Alert archive / Georgia / Tornado Watches in 2000

Tornado Watch 809

December 16, 200018 counties in Alabama; 11 counties in Florida; 28 counties in Georgia

The Storm Prediction Center issued this tornado watch at Dec 16, 2000, 10:45 AM CST for 18 counties in Alabama; 11 counties in Florida; 28 counties in Georgia. It was in force for 5 hr.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued
Dec 16, 2000, 10:45 AM CST (16:45 UTC)
Expired
Dec 16, 2000, 4:00 PM CST
In force
5 hr
Issued by
the Storm Prediction Center
All 57 counties

Barbour County, AL, Bullock County, AL, Chambers County, AL, Coffee County, AL, Coosa County, AL, Covington County, AL, Crenshaw County, AL, Dale County, AL, Elmore County, AL, Geneva County, AL, Henry County, AL, Houston County, AL, Lee County, AL, Macon County, AL, Montgomery County, AL, Pike County, AL, Russell County, AL, Tallapoosa County, AL, Bay County, FL, Calhoun County, FL, Franklin County, FL, Gadsden County, FL, Gulf County, FL, Holmes County, FL, Jackson County, FL, Liberty County, FL, Okaloosa County, FL, Walton County, FL, Washington County, FL, Baker County, GA, Calhoun County, GA, Chattahoochee County, GA, Clay County, GA, Crawford County, GA, Decatur County, GA, Early County, GA, Harris County, GA, Lamar County, GA, Macon County, GA, Marion County, GA, Meriwether County, GA, Miller County, GA, Monroe County, GA, Muscogee County, GA, Pike County, GA, Quitman County, GA, Randolph County, GA, Schley County, GA, Seminole County, GA, Stewart County, GA, Sumter County, GA, Talbot County, GA, Taylor County, GA, Terrell County, GA, Troup County, GA, Upson County, GA, Webster County, GA

Warnings issued inside it

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Dec 16, 11:16 AM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTAEDale29 min
Dec 16, 11:27 AM CSTTornado WarningTAEDale, Henry48 min
Dec 16, 12:22 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTAEWalton38 min
Dec 16, 12:25 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXBarbour35 min
Dec 16, 12:34 PM CSTTornado WarningTAEWalton, Washington41 min
Dec 16, 12:50 PM CSTTornado WarningFFCStewart25 min
Dec 16, 1:11 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTAEHolmes, Jackson, Washington49 min
Dec 16, 1:26 PM CSTTornado WarningTAEHolmes, Jackson34 min
Dec 16, 1:49 PM CSTTornado WarningTAEHouston41 min
Dec 16, 2:09 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXCoosa36 min
Dec 16, 2:27 PM CSTTornado WarningTAEEarly48 min
Dec 16, 2:52 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WarningTAEMiller23 min
Dec 16, 3:08 PM CSTTornado WarningTAEBaker, Calhoun, Early52 min
Dec 16, 3:54 PM CSTTornado WarningTAELee, Terrell36 min

The nearest sounding before it

Tallahassee Rgnl, FL (KTLH), launched 12:00Z, 4.8 hours before the alert went out and 161 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 2000-12-16Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 143 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, Tallahassee Rgnl, FL at 12:00Z on 2000-12-16The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 226 square meters per square second.19395878Sfc1 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
143 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-120 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
528 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
37 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
226 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
287 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
1.1

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

102 
WWUS9 KMKC 161712
SEL9  
MKC WW 161711 COR FOR START TIME... 
ALZ000-FLZ000-GAZ000-CWZ000-162200-

URGENT - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
TORNADO WATCH NUMBER 809
STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
1036 AM CST SAT DEC 16 2000

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

   SOUTHEAST AND EAST CENTRAL ALABAMA                            
   THE FLORIDA PANHANDLE                            
   SOUTHWEST AND WEST CENTRAL GEORGIA                            
   COASTAL WATERS                     

EFFECTIVE THIS SATURDAY MORNING AND AFTERNOON FROM 1045 AM UNTIL
400 PM CST.

TORNADOES...HAIL TO 2 INCHES IN DIAMETER...THUNDERSTORM WIND GUSTS
TO 60 MPH...AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING ARE POSSIBLE IN THESE AREAS.

THE TORNADO WATCH AREA IS ALONG AND 70 STATUTE MILES EAST AND WEST
OF A LINE FROM 45 MILES SOUTH SOUTHWEST OF PANAMA CITY FLORIDA TO
15 MILES NORTH NORTHEAST OF LA GRANGE 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...  CONTINUE...WW 808...

DISCUSSION...THUNDERSTORMS DEVELOPING ALONG DEEP-LAYER CONFLUENCE
LINE ORIENTED NNE/SSW ACROSS REGION EXPECTED TO STRENGTHEN WITH
CONTINUED SURFACE HEATING.  ARRIVAL OF STRONGER FLOW ALOFT WILL
FURTHER LENGTHEN ALREADY-LONG HODOGRAPHS TO SUPPORT SUPERCELL
POTENTIAL.  TORNADIC THREAT MAY BE ENHANCED INVOF BACK-DOOR FRONT
EDGING NWD ACROSS ERN AL/SW GA.     

AVIATION...TORNADOES AND A FEW SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH HAIL
SURFACE AND ALOFT TO 2 INCHES.  EXTREME TURBULENCE AND SURFACE WIND
GUSTS TO 50 KNOTS.  A FEW CUMULONIMBI WITH MAXIMUM TOPS TO 500. 
MEAN STORM MOTION VECTOR 23040.

...CORFIDI

331,0834 293,0844 293,0870 331,0861

N

SPC that day

Everything else SPC issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Dec 16, 10:15 AM CSTTornado WatchSPCAutauga, Bibb, Blount, Butler, Chilton, Choctaw and 37 more6 hr
Dec 16, 1:30 PM CSTSevere Thunderstorm WatchSPCBaldwin, Mobile6 hr
Dec 16, 2:30 PM CSTTornado WatchSPCCalhoun, Cherokee, Clay, Cleburne, DeKalb, Etowah and 2 more4 hr
Dec 16, 4:00 PM CSTTornado WatchSPCAutauga, Bibb, Blount, Butler, Calhoun, Chambers and 38 more6 hr
Dec 16, 4:00 PM CSTTornado WatchSPCBarbour, Bullock, Chambers, Coffee, Dale, Geneva and 6 more6 hr
Dec 16, 5:45 PM CSTTornado WatchSPCBay, Calhoun, Franklin, Gadsden, Gulf, Holmes and 9 more4 hr

Nearby

Tornado Watches in Georgia, 2000Tornado Watches in Alabama, 2000Tornado Watches in Florida, 2000Every tornado watch in 2000

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.