TTAA00 KMLB 090632 RRA
TORMLB
FLC097-090720-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MELBOURNE FL
132 AM EST MON MAR 9 1998

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN MELBOURNE FL HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL 220 AM EST
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATION...

IN EAST CENTRAL FLORIDA

   ...OSCEOLA COUNTY
 
AT 130 AM...DOPPLER RADAR IN MELBOURNE INDICATED A TORNADO IN
EASTERN POLK COUNTY. THE STORM PRODUCING THE TORNADO WAS MOVING
NORTHEAST AND WILL REACH LAKE KISSIMMEE BETWEEN 140 AND 145 AM...
AND SHOULD REACH NEAR HOLOPAW BY 200 AM. ANOTHER TORNADO WAS
INDICATED BY RADAR NEAR AVON PARK. THIS TORNADO WAS MOVING QUICKLY
NORTHEAST AND COULD AFFECT KENANSVILLE AFTER 200 AM.
 
IF YOU ARE IN THE PATH OF A TORNADO...ABANDON CARS AND MOBILE
HOMES FOR A REINFORCED BUILDING OR GET INTO A DITCH OR CULVERT.
THE SAFEST PLACE IS AN INTERIOR ROOM SUCH AS A CLOSET ON THE LOWEST
FLOOR OF A STRONG BUILDING. AVOID WINDOWS.

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Mar 8, 11:06 PM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMLBLake, Volusia59 min
Mar 9, 12:36 AM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMLBOsceola64 min
Mar 9, 2:07 AM ESTTornado WarningMLBBrevard63 min
Mar 9, 3:24 AM ESTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMLBOkeechobee31 min
Mar 9, 3:40 AM ESTTornado WarningMLBSaint Lucie50 min

Nearby

Tornado Warnings in Florida, 1998Every tornado warning in 1998Tornadoes in 1998

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.