Alert archive / Florida / Tornado Watches in 1998
Tornado Watch 41
The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at Feb 16, 1998, 11:30 PM EST for 26 counties in Florida; 19 counties in Georgia. It was in force for 7 hr.
The area
The outline as issued.
The facts
- Issued
- Feb 16, 1998, 11:30 PM EST (04:30 UTC)
- Expired
- Feb 17, 1998, 6:00 AM EST
- In force
- 7 hr
- Issued by
- the Storm Prediction Center
All 45 counties
Alachua County, FL, Baker County, FL, Bradford County, FL, Citrus County, FL, Clay County, FL, Columbia County, FL, Dixie County, FL, Duval County, FL, Flagler County, FL, Gilchrist County, FL, Hamilton County, FL, Hernando County, FL, Jefferson County, FL, Lafayette County, FL, Levy County, FL, Madison County, FL, Marion County, FL, Nassau County, FL, Pasco County, FL, Putnam County, FL, Saint Johns County, FL, Sumter County, FL, Suwannee County, FL, Taylor County, FL, Union County, FL, Wakulla County, FL, Atkinson County, GA, Bacon County, GA, Brantley County, GA, Brooks County, GA, Bryan County, GA, Camden County, GA, Charlton County, GA, Chatham County, GA, Clinch County, GA, Echols County, GA, Glynn County, GA, Lanier County, GA, Liberty County, GA, Long County, GA, Lowndes County, GA, McIntosh County, GA, Pierce County, GA, Ware County, GA, Wayne County, GA
Warnings issued inside it
6 tornado, severe thunderstorm and flash flood warnings for its counties while it was in force.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 16, 11:32 PM EST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | JAX | Baker | 48 min |
| Feb 16, 11:52 PM EST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | JAX | Nassau | 48 min |
| Feb 17, 12:12 AM EST | Tornado Warning | JAX | Camden, Charlton | 33 min |
| Feb 17, 12:38 AM EST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | JAX | Columbia, Gilchrist, Suwannee | 32 min |
| Feb 17, 12:54 AM EST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | JAX | Baker, Union | 31 min |
| Feb 17, 1:18 AM EST | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | JAX | Duval, Nassau | 47 min |
The nearest sounding before it
Jacksonville, FL (KJAX), launched 00:00Z, 4.5 hours before the alert went out and 96 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
- 21 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -263 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 859 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 56 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 155 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 244 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 0.0
- Supercell composite
- 0.1
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
599 WWUS9 KMKC 170402 SEL1 MKC WW 170402 FLZ000-GAZ000-171100- BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 41 STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK 1102 PM EST MON FEB 16 1998 THE STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A TORNADO WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF NORTHERN AND CENTRAL FLORIDA SOUTHEAST GEORGIA AND ADJACENT COASTAL WATERS EFFECTIVE THIS MONDAY NIGHT AND TUESDAY MORNING FROM 1130 PM UNTIL 600 AM EST. TORNADOES...HAIL TO 2 INCHES IN DIAMETER...THUNDERSTORM WIND GUSTS TO 95 MPH...AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE IN THESE AREAS. THE TORNADO WATCH AREA IS ALONG AND 90 STATUTE MILES EITHER SIDE OF A LINE FROM 60 MILES SOUTHWEST OF CROSS CITY FLORIDA TO 65 MILES EAST NORTHEAST OF BRUNSWICK GEORGIA. REMEMBER...A TORNADO WATCH MEANS CONDITIONS ARE FAVORABLE FOR TORNADOES AND SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS IN AND CLOSE TO THE WATCH AREA. PERSONS IN THESE AREAS SHOULD BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR THREATENING WEATHER CONDITIONS AND LISTEN FOR LATER STATEMENTS AND POSSIBLE WARNINGS. OTHER WATCH INFORMATION...THIS TORNADO WATCH REPLACES TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 39. WATCH NUMBER 39 WILL NOT BE IN EFFECT AFTER 1130 PM EST. CONTINUE...WW 40... DISCUSSION...A SERIES OF LEWPS AND BOW ECHOES WITH EMBEDDED SUPERCELLS POSSIBLE ACROSS PARTS OF FL AND S GA DURING THE OVERNIGHT HOURS. LOW-LEVEL UPLIFT SHOULD REMAIN FOCUSED ALONG INTENSIFYING RAIN-COOLED BOUNDARY ASSOCIATED WITH THUNDERSTORMS NOW OVER N FL/S GA...WITH BOUNDARY FARTHER TO THE S CONTINUING TO DISSIPATE. CONVECTION SHOULD BECOME BETTER-ORGANIZED LATER TONIGHT OVER WATCH AREA...WITH A GOOD THREAT FOR DAMAGING WINDS...AS LARGE SCALE ASCENT INCREASES AHEAD OF APPROACHING UPPER LEVEL SPEED MAX. AVIATION...TORNADOES AND A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH HAIL SURFACE AND ALOFT TO 2 INCHES. EXTREME TURBULENCE AND SURFACE WIND GUSTS TO 80 KNOTS. A FEW CUMULONIMBI WITH MAXIMUM TOPS TO 520. MEAN STORM MOTION VECTOR 23040. ...CORFIDI 300,0844 322,0811 301,0792 275,0825
SPC that day
Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 16, 7:00 PM EST | Tornado Watch | SPC | Bay, Calhoun, Escambia, Gulf, Holmes, Jackson and 4 more | 6 hr |
| Feb 17, 3:30 AM EST | Tornado Watch | SPC | Brevard, Charlotte, DeSoto, Hardee, Highlands, Hillsborough and 13 more | 7 hr |
| Feb 17, 3:00 AM EST | Severe Thunderstorm Watch | SPC | Chattooga, Dade | 6 hr |
| Feb 17, 6:15 AM EST | Severe Thunderstorm Watch | SPC | Baldwin, Banks, Barrow, Bartow, Bibb, Butts and 61 more | 6 hr |
| Feb 17, 9:30 AM EST | Severe Thunderstorm Watch | SPC | Columbia, Elbert, Hart, Lincoln, McDuffie, Oglethorpe and 4 more | 6 hr |
Nearby
Tornado Watches in Florida, 1998Tornado Watches in Georgia, 1998Every tornado watch 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; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive.