Alert archive / Florida / Tornado Watches in 1998

Tornado Watch 809

September 2, 199838 counties in Florida

The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at Sep 2, 1998, 3:00 PM EDT for 38 counties in Florida. It was in force for 8 hr.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
Sep 2, 1998, 3:00 PM EDT (19:00 UTC)
Expired
Sep 2, 1998, 11:00 PM EDT
In force
8 hr
Issued by
the Storm Prediction Center
All 38 counties

Alachua County, FL, Bay County, FL, Bradford County, FL, Calhoun County, FL, Citrus County, FL, Clay County, FL, Columbia County, FL, Dixie County, FL, Flagler County, FL, Franklin County, FL, Gadsden County, FL, Gilchrist County, FL, Gulf County, FL, Hernando County, FL, Hillsborough County, FL, Holmes County, FL, Jackson County, FL, Jefferson County, FL, Lafayette County, FL, Lake County, FL, Leon County, FL, Levy County, FL, Liberty County, FL, Madison County, FL, Marion County, FL, Orange County, FL, Pasco County, FL, Pinellas County, FL, Polk County, FL, Putnam County, FL, Saint Johns County, FL, Sumter County, FL, Suwannee County, FL, Taylor County, FL, Union County, FL, Volusia County, FL, Wakulla County, FL, Washington County, FL

The radar

The Tallahassee radar (KTLH), 79 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 19:00 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.

Warnings issued inside it

21 tornado, severe thunderstorm and flash flood warnings for its counties while it was in force.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Sep 2, 3:18 PM EDTTornado WarningTBWPasco57 min
Sep 2, 3:27 PM EDTTornado WarningTBWHillsborough18 min
Sep 2, 3:31 PM EDTTornado WarningTBWHernando29 min
Sep 2, 3:56 PM EDTTornado WarningTBWHernando34 min
Sep 2, 3:58 PM EDTTornado WarningTBWCitrus47 min
Sep 2, 4:31 PM EDTTornado WarningJAXMarion59 min
Sep 2, 4:31 PM EDTTornado WarningTBWHernando, Sumter49 min
Sep 2, 5:20 PM EDTTornado WarningTBWSumter25 min
Sep 2, 5:21 PM EDTTornado WarningMLBLake64 min
Sep 2, 5:29 PM EDTTornado WarningJAXMarion56 min
Sep 2, 6:06 PM EDTTornado WarningMLBOrange64 min
Sep 2, 6:39 PM EDTTornado WarningJAXAlachua, Marion, Putnam61 min
Sep 2, 6:50 PM EDTTornado WarningJAXGilchrist65 min
Sep 2, 7:20 PM EDTTornado WarningMLBBrevard, Volusia60 min
Sep 2, 7:55 PM EDTTornado WarningTAEFranklin, Wakulla50 min
Sep 2, 8:43 PM EDTTornado WarningTAEFranklin, Wakulla47 min
Sep 2, 8:44 PM EDTTornado WarningJAXAlachua61 min
Sep 2, 8:54 PM EDTTornado WarningJAXPutnam61 min
Sep 2, 9:30 PM EDTTornado WarningJAXClay55 min
Sep 2, 10:18 PM EDTTornado WarningJAXAlachua, Bradford47 min
Sep 2, 10:23 PM EDTTornado WarningJAXClay62 min

The nearest sounding before it

Tallahassee Rgnl, FL (KTLH), launched 12:00Z, 7.0 hours before the alert went out and 79 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 1998-09-02Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 8 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 1998-09-02The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 33 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
8 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-159 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1144 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
18 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
33 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
142 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.

682 
WWUS9 KMKC 021829
SEL9  
MKC WW 021829
FLZ000-030300-

URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 809
STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
229 PM EDT WED SEP 2 1998

THE STORM PREDICTION CENTER HAS ISSUED A
TORNADO WATCH FOR PORTIONS OF

   CENTRAL AND NORTHERN FLORIDA                            
   AND ADJACENT COASTAL WATERS

EFFECTIVE THIS WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING FROM 300 PM UNTIL
1100 PM EDT.

TORNADOES...THUNDERSTORM WIND GUSTS TO 80 MPH...AND DANGEROUS
LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE IN THESE AREAS.

THE TORNADO WATCH AREA IS ALONG AND 80 STATUTE MILES EITHER SIDE OF
A LINE FROM 30 MILES WEST SOUTHWEST OF PANAMA CITY FLORIDA TO 10
MILES NORTHEAST OF ORLANDO FLORIDA.

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...  CONTINUE...WW 808...

DISCUSSION...SHEAR IS EXPECTED TO INCREASE OVER NORTHERN AND
CENTRAL FLORIDA AS HURRICANE MOVES TOWARDS COAST.  RISK OF
TORNADOES WITH BANDS OF THUNDERSTORMS FROM BOUNDARY OVER CENTRAL FL
NWWD INTO PORTIONS FL PANHANDLE.


AVIATION...TORNADOES AND A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH EXTREME
TURBULENCE AND SURFACE WIND GUSTS TO 70 KNOTS.  A FEW CUMULONIMBI
WITH MAXIMUM TOPS TO 500.  MEAN STORM MOTION VECTOR 21025.


...JOHNS

310,0854 294,0804 273,0813 285,0863

Nearby

Tornado Watches in Florida, 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; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.